How Long Do You Stick It Out?

Despite the gloom and doom about the economy, every IT professional has reason to be optimistic about keeping their job or getting a better one. Every IT professional should be a brazen careerist and should be adroit about how to find their next job or career path. Aside from that, though, let's say you take the new job: how do you know it that it was a right move? What if you find that you've leaped from the frying pan to the fire?

Identifying a job you hate isn't difficult - you already know that you are unhappy there. You might be asking yourself, though, "Is it me? Do I need to stick it out, grow up and learn something about myself?" A handy ten-point list was provided for CEO consultants (keep the snarky comments to a minimum...) and you may find one or two points that are helpful to you, even if you are not a CEO consultant. Sometimes you may find yourself in a difficult job that does require you to stick it out, grow up and learn something about yourself. If that is the case, great - we'll discuss what you'll be doing in a different post.

Although no one wants to admit that they made a bad choice, you should never let that be the reason you've put a permanent dent in your career path. If you feel that this job is wrong for you, chances are, your employer knows it, too. They may be looking for a way to rectify the situation and if you do not present a graceful solution, guess who's first in line when a RIF occurs? It's difficult to be in any specific job, much less one you feel you are not suited for. Think of it like a professional bull-rider.

In the PBR, you'll be riding a 1200-lb bull with a rope around his gonads and an ancient desire to throw you to the ground, stomp you or crush you. Nobody expects that you'll stay on one bull for the rest of your life - your ride is done in 8 seconds. It's about how well you ride in those 8 seconds no matter what bull you are on. You'll find a way to leap to the ground and make for the boards before the bull knows you're gone.

Then you find another bull to ride.

Some other posts by other people on the same topic:
Free yourself from the delusion that safe paths are possible. - Point #3 in this post by Penelope Trunk 3 Things to learn from the crashing careers of the super-rich