How to Know When It’s Time to Leave Your Current Company to Advance Your Career

Have you ever felt STUCK in a job? Maybe it was because there were no opportunities for promotion, the people above you weren’t moving, or a boss was holding you back for whatever reason. Or maybe because of personal situations outside of work you didn’t feel you could leave and make a move to a new company.

Lenny, 48, from New York, has been with his current employer 12 years. He’s been stuck in the loyalty trap. He has a child ready to graduate high school and another in college. He’s stayed in his current job waiting for promotions that never came when the people above him never aspired to advance, and because he didn’t want to risk relocation, he felt his options were limited.

With 6.7 million job openings available and the average job switcher earning 48% more annual pay than the average job stayer it may be time for Lenny (and you) to explore new opportunities.

How do you know it’s time to leave your current company?

If you’ve been wondering if it’s time for you to explore what’s out there, here are a few signs it’s a good time to look around:

-         No growth opportunities – and by that I mean opportunities for learning, training, and progressing. Are you thriving in your role or is it stagnant?

-         No advancement opportunities – the company isn’t promoting from within, the people above you are not going anywhere in their career and have no desire to move, so there’s nowhere for you to go.

-         The company is not growing so new opportunities aren’t being created.

-         You’ve contributed all that you can or made the biggest impact that you can, and in order to continue making a difference you have to leave the current company.

-         You’ve expressed an interest in moving up (maybe even multiple times) but your boss is holding you back - for whatever reason.

-         The work environment is negative and it’s creating undue stress.

-         The culture is stifling and your ideas and thoughts aren’t taken seriously.

-         You’re unhappy, you feel like your career is stagnant, and you realize that you could be doing more, earning more, feeling more fulfilled and more challenged if you were employed somewhere else.

Even if we feel like we should make a career move, we don’t always take the next step to do it.

My first job out of college I had a terrible boss. Talk about getting a real-world education! It didn’t take me long to figure out that I wasn’t going to be happy working for an overly negative boss, but it was many more months before I finally got up the courage to move on. I kept hanging on, waiting for a promotion or for the situation to change. Neither happened; I eventually had my fill and moved on.

I recently asked my LinkedIn connections why they stayed in a job they hated:

What holds us back from making our next career move?

-         Providing for my family’s basic needs

-         Kids are in a good school and don’t want to move

-         Hard time finding a new opportunity

-         Staying for a promised promotion

-         Waiting to hit the 10-year mark to get retirement

-         For money and the pension

-         Job stability – to not appear like a job hopper

-         Mortgage, college tuition – LIFE

I also want to address some of the things that we don’t always like to talk about that cause us to stay in jobs with little-to-no growth and advancement opportunities?

Fear of the unknown. I hear a lot of people lament over the “what ifs.” What if I hate the new job? What if it’s worse than my current one? What if the boss is worse? What if I have to move? What if I can’t find anything suitable or that will pay me my current salary?

We let fear, doubt, and worry keep us from trying new things, looking around to see what’s out there, or venturing out into a new opportunity that may actually prove to be so much better than we ever thought!

Let me encourage you not to let fear hold you back. Instead of focusing on the negative what ifs, let’s focus on the positive ones. I’m really good at this, being the eternal optimist I am.

What if your new boss is amazing, invested in your growth, and not only appreciates your ideas but implements them?

What if your new employer values your input, decisions, and accomplishments?

What if the new employer pays you 30-50% more than your current annual salary to do the work you love?

What if your career satisfaction increases and you feel more fulfilled when you go to work?

What if the decision to leave your current company and accept a new role changes the entire trajectory of your career, causing you to earn more, advance rapidly, contribute at a higher level, and make a bigger impact?

Self-doubt is another career suppressor. Don’t let it win. There are employers who will value the skills and abilities that you offer. Do not fall into the trap of believing that you don’t have the right skills, right experience, right number of years of experience, right industry expertise, or that the gap on your resume is too long, you’ve held too many jobs, or are too old.

These are not valid reasons to stall your career if your desire is to seek growth and advancement!

Believe me, there are companies and employers who will value the skills you possess, the years of experience and industry expertise you have, and who will overlook the gap, see the value in the different roles you’ve held and value the wisdom and experience you offer that a younger candidate will not.

When you’re ready to explore new opportunities, you’ll need a modern resume that will break through screening barriers, generate interest from employers, and make career advancement stress-free. For more than ten years we’ve helped job seekers advance their careers with resumes employers love. Find out more at Great Resumes Fast.