When is a good time to change your job

Leave recession aside for once. For every unlucky soul who lost her/his job there were some who still had the luxury of choosing to continue in their present job or to jump ship. We saw quite a few candidates change jobs through the last couple of tough years itself. And though the media is hyping, the job market is picking up a wee bit.

I often get this question from candidates as well as friends- real or virtual: Is it the right time for me to change? There has not been even one among us who have not been plagued by this question some time or another, even people who have been very happy in their jobs and been in a company for donkeys years. Yes, some candidates, perfectly good apples, I should say, have been in one company for 15 or 20 years before finally being head hunted and taking the leap. They never thought of looking out for a job on their own. Their profiles have never been on a job site, some, believe me, do not even have a CV. I should know, I dont have one myself.

Therefore, how do we know that it is the right time to change.

Some reasons are pretty straight forward and obvious- when the company is going down

Rats will always leave a sinking ship. And the writing is pretty much there on the wall for years before a company starts downsizing or closing shop altogether. When the Citi fiasco happened, there was an exodus from group companies like Citi Financial. An acquisition is another reason employees may want to leave a company desperately, especially if job security is not guaranteed by the acquiring company.
Often, and this has been proven, a bad boss is enough to push you out of the workplace. Sexual (or other) harassment- of course.

The above fall into what is called the HYGIENE factors of Maslows Theory of Motivation.



The bottom two are the hygiene factors. Assuming that your office has bathrooms and your desk is dusted every morning, and you have your necessary stationery, and also that your job is more or less secure, then the motivation factors come in.

BELONGING, the third factor from bottom in the pyramid, stands for relationships and friendships in the company. How do you fare with your boss. How are your colleagues. The next is the ESTEEM. Is your work recognised? Is it rewarded as it should? Are your achievements recognised? The last is SELF ACTUALISATION- which stands for how creative your job is. Does your company allow for out of the box thinking. Are you allowed freedom in your work. Are you allowed to innovate.

Recently I came across an article from the India Career Journal which lists 10 pointers about when to leave your job. Here they are
Here are 10 signs that could indicate that it’s time for you to move on – either from your current job function or from your organization – to other adventures.

1. Social networking but not working: Spending too much time on the internet on sites or proxy sites for prolonged period of time.
2. Been there, done that: You are not learning much any more.
3. Not challenged enough: Responsibilities are not making you grow.
4. Unmet goals: Your career not moving where you want it to move. IN short, no promotion.
5. Too big for your shoes: You have reached your level of incompetence in the company. Time to reskill or move to a better fit.
6. Closed to change : You dont agree to company change, or you cant handle change. A cutltural misfit.
7. Politics over mechanics: Office politics too much for you.
8. You’ve been overlooked — again: self explanatory.
9. Don’t want your boss’s job?: Cause thats where you are headed in your company.
10. Evil thoughts about your boss?: If your boss is forever pulling you down you should think of moving.