Time to Take Off: 12 Signs You’re Ready for a Tech Career Change
It’s a truth universally accepted that work takes the bulk of our lives. In fact, people spend around one-third of their lifetime working. For some it’s just a run-of-the-mill job – showing up, getting the task done and leaving when five o’clock hits. But for others, they dedicate themselves to an unwavering cause, truly believing in their mission and pouring their heart and soul into its deliverance.
Yet, sooner or later, IT employees may come to a point where they feel disenchanted, detached and worn out, always daydreaming about taking the leap and thinking more and more about how to craft that perfect letter of resignation. It’s like a voice in your head keeps whispering “You really need to switch things up.”
According to the federal JOLTS report, an astounding 50.5 million workers decided to take the plunge and quit in 2022, blowing past the prior record set in 2021. However, the number of sick-‘n-tired employees yearning for an escape from the mundane but too afraid to take the leap is likely much greater.
Making the choice to switch up your career trajectory can be challenging, but there are certain times when taking drastic action is vital. To help our tech talents figure things out we’ve collected 12 tell-tale signs that it’s time to shake up your job situation.
- You hate Mondays
Mondays have a reputation for being the most dreaded day of the week: none likes them. But here we’re talking about the next level when your feelings of dread become overwhelming and desperate.
It starts earlier, on Sunday evening, with the reminder that your workweek is starting anew. The thought of getting up in the morning leaves you feeling melancholy and weighed down by the mundane reality of returning to the daily grind. When you wake up, you hope that it’s Saturday, but at least five times a week you are disappointed. You set the alarm clock 5 times before you get up even if you slept more than 8 hours.
Life’s too short for a job that only leaves you dreaming of the weekend. So, if every Monday makes you miserable, that’s a clear sign you should say adieu.
- “This is temporary” became permanent
It’s a great feeling when all your hard work pays off at the office – you reach milestones and make impressive strides. Your salary reflects that, but you still don’t feel that you’ve truly made it yet. You tell yourself that this work is only a transit point on your way to something bigger, something better, and soon enough, you’ll find yourself walking into the ideal job.
But then time passes, and all of a sudden year has gone by, with everything still exactly the same. Stuck in one “temporary” place, barely moving an inch. Younger colleagues are rocketing up the career ladder, while you’re just getting ready to take off.
Take a step back and realize where you might be right now if you had followed your dream. Thousands of hours have been wasted on a fallback job, leaving you with a feeling of incompleteness. If you’re still holding on to a temporary option, it’s time to take off.
- Your boss is a spawn of hell
You know the type: Bad Bosses. They call you at odd times, criticize you for no good reason, and assign you impossible tasks. From micromanaging every single step and underappreciating your hard work to completely disregarding your thoughts and ideas – tyrannic managers can make working life miserable.
If your IT boss causes you to be in a constant state of panic, so much that you lose sleep and feel an acute sense of inferiority – run! Don’t let this monster keep destroying your self-respect and faith in humanity. You can always escape from your warden, find a new job and a new boss who will appreciate and empower you. Change the tech workplace and the people around you for the better, instead of changing yourself to fit into an unhealthy environment.
- The company is going down
Has your IT company undergone a dramatic change in priorities recently? Are you noticing signs of chaos such as an abrupt switch in management, an unexpected reshuffling of resources, or a sharp uptick in staff turnover? Did they postpone perspective projects and stopped hiring new blood? Anyone of these can be a sign that things are not as good as they seem. Your company might be trying to survive by taking on austerity measures, and massive layoffs is one of them.
Don’t let yourself become caught up in corporate politics or keep hoping for the best when red flags start to appear. Act now, stay informed and secure your future by proactively planning for the worst-case scenarios.
- Your job became boring and monotonous
You feel like you’re spinning your wheels. It’s getting harder and harder to drag yourself into work because the same old tasks have become a bore. Maybe you tell yourself it’s no big deal: after all, you know what to do by heart and you don’t think it’s necessary to put in your fullest effort. Sound familiar?
That’s a story IT recruiters hear all too often when people get stuck in the same old routine for too long. After a long period of working in the same position, an employee’s work quality starts to slip, and justifying it with various reasons: starting from “that will do” to “I work as good as they pay me”.
There is nothing worse than a job that has nothing to do with your life goals or personal interests. No matter how much you earn, you’ll never be able to fully enjoy your life or reach your full potential if you’re tied down to a boring, uninteresting job. The general dissatisfaction will soon spread to other areas of your life and eventually break it. The best solution is to determine your development zone, ask for new interesting challenges and boldly go into it. And if your tech employer can’t help you with that, maybe you should look for another one.
- You feel like an outcast
There are cases when an intelligent tech leader does not like the way the business is being run, but he cannot do anything to change it from his position. Moreover, that person becomes an “inconvenient employee”, constantly interfering, proving something is not OK with the company, its goals or methods to achieve them. You don’t agree to go with the flow as most in your team but all you get are sidelong glances and rolled eyes from colleagues and managers.
Don’t let yourself be confined to a role where you feel uncomfortable voicing your opinion – instead, search for an environment that allows you to confidently express yourself, contribute to the team, and make meaningful changes.
- Your health has deteriorated
At work, the pressure is real. Your first aid kit is stocked with headache pills, energy vitamins, eye drops, back ointments and more – all to help you cope with the physical toll of sitting all day, grinding through deadline after deadline. By the time you get home, you’re wiped out and ready to collapse onto the couch in utter exhaustion.
Working hard and pushing yourself to your limits can be a great source of pride… until those limits are smashed, leaving you feeling broken. Life in the modern age is full of demands and pressures that put us under constant strain. But while it’s important to keep yourself going through long hours of labor, it’s even more important to remember that your health should always come first. If work undermines your physical and psychological state, it is already dangerous. Professional burnout can lead to prolonged depression.
- The initiative is discouraged
Are you feeling like a voiceless cog in the machinery of your IT organization? Do your ideas, no matter how creative or innovative, go unrecognized or unappreciated? You may be stuck in a corporate rut where the leadership is resistant to change and stifles innovation and creativity. They may not realize it, but by refusing to entertain new ideas and proposals, they’re missing out on an opportunity to grow and evolve their business.
Don’t be fooled into thinking you can make a difference in a place where innovation is discouraged. The choice to stay or leave is yours, but it’s important to recognize when a workplace environment is no longer healthy for your career growth. If your bright ideas and enthusiasm don’t get the appreciation they deserve, it’s only sensible to move on and find a place that rewards initiative and ambition.
- You have reached the career ceiling
You have been working in the company for a long time and may already have become a person more skilled, experienced, and qualified than your own boss. Your ideas are better, you do everything faster and smarter, you make better decisions and all the employees come to you for advice. You are on the king of the hill in this firm. But there’s a problem: there are no opportunities to take your career up the ladder.
In this case, you have two options: staying onboard, hoping your IT leader will take the company to a larger market and you’ll get new challenges and a salary rise, or looking for new career opportunities elsewhere.
- Toxic working environment
It’s hard to feel happy or even satisfied in the workplace when your coworkers are constantly complaining, and your boss is always nervous. You come to dread your days, not because of the work itself, but because of the oppressive atmosphere. A toxic workplace can even destroy your love for the profession.
The longer you stay in such a poisonous environment, the more your own morale will suffer – do yourself a favor and start searching for a new job that celebrates achievement, success, and happiness. Don’t let the bad vibes drag you down any further.
- No work/life balance
You are constantly struggling to keep up with the workload and feeling overwhelmed by deadlines. You often find yourself working late into the night, yet still unable to stay on top of tasks. In other companies, most tasks are completed by three people in the same amount of time as it takes for you to do it alone. There is almost no time left for personal life, and you have already forgotten the last time you went to the cinema or met with your friends. At the same time, management still does not appreciate your efforts and takes everything for granted.
By trying to do everything yourself, you are losing valuable time that could be better spent enjoying some much-needed rest and relaxation. Instead of draining yourself emotionally and physically, why not leverage the help of others? By delegating responsibility to your tech team, you can free up more time to wind down and enjoy life outside of work. But if your managers don’t give you the chance to take control of your schedule and reclaim your personal life, it’s never too late to leave.
- You are not proud of what you do
Casting a longing gaze over those around you, noticing acquaintances, friends, and relatives living an intriguing, bustling life while doing what they love and earning great money – it can be hard to muster up something to share at the next family gathering. After all, your job may seem not prestigious, you might feel like you’re doing nothing important or worthwhile, and the pay is meager, and stability and a solid social package are the only things that keep you tethered. Your occupation has not caused any emotions for a long time, except for despondency and a feeling of hopelessness.
Being ashamed of your work is clearly not an indicator of a happy life. In your heart, you are confident that you deserve better, and your true job, the one you will be proud of, is still somewhere out there waiting for you. Or on the contrary, you believe that you can’t get anything greater and therefore spend your 8-to-5 in an unloved place. In any case, you have options: change your attitude to your current occupation or move on.
The way we approach our jobs affects our overall outlook on life. To some, Mondays are dreaded; to others, their dissatisfaction spills over into their relationships with loved ones, creating an unbearable burden in both the workplace and home.
Of course, the situation may not be so critical: you may need a vacation, a frank conversation with your boss or maybe more courage to express yourself. But if you realize that you have done everything in your power to correct the issues and all your attempts to bring back the enthusiasm and focus have failed, the most suitable course of action is to quit.
Are you yearning for something more out of your current job? Ready to embark on a daring journey filled with promise and possibility? Bateman Fox is here to guide you! Connect with me or my team at Bateman Fox and explore how we can help talented tech professionals transition into the career of their dreams. Unlock the potential of your future; let us be your key to success.
