Leaving a job is a stressful experience, but staying can sometimes be even worse. It is deeply embedded in the working of the people’s mind that “job-hoppers” are frowned upon by employers and applicants tend to feel insecure about the list of short-term jobs on their CVs. They doubt that being honest about their “versatile job experience” in their resume can actually be a way to improve their career prospects. Conversely, professional resume writers argue that honesty about job experience is a key to find your way to the fast company which value people who keep learning to keep pace with the changes in the business world. If you are adamant in your decision to hand in your two weeks’ notice, it’s time to go about the next move: update your resume.
Have you hatched a plan to start a job hunting adventure to find a more satisfying occupation but begin having second thoughts on the decision? Let us set you back on track of thoughts that led you to undoubtedly right decision to bring change to your life and to recover, as Steve Jobs had it in his Stanford commencement speech in 2005, “the lightness of being a beginner again.”
Here are 8 compelling reasons why job switch is beneficial for you if you want to get ahead in your career as fast as possible and thoroughly enjoy the job that you do.
-
You never stop learning. Changing jobs forces you to learn new skills that complement those you’ve already developed. It makes you a well-rounded and competent employee and gives you additional opportunity to grow. Grab an opportunity to learn something new through changing to a new position which resets and recharges the process of learning.
-
You recover touch with the world out there and expand your comfort zone. It’s quite obvious that if you stay at the same job for years the circle of people you know is limited to your co-workers and the network outside the company comes apart. The wide world beyond your company’s walls gets distant and it constricts your field vision.
-
You become more comfortable with interviewing. One of the essential skills you lose if you stay at a job for too long is interviewing. Preparing for an interview, making the first impression, assessing and being assessed are the skills that need practice.
-
You know how to brand yourself and understand your market value. Every time you quit your job to pursue other opportunities on the market you re-establish your value. You redefine yourself as a person and a professional, evaluate your strengths and identify your market value.
-
You learn to evaluate employers as much as they evaluate you. To be back on the market every three to five years means you eventually hone your skill to evaluate a potential employer. Your senses get acute and the moment you step out of the elevator you understand who you are going to deal with: whether the company is fast or slow, whether the atmosphere is healthy or, on the contrary, toxic and demotivating.
-
You give yourself a shot of inspiration and boost creativity. If you are stuck at one job for a long time, the possibility is high that you can start to do your job mechanically. You are kind of asleep at work, and your muse eventually deserts you; your creativity and aspiration to try new things diminish and become extinct. To keep a channel open to the supply of new ideas you need to wake up to the fact that you badly need a change and move to a new energizing and inspiring environment.
-
You get a new challenge and bring back passion, interest, and engagement in your life. Though lots of people dream of a cushy job, the reality of the business environment is different. If you are not challenged you become too comfortable and even complacent, often develop bad working habits, such as surfing the Internet or playing games to kill the time, and the worst is that you get bored to tears. You lose passion and become unenthusiastic. Psychologists claim that about twenty percent of your working time should involve activities that are challenging and take you out of your comfort zone. Such work is a powerful healthy stimulant, it keeps you on your toes and “pushes you to new levels.” If your current job does not do it, find another one.
-
You grow your reputation in your business community. With every new job in your life you not only make a contribution to your “experience database” but also meet more people and build the reputation in the business community. The more companies you work for, the more comfortable you feel when on a steep learning curve and, consequently, you learn the ropes faster.
If there are obvious signs that you are ready to turn a new page in your career and hand in your two-week notice, don’t hold back and let changes do the magic with your personality and life. Opportune time does not come by itself, it is you who should take a responsibility and take a step forward.