Switching Jobs? Here is what you need to know…..

Photo by Amy Hirschi on Unsplash

‘One in 5 workers, who quit their job, wish they had remained in their old position, and only around a quarter of job switchers say they’re satisfied enough with their new position to stay.’ 

There are times when we look for better job opportunities. And then suddenly we are in for a surprise. We hear from some recruiter, and we get an interview call regarding a position we had been eagerly waiting for. So, we go ahead and attend the interview. The interviewer is happy with our answers. He/She tells us about the job role. We are elated that we are going to be at the pedestal of a new role and will be sailing smooth in our learning journey. We are given a tour of the office, the conference rooms. We are told we will be getting pivotal knowledge from the seniors here. Perhaps we grabbed a senior role, and we think we will get an opportunity to lead the team, put forth our ideas, our ideas will be implemented and whoa! What a beautiful work life! Well, sometimes, we are told something and once we join, something else happens....

For example, you may be offered a position in the finance segment, where you hoped you will be shadowing the work responsibilities of the program manager and will eventually get more responsibilities. However, once you join, you realize, the program manager travels frequently and you barely get a chance to communicate with him/her, forget about shadowing and learning new work skills, you will regret your decision of joining this new workplace. 

So, what are the things you need to look at before switching jobs: 

1) Deciding the right way: Getting selected for a new job always makes one feel that he/she is super skilled and is perfect for the role, and hence he/she got selected. However, it is necessary to think above and beyond what the hiring team conveyed and what could be the reality. Once you reason yourself with the truth, only then go ahead and decide whether you want to join or not. 

2) Ask questions: Have your own sets of questions ready. The hiring team may paint a rosy picture of your new role. But you need to know that whatever is being told may or may not be true. Hence ask more questions to be sure about your exact role. 

3) Do not let confirmation bias overpower you: Confirmation bias is the tendency of human brain to confirm an information we already believe in, even though the information that we believe may not be true. For example, you were hired to take over the vital HR responsibilities while the HR manager was on leave. You presume you will get to manage those roles till you are here in this organization. However, you have the slightest idea that once the HR manager joins, you will be given less significant responsibilities. Always be aware of such bias taking over your mind. 

4) Research a little about the organization: Find out more information about the work culture of that organization by reading reviews and talking to employees working there. You can always find connections on job sites liked LinkedIn. You might get more information about the company’s values and principles. Based on that, go ahead with your decision. Always remember, sometimes we switch jobs for salary. However, despite getting a fat salary, we may not be able to work peacefully in our new organization. So, while deciding, it is necessary to take every aspect into consideration. Getting a job is sometimes easier that being able to continue the job. And being able to continue a job peacefully is what every employee desires. 

Sources: https://hbr.org/2022/05/switching-jobs-heres-how-to-make-sure-you-wont-regret-it