According to the Harvard Business Review, 75% of working adults find that the most stressful part of their job is their direct supervisor. Then it’s no surprise that a Gallup study of 7,272 adults revealed that 50 percent of Americans have quit their job because they didn’t like their boss. If you’re going to leave your job for any reason, here are four things to consider when preparing to search for a new job:
1. Have you asked yourself what you want to do?
If you’re leaving because of your boss, and you want to stay in the same industry, be ready to talk about your relationship with your boss in a positive way during an interview. Do you want a new direction in your career? Why? You’ll need to be ready to discuss that eloquently when you get an interview in a new industry/ position. You cannot tell them that your boss could have been the missing character in the “Horrible Bosses 2” movie. Instead, discuss what you’re looking for in a new position and avoid any disparaging comments about your boss or current company.
2. Do you really want to be an entrepreneur?
Do you have a hobby or side business that you would love to pursue as your full time job? Ask yourself these 7 questions before jumping into life as an entrepreneur. There are five things that successful entrepreneurs have found that drive their success: innovation, persistence, simplicity, staying true to their brand, and listening to what people tell them about their product or service. If you have already started trying to turn your side business into a career, inject some more of these 5 qualities into your business, and be ready to work and network. If a salary is important to you and your family, and you are highly uncomfortable taking risks, you might want to wait to turn your side business into your day job until it’s so successful you can’t afford not to make it your main focus.
3. Do you know what you need/want from a new job?
One of the first questions an interviewer might ask you is “what are you looking for in your next role?” This might take a little soul searching to find the answer. If a main motivating factor is wanting an increase in your salary, that’s not the first thing you want to tell an interviewer. Additionally, have you considered asking for a raise at your current company? You can read a previous blog here to see tips on how to ask for a raise. Leaving a position that makes you happy in many ways, but doesn’t quite meet your salary requirements may result in you taking a position that only brings happiness through a salary. Before you start interviewing, try to do everything you can at your current job to address anything that’s making you unhappy. Fast forward to when you give your two week’s notice and your manager presents you with a counter offer that includes a bigger salary. You’ll want to have a strategy thought out before you get to that stage. Counter offers are tricky for a lot of reasons. You can read more about the pitfalls of accepting counter offers here.
4. What are your first steps to starting your search?
We hope that you don’t post about your relationship with your boss and co-workers on social media, likewise, don’t post your desire for a new job there either. That approach can backfire in multiple ways. If you are going to use social media, and there are a lot of successful ways to do this, make sure when you’re discussing your job search that you’re using the direct messaging function of the platform. –This way, you’re not broadcasting your job search to the world, but connecting with someone who could possibly help you network to find a new position, or deliver your resume to a potential employer. Because you’ve answered the question in the previous paragraph, you know what kind of position you want, or what company you want to work for. Start networking with people who can connect you to people who work at your dream company or can tell you how to go after the position you want. Make a recruiter part of this process, especially if you don’t know anyone who can directly help with your search.
After working through these four questions, we hope you have figured out if you’re going to stay in your current position or start your job search. If you decide to stay, check out our other blogs for advice on how to ask for a raise, how to handle counter offers and how to resign the right way. If you’re going to proceed with your job search, let us know how we can help.