Time To Quit?

For the last few months, I’ve seen numerous titles of articles and blogs about signs it’s time to quit your job. Google it and you will see what I mean. While there are some definite cues you you should consider leaving, be careful that you aren’t unduly swayed. There are three factors that will steer you in the wrong direction.

Three Factors

The first factor is that, under normal conditions, the negatives of a situation influence our judgment far more than the positives. This is referred to as the Negativity Bias or Negativity Effect. It is far easier to spot all the “bad” things in your firm than to identify the “good” things.

An article from the American Psychological Association’s Psychology Bulletin, stated:

“There is ample empirical evidence for an asymmetry in the way that adults use positive versus negative information to make sense of their world; specifically, across an array of psychological situations and tasks, adults display a negativity bias, or the propensity to attend to, learn from, and use negative information far more than positive information.”

The Negativity Effect is active under normal conditions. Imagine how much more influential it is under stressful conditions (think busy season, compression, overload, overwhelm).

The second factor is the myth that there is an ideal job out there waiting for you to stumble upon it. There is no such thing. EVERY job is a tradeoff. There are some things that work for you and some things you would rather be different. The challenge is to make sure your “gains” outweigh the “losses.” Once you realize this, the losses become sacrifices you willingly accept for the benefits you gain.

For instance, the additional effort to get ready for work and travel into the office could be an acceptable sacrifice for the camaraderie and energy you get from others at the office. Or, working diligently in less demanding periods in order to limit last minute deadline compression. Or, saying “no” to another cookie in order to preserve your awesome beach bod. It’s all a tradeoff.

The third factor that will steer you in the wrong direction is what you are told is true. For instance, too many professionals are led to believe that, if they made more money, they would be happier. Or, if they had more time off for their hobbies and leisure, they would be more satisfied. In fact, there is no correlation. Here’s a list of “reasons” that people have used for quitting their jobs in order to be “happier.”

Not Time To Quit

So, protect yourself from making bad decisions due to your Negativity Bias, the “perfect job” myth, and believing what others say is true. If you are wondering about whether you are in the right place, there are other signs to look for. But that’s for another Monday Message!