Thinking about Quitting Your Job? Here’s What to Do First

Start here. Think about where you are in your life and work now. 

It may be tempting to leave a job that seems to be going nowhere. But before you quit, see if you can turn your complaints into solutions.

“Let your complaints about problems move you to solutions.” ― Jon Gordon

Have you noticed how sometimes scenarios at work, at home, or in your personal life seem to emerge over and over, like patterns, until you’re forced to figure out what to learn from them? Often new opportunities come from those experiences.  

Those scenarios often tell us that we must find a way to understand and see things from a higher perspective. 

Essentially, you have to learn the perspective of your next best self, or you won’t be able to make the leap. Often this applies to work scenarios where many desire a change but find it hard to leave. This whole “I hate it here, but I can’t leave…” is like a bad relationship.  You know you should let it go, but something is keeping you there, and that something needs to be explored. It means it’s time to dive in and learn from it.  Consider that it may not be the system or environment that’s the problem – it may be your own way of thinking and beliefs.

It’s time to shift perspective.

Learning to become more present and appreciative at work, for example, can remind you to notice all the details that are in fact working for and not against you. Chances are, you’re already using some of the basic skills you’ll end up using in your future endeavors, and that can correspond to an even bigger purpose. The great news is you get to choose which of those get grouped into that purpose. Whether physical, social, or emotional skills, they have all served you in some way up to this point. 

It’s not to say this will be easy or fast.

In fact, it can take some time before you give up your internal fight about connecting with your true passion. Changing gears from where you are in your current career without being angry takes some processing and realizations.  Things like the awareness that work doesn’t have to be so hard all the time. That resistance isn’t just a mental game where you believe certain things and speak in certain ways. It also manifests in our bodies as aches, pains, and in the worst case, diseases.  And sometimes we need to hit those pain points, literally, to finally make that change we need.

Disease is, in fact, a dis-ease with something in your life that is causing you stress and discomfort. 

Stress is the ultimate form of internal resistance against what is happening in our environment. And most people allow it to overtake their lives instead of exploring the reasons why it even happens. Don’t let that happen to you. The struggle is real, but it doesn’t have to be.  

Learning how to shift your mindset can help you know if you’re making the right choices. It can take you to amazing heights and help you learn something fresh and new. If there’s one thing immensely helpful, it’s to trust your gut when your intuition tells you to stop, reflect and choose again. You can start to see your current situation in a new way with all the elements that have been serving you and helping you grow.

Start here. Think about where you are in your life and work now. 

Can you think of any areas that you enjoy? This indicates you might be using a skill or talent you’re good at. Is there a project where you felt recognized, like you’re contributing something of value?  Perhaps there have been times people came to you as a subject matter expert to help them solve a problem. Embrace them all and list them until you figure out the details of what fulfills you and where you can contribute as you move forward. To that end you can also note removing the types of skills, projects and people you do not desire to work with. That’s the valuable lesson in understanding your complaints and having them serve you.

Remember, it’s not necessarily your career, your family, or your environment that dictates your next step. Use all you’ve learned with your intuitive sense to connect to your purpose, and the talents and skills you enjoy using that can be a real contribution to the world.

Related content:

6 Factors to Make Work Meaningful

3 Things You Can Do To You Show Your Employees You Value The

Fight or Flight: The Importance of Emotional Intelligence

Why Do We Repress Our Emotions At Work?