I'm about to quit my job
I'm not good at making decisions. Especially big ones. And lately it always seems I take the wrong path. So I am working out the pro and cons. Advice is clearly appreciated.
Should I Stay:
Should I Stay:
- I need money.
- Its not that hard a job.
- It’s a 35 hour workweek.
- Pay is slightly better than temping.
- This is clearly not the job I thought it was.
- I will be leaving them further in the lurch if I quit down the line.
- I will not be allowed time off to spend with my visiting friends.
- My security clearance might be coming through after all, though I’m not sure exactly when.
- There is no progression possible.
- I am learning nothing.
- I am not challenged.
- Everything here is painfully paper-based.
- I have to get up at 6:30am and catch three buses to get to work.
- I can get temping work (closer to home).
- I receive no guidance or supervision.
- I’m bored.
- Moneys not that good.
- While the people I work with are nice enough, I do not fit in at all (All middle aged women from the suburbs).
- Leaving this job gives me more time to interview/apply for others.
3 buses you say? That would seem to push the 35 hour week out to a 45 hour week. I was stuck with a similar problem at MedFac and it never got any better.
I also not sure I could put up with a paper-based office - yuck!
I would also probably quit if I could not get time off when friends were around.
and think about the advice you would give someone you cared about if they listed the same as you did! thats the best advice you can get :)
The 35 hour week and its an easy job are useless if you are bored out of you mind- making 35 hours seem like 45! ( I've jsut read the comment about the 3 buses making it 45 hours so now I am amending that to 55 hours)
I guess the questions are:
1. Will you get regular temping work or could you find yourself in between jobs for a couple of weeks.
2. Will the temping work lead to something, stimulate you, teach you new skills.
If so then I am saying Go!
Personally I think temping is a great way to learn new stuff and figure out what you want, increase your confidence etc- provided of course you are not with a horrible agency!!!!
I reckon make a decision and don't look back. Cos even if its the wrong decision, at least you have overcome your ability to make decisions.
As a great Irish politician once said ( ah I love using my irishness to back up an argument) You can make three decisions and 2 of them may be wrong, but at least you have made one right decision which is better than a fool who makes no decisions and does nothing. This was before the Celtic Tiger kicked off but no worries.
I don't know what to advise you
This topic is particularly relevant to me since I'm having similar thoughts to you... except that I'm not about to quit my job. Just considering a career change.
The comments above all have good points to them.
However, if it's not too late, can I add an alternative view?
That is: I think you should stay in the job until you have something to go to. Employers tend to prefer to hire people who are already working, in my experience. How long have you been in your current job? I think it is better to stick it out, even if you don't like it, otherwise potential new employers may wonder why you aren't currently employed. They may also be concerned that you won't stick around in the new position, and since it takes a lot of time and money to advertise, interview and hire someone, they want to be sure that the person will stay in the job.
Anyway, just wanted to add another viewpoint to the conversation!
Jen's point about your CV is a relevant one too. Having interviewed and shortlisted quite a few times now, I have to say that an employer will look at the timelines in your employment history, and the question of why you left that job and went to temping will come up in their minds. It wouldn't rule out you for an interview, but odd timelines and gaps can put a CV that looks borderline onto the do-not-interview pile, because the interviewer/HR person figures there's a fair chance you had some sort of problem in that position (and no-one wants employees who have problems in their positions).
Of course, you've gotta balance that against the suck factor, and how much the job restrains your ability to apply for other jobs and go to interviews. There was a good article in the New Yorker about commuting time and how it affects your life: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/04/16/070416fa_fact_paumgarten
In summary: I'd stay but actively search for work, but that's because I'm a chicken. A True Warrior would quit, set the place on fire, and hunt down all their childrens and children's children and slay them all.
I just read about your angiogram experience. I underwent one on the 30th of April 2007 and have had ringing in my ears (tinnitus) ever since. I have been trying to find others to whom this has happened and you are the only other so far.
My best wishes to you.