In the landscape of career advice, there’s tons of guidance out there on how to improve your resume, interview effectively, and how to stand out from the crowd of job seekers. While resumes and interview prep help professionals to market themselves effectively, when it comes to career transition, there are vital steps job seekers should ponder prior to perfecting one’s career-search portfolio: that is, why a new job, and why now?
Typically, most professionals seek a new role because they are unhappy or bored in their current role, dislike their company culture, wish to earn more money, seek career advancement, don’t click with their boss, or all of the above. While all are valid reasons to move on, seeking a new role in a new company isn’t necessarily going to lead to career satisfaction. If you are bored in your job, is there an opportunity to reinvent your role? Creating a job description of what you would like your role to include is a great first step to gain clarity, and a helpful document for a discovery discussion with your boss. A new job won’t cure boredom unless you plot what it is you aspire to in your career. Is it possible to take classes or pursue a certification to help you move into a role that’s more in tune with what you seek?
Salary is a motivating force for many, but don’t be fooled – earning more money often comes with more responsibilities, longer hours in the office and on the road, and more headaches. I’ve encountered many professionals who chose a new job for the salary boost, only to feel that their new role affords them little or no time to do the things that matter most to them. At some points in our lives that’s okay, at other points, it’s not.
If you are unhappy in a job, you need to pinpoint what you are dissatisfied about. Is it the company’s ethics? Your colleagues? Too many or too few responsibilities? Is it a little more time to do the things that you love or to spend more time with your family that you seek? Before you opt for a job change for work/life balance, is there anything you can adapt in your current schedule to achieve more symmetry? Does your employer participate in flexible work hours? It never hurts to ask.
Disliking your boss is another story. A Gallup poll of more than 1 million employed U.S. workers concluded that the number one reason people quit their jobs is a bad boss or immediate supervisor. With the right boss, professionals feel supported, heard, and have room to grow. The right boss invests in his/her team and makes sure that each one of them is set up on a career path that makes sense. With the wrong boss, one may experience a range of misfortune from being micromanaged, to ignored, to being overworked. The wrong boss may be out for him or herself and spiral frustration down to direct reports.
When it comes to changing jobs, the stars in some respects need to align regarding opportunity, fit, and timing. Professionals must not only possess the experience, skills, and leadership traits that organizations and hiring managers seek, but they also must also enhance an organization’s culture. The right cultural fit is a key element of the everydayness of work. And right cultural fit doesn’t mean that companies hire clones of themselves; rather, it means that companies hire professionals who complement their culture and bring something new or different to a team. Progressive organizations respect diversity in all its shapes and sizes.
Changing jobs requires one to say yes to risk, change, opportunity, and a desire to do something more and different. One’s motivations must be genuine for a career transition to work. Hopping from job to job may seem fun and adventurous, but in the end, without grounding at an organization and living through the highs and the lows over the course of time, it’s more of a stint than a career. For organizations to invest in employees, professionals must invest in them – it is a reciprocal relationship.
After you have done your homework and are clear on why a new job and why now, then focus on getting your resume in top shape, practice your interview skills, and start your career search. Only consider leaving your job for a new one if the opportunity you are contemplating is so compelling that you cannot imagine walking away from it. How did it feel when you walked through the front door of an office? How about when you met with your potential boss? Do you feel good about the people and organization you would be working with? Also take into consideration if there were any off moments or unsettled questions or feelings that occurred during the interview process. The time to probe uncertainties is before you commit to a change. Ask as many questions as possible before you accept a job offer.
There is always going to be a tinge of should I stay or go when it comes to career transition. Ideally, we leave jobs that we love for jobs that are even better. We should ask how will this new role challenge me? What are my skill gaps? What will I have to learn and how will I manage that? Where or how can I hit the ground running, and in which areas should I be a bit more thoughtful? Most importantly, ask yourself if you are ready to commit to the new relationship – which is what a new job really is – and what it means to you both personally and professionally. Be able to answer why this new job and why now to yourself, your family, and your new boss. That knowledge and conviction is what will get you through the initial hurdles as you begin to settle in, and keep you moving in the right direction as you carve your career path.
Originally appeared in LinkedIn