For the last few weeks, I’ve been writing about Happiness, and for the last few days I’ve been talking about Happiness and Work.
I’ve said that one of the keys to happiness is working in a job you like, or better yet, having an occupation that is an expression of who you are.
But many folks aren’t sure what it is that makes them happy, and are stuck at jobs they don’t like.
When you’re at a job that is making you unhappy, many people internalize that they should quit, but they don’t do it.
And why is that?
If happiness is so crucial to living a Low Density Lifestyle, and being happy at the job you have is an integral part of happiness, then why don’t you quit if your job is making you unhappy?
Even if you long desperately to quit, to get away from your horrible workplace, annoying co-workers or abusive managers, you may hesitate to actually do anything about it, because right on the heels of that impulse come a lot of other thoughts that hold you back from quitting.
And a lot of the thoughts are fear based.
Each of these excuses may sound to you like the voice of sanity, offering perfectly good reasons why it is in fact better to stay and endure that bad job just a little longer.
But those excuses keep you trapped in a job that is slowly but surely wearing you down and cementing your existence in a High Density Lifestyle.
And so, here are 10 of the most common excuses for staying in a bad job.
1. Things might get better.
That jerk manager might be promoted out of there. That annoying co-worker could quit.That mound of overwork could suddenly disappear.
On the other hand, things might also get worse. Or they might not change at all. If you’ve already done your best to improve your job situations and nothing has happened, just waiting around for things to improve by themselves make little sense.
2. My boss is such a jerk but if I quit now, he wins.
Who cares. This is not about winning or losing, this is your life. Move on, already.
3. I’m not a quitter.
Guess what these somewhat successful people have in common: Larry Page, Sergey Brin, Tiger Woods, Reese Witherspoon, John McEnroe and John Steinbeck?
They all dropped out of Stanford.
The old saying that “Winners never quit and quitters never win” is just plain wrong and leaving a bad job is just common sense.
4. I’ll never get another job.
Well not if you stay in your current job while it slowly grinds you down, you won’t. Move on now while you still have some self-confidence, motivation and energy left.
5. If I quit I’ll lose my salary, status, company car, the recognition of my peers, etc.
Yes, quitting a job carries a price and that makes it scary. We all know this intimately.
But few of us ask this question: What is the price of staying in a job that makes you unhappy?
That price can be very high. It can not only ruin your work life but also your marriage, your family life, your health, your self-esteem and your sanity. Not all at once, but a little bit every day.
6. Everywhere else is just as bad.
That’s just nonsense. There are plenty of great workplaces in every industry.
7. I’ve invested so much in this job already.
You may have sacrificed a lot of time, energy and dignity already in attempts to make things better. This will make it more difficult for you to call it quits.
This is similar to how the Nigerian email scammers sucker people in. At first it’s a small investment, but then the amounts grow and grow. At each step the victim is reluctant to stop because that would mean losing all the money they’ve spent so far.
Quit anyway. Staying on is just throwing good time after bad.
8. I’ll lose my health insurance.
Ok, so start looking for another job with similar health benefits.
Also, ask yourself: What good is job related health insurance if your job is actually making your sick – which bad jobs can absolutely do.
9. My job pays very well.
Here’s the plain truth and the stark reality: it doesn’t matter how well your job pays – if it makes you unhappy it’s not worth it.
And if you make a lot of money now, use that financial security to quit and find a job that’ll make you happy.
10. Quitting will look bad on my CV.
Whereas staying for years in a job that grinds you down and goes nowhere will look excellent.
Most people would be much happier if they quit bad jobs sooner, and for those who have done it they usually say that they wish they had done it much, much sooner.
these are all great suggestions, but what is a person to do in this economy when jobs are so scarce and your told to “be glad you have a job”!?
You make an excellent point Diane. I would say, if a person is not happy at their job, yet in this economy they know they’re glad to just have a job, that while they are keeping the job, they should continue to job search so that they can find a job that is more in line with the type of work they prefer to do. But the truth is that life is short, and if a person is in a job that makes them miserable, the job can wear down their health, their psyche and soul, and in that case, having a job that will do those things to a person may not be worth what you have to put up with.
I’d quit tomorrow if I had the slightest cushion to be able to; but I do not. I have a wife, 3 kids, 2 of whom are teens, to provide for. I have so many responsibilities, costs and mouths to feed… If it were just me, sure, but it is not. I cannot default a mortgage, fail to put food on the table and we’re paycheck to paycheck; and I am not in entry level work but a profession.
Your article is great leading one to a picture of water… but not leading to it and certainly not getting one a drink. I appreciate the exhortation, but, on some grounds, it is sophomoric. I mean no offense, I truly do not. It is a school boy’s advice; “hey I don’t like biology class.” Friend, “quit man.” “Just ditch it.” Yeah, why didn’t I think of that.
Those who have still made excuses (I have responsibilities, The Economy is bad, etc) are still just “making excuses”. Just because you have responsibilites and the economy sucks does not mean that you cannot still look for work while working your miserable job. I’ve done this several times in my career and I think I just might do it again. Secretly look for work while working. It might take longer, but sometimes that extra time can help you make a better decision. I did this 2 years ago and landed an amazing job. Unfortunately, the company I was working for was bought out by a company that has changed the culture so significantly I don’t know if I can take it much longer. Anyway, it’s easier for us to look at the reasons why we don’t make the hard choices. Really, they are all just excuses to stay miserable.
I have two jobs right now one I really hate and the other I just started but the problem is that it is on a temp job. So I’m wondering should I quit my permanent part-time job for my other full-time but temp job? It seems kind of stupid but I was going to way it my dreadful part-time anyways despite of the full-time temp job. Any ideas? I don’t want to make a stupid mistake of quitting job in this economy.
Well, the answer would be based on a number of factors: how long is the temp job for? Is there a possibility of continuing on after the temp job is done? Does the temp agency have more work? Do you feel you have skills that can land you more temp work? Are you living in a small town or larger area? There’s nothing worse than going to a job that is dreadful, it affects us in many ways, both tangible and intangible, so it doesn’t sound like the part-time job is worth it. With the way the economy is now, a lot of employers are hiring through temp agencies as a way to save money, so temp agencies may have a lot of job possibilities. You can always register with more than one temp agency, if you haven’t already. Go with your gut, and take a chance, there may be nothing to lose and everything to gain. Be practical, so weigh the pros and cons, but ultimately, it’s your life.