By Guest Blogger Samantha Stauf
Most interviews begin with some variation of the following question: where do you see yourself in five years? Most people realize that the question is this not so cleverly masqueraded question: how much return on our investment will we receive if we hire you? A good chunk of us probably lied when that particular question came up. I’m looking for a long term job. From what I’ve heard so far, I believe this will be it.
Honest or dishonest. The idea that one employee will remain at a business for a large chunk of their life is archaic. According to Forbes, most individuals remain at a work place for an average of 4.4 years before seeking employment elsewhere. Even if you’re only a couple of years in, and generally satisfied, chances are you might have a job change on the horizon.
The trick? Don’t let that job change knock you off your feet, recognize the signs that a job change is eminent, and start the job search process before circumstances escalate.
Here are 5 clues that you need to start working on your resume:
photo credit: Pinterest
The Before Work Dread
Situation: The alarm goes off. You mourn for a second that the workday has once again begun. Then it hits you. You can play hooky; they’ll never know! What follows is a ten minute debate about the pros and cons of not going to work that day.
Calling in sick is tempts everyone from time to time. According to this infographic by the University of Southern California, an increase in the number of sick days is a sign of workplace unhappiness. Estimates show that unhappy people take around 15 sick days per year. Once you begin to get perilously close to that number, you should start updating your resume. Too many “sick days” could get you fired eventually.
The Work Doesn’t Challenge You
Situation: You spend hours doing mind numbing work in a cubicle. And they don’t even allow you to listen to music!
Work satisfaction is vital to staff morale, professional happiness, and company productivity. Part of work satisfaction is obtaining a job that will allow you to utilize your skills or abilities in a manner that is not tedious. This means that a lot of lower level jobs will eventually lead to work fatigue and dissatisfaction. Once you find yourself dreading going to work, procrastinating certain tedious tasks, and generally becoming less productive, you might want to begin looking for another job.
Announcement: We’ve made Dwight Schrute the New Manager!
Reaction: That guy’s an Idiot! Why is everyone promoted to management incompetent?
An incompetent manager can lose clients, mismanage employees, and ultimately hurt the company financially. Before you jump ship, let’s take a moment to just verify the new manager’s incompetence. First off, did you have an illogical burning hatred of the guy before the individual rose to management? Yes? Oh dear. Unfortunately, one person’s illogical hatred does not make an incompetent manager.
Here’s my advice: wait it out and try to get over your hatred…oh, and spiff up your resume. Just in case the manager makes a colossal company closing mistake, or you can’t take much more of the incompetence.
Not Hiring Talent…Just Hiring
Situation: How did you get surrounded with such a large collection of incompetence? Is that guy watching Netflix? How do they still work here? I wish I could watch movies all day instead of work.
Many companies have a minimum number of employees that they require to function. When they slip below that number, the hiring process begins. Sometimes in the haste to fill a position, the individual in charge of hiring forgets this important tenant presented by Ohio University, companies should “hire to improve, not to replace.” Remember, a company is only as strong as their weakest link.
A team can share the burden of one weak link, once the number of “bad” employees who show no sign or desire to improve expands to one-third of your team, you should probably search for employment elsewhere. The job search will become critical if management shows no sign of recognizing or dealing with the situation. It’s best not to bind yourself to that sinking ship.
Physical Strain
Situation: Need to work through the pain…just five more hours. Oh god! Where’s my Icy Hot?
Every job deteriorates the body in a variety of horrifying ways. Carpenters have the potential for life-changing injuries due to equipment accidents. Individuals in the nursing profession may experience back and knee injuries. Sedentary employees like cashiers and writers may experience carpal tunnel syndrome. Once the injuries set in it can take time, planning, and rest to recover.
While the individual must take moves like limiting hand use (in the case of carpal tunnel) for recovery at home, how a company responds to these injuries will define how fast you should start updating your resume. When my hands started to exhibit the signs of carpal tunnel, my employee purchased an ergonomic keyboard for me. On the other side of the spectrum, injuries at my mom’s work at met with suspicion and grumbles about workers comp cases from the managers. In either case, individuals must listen to the signs that their body and their company are sending them.
A career is no longer a lifelong investment. Many jobs are temporary experience in the path of life, leading you to the right one – the one where you feel like you’ve arrived home. Once you understand this fact, you can start honoring the signals that it might be time for your job search to begin. That foreknowledge will give you the time to make your next job the best one yet.
Photo credit: Pinterest
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About
Samantha Stauf is a career expert writing on all things career, marketing and entrepreneurship related. She has a degree in technical writing and is currently in the marketing department of a new start-up.
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It’s spring, so keeping in line with our spring cleaning posts on WomenOnTheFence.com, today we are making time for SPRING TUNING OUR CAREERS! Are you currently in this position jonesing to leave your current company in search of new opportunities? If you’ve come out on the other side and have any advice or wisdom to share, please do so below.
