Job opportunities sometimes appear more appealing on paper than they are in reality. But when your career starts making you doubt whether it’s worth getting out of bed in the morning, it’s time to take a step back and reassess.
Facing up to the fact that the new workplace isn’t a good fit might be discouraging especially if you’ve changed careers before or left a good one.
However, it is vital to realise when something isn’t suiting you or your career plans.
But how can one be sure that your current career isn’t the right one for you? Here are a handful of signs that might aid you in deciphering if your career is the right career for you.
Your job brings out your worst side
We’re all nervous at first, but what you’re experiencing today is nothing like what you felt when you first started. When this happens, any reservations you may have had about your skills are amplified. You appear like a fraud, an imposter. In short, you’re feeling a little off-kilter.
If you feel that this position isn’t right for you, you’ll begin to doubt yourself and your self-confidence will take a nosedive. No one wants to be in that situation.
Note any new behaviours you’ve developed to cope with this undesirable role. Self-destructive behaviours such as smoking, overeating (or undereating), excessive drinking, or any other self-destructive tendency should be resolved quickly.
If you feel like your job is robbing a piece of you each day, it’s time to put down the staplers and look for a career that’ll bring out the best in you.
You feel mentally tired
Other signs of being in the wrong line of work include being mentally fatigued every day and feeling like you haven’t achieved anything. This is normal on occasion, but when it’s the norm, it implies you’re unsuited to the work you’re performing.
When you’re working, you should be able to feel like you’re in the zone most of the time. After a long day at the office, you’ll be tired but not emptied.
These are the prime signs that tell you you’re more stressed-out than you appear on the outside.
Your goals are not the same as your company’s
Building a career begins with defining your career goals. This will help you focus on your task so that you can produce results that make you proud. When your professional ambitions don’t coincide with the company’s, you sure are in the wrong place.
To be successful, and most importantly happy, you must align your own ambitions with the company’s aims.
You took on the job because you ‘want’ not because you ‘need’
A want is legitimate, it’s us vindicating “why shouldn’t I want this?” But a need is sincerely felt — it’s a sensation.
To find out that the career you’re in is the right fit for you, shoot yourself a simple question. “What really are you hoping to get from this job”? answering from the perspective of ‘want’ will put you in an incorrect position.
To cure that, feed into the need this work satisfies, and afterward make the changes you desire.
It’s no longer fun
There’s no truth to it that a job isn’t meant to be fun or entertaining. Everything is fun when you love and adore what you’re doing. The excitement to get out of bed to get back to whatever you left unfinished last night is the best feeling anyone can have.
If you’ve reached a point in your career when you’ve ceased progressing and see no potential growth opportunities in your present job or field, it’s time to make a change. Workplace boredom can strip you of your creativity and your confidence.
It’s time to stir things up if you’re jaded and lacking enthusiasm because in any field, be it a commercial or entertainment, growth is vital to your long-term success.
When your skills are not being used to their full potential
All those years of skill-building, experience, and training and you’re letting it go to waste. As a result, you’ll be demoralised and disheartened about your career prospects.
There is little sense in doing something that does not utilise at least a few of your skills. Having the right skillset gives you the confidence and ability to thrive in any role — knowing how to do when to do it utilise your skills and knowledge.
This means that you can’t improve on your skills if they’re not being used in the first place. If that’s the case, it’s high time you get up and look for a better job that sees your skills and uses them as they are meant to be.
Your achievements are never enough
You are working day and night to achieve your goals but your seniors and firm are never satisfied by the results.
You can take this as another sign that you probably are not in the right career, if not in the right company.
Finding meaning in your work is essential for career satisfaction. If you’re facing the same problems over and over again, ask yourself, Is it really worth it? Are you in right place? Keep in mind that no career is permanent.
Achieving your goals inside your current organisation and dealing with your manager will be your responsibility once you’ve hit these roadblocks.
If you fail to overcome that, type a resignation letter and put it on your manager’s desk, and explore until you find the right fit.
You no longer cherish Sundays
Some people suffer from the Sunday night blues every week. It means that they fear going back to work.
This kind of job anxiety is anything but healthy and if it reaches a breaking point, it might even cause your career to stagnate.
Remember it’s never too late to move on and get the job you deserve.
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