When is it okay to quit your job?

If you absolutley HATE your job, you might as well quit b/c you will get fired for poor performance in the long run (or short run depending on how bad it is).

Although your last post discussed the tactics one should pursue if they suffer from a bad boss, the same goes for “bad” jobs.

When you find yourself saddled with a less than stellar professional venture, you should reasses if it’s the job or if it’s you.

On that note, knowing when to quit a less than satisfying job is probably the least of one’s worries if they find themselves in such a situation.

You should never quit a job unless you have another one lined up.

Is it cool? The employer probably doesn’t think so, but you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do. If you don’t have a bit of money saved up and a solid backup plan, however, I think it’s wise to stick it out for as long as you can so that you give yourself time to make another, smarter move.

@ Raven – Super smart to remind me of my own points : ). I agree that if you have a disagreeable attitude towards your job, you’ll end up getting fired anyway so you might as well save yourself the aggravation. I think some people (myself included in the past!) just need the fresh start when nothing seems to be working.

@ Dan – Never, ever? It could just be the kick in the pants that person needs…

@ JR – The easiest way to take risks is to be prepared, eh? Totally. Building an emergency fund is some of the smartest advice I’ve ever taken. It gives you a certain freedom to make smart choices.

Yeah, I agree with Raven that if you absolutely hate it you might as well go ahead and quit, as long as you have some plan for getting by in the meantime. It’s better than being stuck at a job that makes you absolutely miserable.

I think the decision to quit depends on the person.

If this is one unique situation where the job really isn’t working then I would say get out before that unhappiness seeps into other areas of your life.

However, if this is a pattern, and you’re constantly finding yourself unhappy or in “bad jobs” I’d suggest doing some serious introspection.

@ Nisha – Hear, hear. It’s so scary for some though and easier to be miserable instead of taking the risk. Great article on Brazen today about a girl who is taking the leap!

@ Marie – Thanks for bringing up if you find yourself in a pattern of bad jobs – that certainly deserves some thought and you should be careful that you’re not kidding yourself : )

I think the important point here is not to get into a cycle of quitting multiple jobs when you don’t like/love them right away – once is probably acceptable (and probably healthy for the sake of your insanity), but don’t make it a habit, or you’ll have a hard time explaining yourself and finding another job in the future.

I guess this is an argument for taking caution and asking a lot of questions before you accept the job in the first place.

I think it’s “a given” that companies want to hire someone who has a job, especially in these times when the competition is so strong. If you quit, they wonder if you will quit them too. It could cost you your next opportunity to quit before having a new job. Did your friend HAVE another job?

I agree with Dan on this one. Don’t quit unless you’ve already gotten another job. The reason is simple. Income you hate is better than no income at all.

That said, there are other approaches to this. I wonder if your friend tried talking to her management team about what was making her unhappy. Sometimes just expressing your discontent and working to improve what can be improved can make all the difference.

There is also the point that a few other commenters have made, would you hire someone who had just quit a position after only a few weeks? I think a lot of hiring managers would see that as a dangerous sign and make you less likely to be hired.

The question is what is a job? It’s amazing to me how we view a job. We act like it’s something that’s always been that way. What about like in the early 1900’s? Most people worked on a farm, they produced something. Today only 1 in 5 people actually make anything. The other four people are knowledge workers. In today’s “new economy” it’s not about a job. It’s about your talent. My two cents, become so talented you quit giving away most of what you earn. Forget a job and what it means today. People like me are looking for talent, not to fill a job.

Best regards,
Jeff

Jeff Payne

@ Allie – That makes a lot of sense – you certainly don’t want to make it a habit and I think that could be quite dangerous on any path – calculated risk is good advice : ) Thanks for the comment!

@ Linda – I don’t believe she did, but we’re all willing to withstand different amounts of risk. Hopefully it works out for our reader.

@ theo – Practical: “Income is better than no income.” And our reader did talk to her boss about trying to change the status quo to no avail increasing her frustration. I do think you bring up a good point about the hiring managers – if it were me, I just wouldn’t put the two to three week job on my resume.

@ Jeff – Great points and I think that’s important to remember in the new workforce. Appreciate the comment!

I think this is hard to respond to without more information. Did she do research and ask lots of questions to see if the position was a good fit for her and that she would like it? If not, it’s her fault. But if the hiring manager misrepresented the company or the job (i.e., she thought she’d be interfacing with clients and doing real work but is really making copies and getting coffee), then she should not feel bad at all about quitting.

In any case, I would certainly be honest with my boss before quitting. If her expectations weren’t being met for whatever reason, her boss might have been able to help with that. If she didn’t like her coworkers, that’s more difficult, but probably merits more than 2 weeks and some social strategies to try to make it better.

Realizing you’re not being a good fit for a job is something that can be felt on by both the employee and the employer. It just may take longer for them to realize it. Sticking around out of protocol is almost like delaying the inevitable. I would continually keep communicating with my boss, you might be able to negotiate a small exit package or some help finding something that could be a better fit.

I had a friend leave grad school and go into a job that she quickly realized was not right for her at all. And her boss realized it too. So they worked something out so she could reclassify the position as an internship on her resume, change up her hours so she could go on interviews and she trained her replacement.

And they all lived happily ever after, or something.

Deciding you’re going to leave is one thing, how the terms of your departure play out are all up for negotiation, for it to go in your favor or against. Be smart about it.

I think if you hate your new job, you should decide WHY you hate it. I think it really is something that you just dislike because of the work, etc., then you probably need to asses your priorities. Even my favorite jobs were sometimes awful. Moving up the chain requires you to do lots of undesirable stuff sometimes.

But the experience of good connections and contacts, is something that’s massively underrated. I’ve never left a place without someone of influence being able to vouch for me in a way that if I had them as a reference, they’d be able to say good things about me.

The only time I didn’t, I was an intern and I never let that happen again. That experience taught me more about professional life than anything.

Young employees can’t allow themselves to be infected by the sickness of the workplace fever that turns them into cynical, whiny people who hate everything about the workplace — their boss, their tasks, their clients — because it doesn’t reflect well on them at all.

Leaving is fine, but I believe you should only leave to move up. Leaving to make a lateral move is a bad idea and it makes you look like a job hopper with no loyalty.

I agree that it depends on the persons situation. If the person has kids, needs insurance and doesn’t have much of a financial reserve built up to stick it out for at least 6 months of searching for a new job, then I don’t think it would be wise.

Prior to joining my current organization, there was a story about an employee who came in, worked for 4 days and then left because they were not happen with the way the organization was being managed. That person then went back to their current employer.

Another question related to this topic is: I have another job lined up but my current employer just offered me 10% over the other guy (assuming the benefits are similar); do you stay or go?

This sort of question, to me, doesn’t seem to have a blanket answer. It depends upon the person and the job and other factors that are important to know.

I don’t think you can say that someone should undoubtedly have something lined up before leaving a job when you don’t understand the circumstances surrounding their situation. On the other hand, you can’t say, “Yes! Quit! Of course, if you hate it… quit!”

There’s no right or wrong answer. There’s not even ONE answer that could apply to everyone in the situation that Rebecca points out.

The only thing I would have to say about this (without giving a definitive answer) is that: settling early is setting yourself up for settling later. There is ALWAYS going to be a reason not to quit a job you dislike. Always. There’s always an opportunity to settle and subsequently an opportunity to take a risk.

I have a post up on my blog about breaking rules that I think goes along with this. http://www.intersectedblog.com/2009/02/24/break-all-the-rules

One thing that you can do if you leave is to provide constructive feedback to HR. It’s not a time to rant or leave in a blaze of glory, especially if it’s only been a few weeks, but HR may not realize that a job was misrepresented, or that the interview process wasn’t accurate, or perhaps where there disconnect may have occurred.

I knew a VP of HR who kept asking why the entry-level roles in his company had such high turnover. It turned out they were hiring Ivy-League Gen-Yers to handle expenses and book travel. The “great opportunity” was actually a basic admin job, but it wasn’t conveyed that way as part of the recruitment and hiring process. They found they could hire better fits who would stay longer and be happy.

I think she made the right decision regardless of whether she had another job lined up or not.

Last year, I had a job that made me miserable every day, and especially on Sunday nights when I knew I’d had work the next day. It was a bad environment, and it didn’t take me long to realize I didn’t enjoy working there. I stuck it out for six months because I wanted to help the founder succeed, but when my superior changed my job to something that completely unsuited me, I knew it was time to go. I gave my 2 week notice the next day.

I didn’t have a job lined up, but I knew I would rather wait tables than work for that company any longer. I’ve since started my own business as a writer, and have been a hundred times happier than when I was working for my former employer – even though my paycheck isn’t as consistent. I know now that I probably should have quit even earlier.

If you know a job isn’t right for you immediately, it’s better for you and the company to get out and find something better. The company shouldn’t want workers who hate being there, and they should respect your decision. Zappos apparently offers employees a buy-out of $1000 to quit after a month if they’re not happy. It’s worth that much to them to have employees who want to work for them.

I think people need to proceed with caution when dropping a job–I write resumes so I look at it from that standpoint. Also, if you have a job that you don’t necessarily love and nothing else is coming up, there’s nothing wrong with sticking it out for a while. Get the paychecks, do your best to be your best, and keep looking for something else.

I’m all about people being happy, but I think too many people are ready to jump ship too quickly the minute they’re not 100% happy with their jobs.

I hate my job, I loathe sitting in this damned chair for hours on end, waiting for someone to give me some work. It’s not as if I haven’t asked for work, or a meeting to discuss work for months now. It just gets old when I get blown off for the 100th time.

I hate waking up at 6, to commute an hour to sit in this hellhole waiting for someone else to tell me what to do. They also have the audacity to say that I can’t do other work, nor can I do anything interesting online, due to firewalls and corporate monitoring.

But really, what can I do? I’m not being paid enough to get health insurance, much less quit and hope for the best, my rent would be in the toilet.

I’ve come to the conclusion that if I smoked marijuana all day and played video games, my brain would get much more use then it does at my current position.

I agree with the above who says don’t leave until you have something else going.

I want to make the point that anything which imposes itself against our freewill to our detriment is a form of bondage, not as bad as the slavery of yesterday, but is still indentured servitude.

It’s time to quit your job when it’s Sunday night and your already looking forward to the weekend!

I have worked in positions that I absolutely could not stand but toughed it out because I needed the money. I don’t believe in quitting per say but you must do everything in your power to get another job. Life is too short to waste any time at a place that does not appreciate your talents or wants you to be a “yes” man or woman.

This is why I pursued entrepreneurship. I couldn’t take it anymore and I haven’t looked back since.

As long as you have another job lined up, I think it’s completely appropriate to vacate the position so that another may take it.

In this economy, a job you vacate will likely be snapped up by someone who will genuinely appreciate (and perhaps desperately need) it. If you can find work elsewhere, freeing that position for someone else is practically noble.

I think it goes without saying that this is NOT the time to quit a job without finding another first. Unless you want to live on ramen and pray to the gods that no harm befalls your insurance-less self, then you probably better keep that job whether it is good or bad.

One other point is that even if your job is painful, the value of the experience may trump the pain of the job — for a little while. It’s worth sticking around for a year if you are going to get experience and make connections that can land you that perfect dream job sometime down the road!

@ Sara – From what I gathered, the position tasks were misrepresented – the reader wanted to have much more responsibility than she was given. And while I don’t think she was faultless, I do think employers need to be clear about the job! Thank you for commenting!

@ Sabrina – That is fabulous advice, I’m really glad your shared your friend’s story – that seems like the perfect way to handle a difficult situation.

@ Ron – I think you’re point about young people avoiding being infected by a bad workplace is so important. In particular, Gen Yers need to retain their idealism to change the world : )

@ Ryan – I’d go with your gut – I was offered several positions during my last job and I didn’t accept any of them. The position I ultimately accepted was a bit less money than a previous offer, but I loved the company so much it wasn’t an issue. Money isn’t everything, as they say : )

@ Jamie – “Settling early is setting yourself up for settling later.” Here, here! Thanks for weighing in!

@ Emily – I’m a big fan of exit interviews as well. Unfortunately, many companies don’t even think to ask – great advice for the corporate side!

@ Katie – What a fabulous story – thanks for sharing. When I graduated college, I was in a similar situation – I only wish I had the hindsight I have now.

@ RamenRentResumes – Great url by the way! It’s definitely worthwhile sometimes to stick it out and learn something from your experience, especially if you feel your resume might be legitimately at risk.

@ SC – I appreciate you sharing your story! I hope you find something soon that challenges you and that you enjoy – it sounds like you deserve it after your current position!

@ LaTosha – As soon as I started reading your comment, I knew you were an entrepreneur – great energy! The Sunday night feeling is definitely a good gut-check. Thanks for the comment!

@ Kira – Love that you’re thinking about who might take the job you hated and actually love it – we all need to find our fit : )

I think: many people are looking for a hard and fast rule to decide when it’s okay to quit. The when is not nearly as important as the why.Once you figure out the why, you’ll know when you have to quit and when you should hang on.

A friend taught me this: she took out a sheet of paper, drew a line down the middle and divided the paper into two columns. For the heading of the left column, she wrote “Why I should stay at this job”; for the right, she wrote “Why I should quit”. Then she handed that paper to me and asked me to enumerate all the reasons I could think of for both columns. She contributed her views while I was talking it through and writing it out myself.

The point is not to see which side has more entries. The key is to decide which side’s reasons are stronger, and to see if there was an alternative or an easy solution to everything I wrote.

After I completed that exercise, I not only knew whether or not to quit my job but also when I should send in my notice to my employer.

I think quitting a job is necessary if you find yourself philosophically at odds with the organization or their practices. Even after doing researching into an organization, some of their practices don’t become evident until after you’ve started working for them. I left a position after only working for 4 hours – the employer expected me to lie to their customers and I discovered that they were lying to prospective employees. I respectfully resigned.

I believe all jobs have merit, so unless there’s a deep philosophical (or legal) issue in question, I would encourage a person to stay in the position until they find other employment. There’s still a lot that can be learned, and a lot that can be offered, even within the most undesirable positions.

Good thoughts here. As Grace said, you will most likely never be happy at a job that clashes with your core philosophy (personal or professional).

That being said – every job is a learning experience. I have grown from every experience I’ve been in, dating all the way back to my days as a bagger at the grocery store.

Ultimately, in order to be the most successful, you have to be passionate and committed to what you are doing. A person can sit and work at a 9-5 and be successful, but they will never be totally fulfilled.

As an employer, I don’t want anyone working for me that is unhappy. It brings everyone down. However, I would like an unhappy employee to let me know that they are unhappy, and why. I may not be able to accomodate their needs, but I would appreciate the opportunity to assess the situation and at least attempt to work things out.

I’d rather have someone quit after 2 or 3 weeks then after 2 or 3 months after I have made an investment in training them.

Is it right to quit after 2 or 3 weeks? Depends upon the person, the work environment and the employer. I don’t think there is a one size fits all answer to this one.

I say your friend did the right thing. She assessed the job, she realized early it wasn’t for her, and then she acted on her first instinct.

Why stay in a job that isn’t working for you? I think the the timeframe depends on one’s goals and what the purpose of working at that particular job. Obvious that job wasn’t meeting those things for her. My Advice

1) Assess what that job means to you?
2) Decided if it’s worth staying after that assessment. Is learning more important than happiness, or whatever your reason is for being there.
3) ACT- once you make a decision then act on it. Either you stay or execute your exit plan.

I am now working at a smallish shop as a shelf filler and working on the tills. ( 21 years old )

My job is sucking away my life and motivation. It makes me miserable every single day I walk back through those doors.

It makes me feel like crap all the time, it gives me an incredible amount of stress and am now at the point where I come home and burst into tears. I also have a very short fuse when it comes to being angry now.

I have been there now for over 9 months. I am talked to like i’m dirt by customers almost everyday let alone by my supervisors.

More often than not I don’t get my breaks. Sometimes on tills for over 5 hours without a break ( 15 mins for a break). I get told I am slow at filling the shelfs and scanning items on the tills. It doesn’t help at all when you hate the job so much and on top of that you’re being told you are useless. I get put on the main till almost every single day now and it not only is very stressful it is also giving me aches and pains in my shoulders and back.

The system that organizes peoples working hours is a mess. I seem to work more hours than any other person and the time tables shedule most of the staff to come in when the shop isn’t busy. I often get sheduled for an 8:00pm finish which finishs at about 8:20 because the supervisors don’t lock up in time and then the very next day i have a 6:00am start. Sometimes shifts can be upto 9 hours long.

I see my supervisors breaking the very same rules they warn me about yet i can’t say anything back in fear of being sacked. I feel the rules are completely different for each individual person.

It seems I can’t do anything right. I am warned about one thing so I try my best to correct it and then I am told I am doing something else.

I have tried to get my hours changed and have explained that i don’t get breaks etc.. I have spoken to my manager at least 3 times about everything that goes on. It changes for maybe one or two days and then everything just goes back to the way it was and makes me even more miserable.

I don’t have that much confidence or self esteem and this job just lowers it more and more every day.

I am scared that if i leave this job without another lined up that i may be out of work for a long time and would not like to return to the dreaded jobcentre. Not to mention not knowing what my next employer would think about me quitting.

What makes it worse is before this job I was working as an IT Support Technician before being made redundant after the company was bought by a larger organisation.

I loved that job so much the time just flew by. Great staff, way better money, lots of fun challenges every day and small projects. I was so lucky.

Nobody else in the house works and my mum worrys enough as it is without having to worry about money. I am being relied on as the breadwinner so it is alot of pressure.

I just don’t know what to do.

Have you noticed that if a woman says, “I quit my job because I hated it,” everyone says “Good for you, go-getter etc.” If a man says the same thing, it’s “Loser!” Why?

i worked at mcdonalds for 2 months…and i have been at tim hortons for about 2 months now. guess wat? i HATE it. but yes, i did learn something. i cant STAND working in fast food restaurants. also anything over 6-hour shifts is FML-worthy.

I deal with this condescending douche.(my supervisor) day to day I still give the company I work for 100 percent I’ve always been like that no matter what
I didn’t think much of it until I asked others if they’ve noticed his attitude and everyone told me they’ve noticed it to and talked to him about it
Now just the other day he said something real. Cute to me b 4 I left “if we find someone better than you won’t be good news for bobby” I wasn’t too upset because I know I’m a hard work but the fact that he is taunting and threatening my job security is the last straw besides he’s difficult to work with
So I will be quiting my job in a month or so and b moving onto another job prospect
In a way I have. To thank him for being such a zero because he gave me the motivation to move onto something bigger and better

To your question. .. With the experience I have on work, not always you find yourself in the beginning. Everything is new and difficult to understand.
It was not smart that she left the job without trying at least one month to see how it is.

By Rebecca Healy

36 replies on “When is it okay to quit your job?”

Leave a Reply Cancel reply