Happy at Work? Decide Whether or Not to Stay in Your Current Job

In April 2021 alone, a record four million people quit their jobs. And their reasons were vast. Some sought shorter commutes, closer proximity to their families, the opportunity to explore different interests, learn new skills, concern over the safety aspects at their current employment, and a variety of other personal reasons, like simply wanting to be happy at work.

And that’s just the stats from one month. 

The pandemic didn’t simply force remote work on us professionally, but it also made workers question whether or not they are in the right place professionally. Even if they feel secure and happy at work, so many workers are wondering if they should stay in their current positions or if it’s time to reevaluate their overall career goals and make a career change.

With over 90,000 hours being spent at work (a third of your life!), it’s understandable — and smart — that you want to reevaluate your ambitions on a regular basis. Here, we’ll review what to consider as you take stock of your current situation,plan for the future and how to decide to change jobs.

You can’t be happy at work if there isn’t room for you to grow

Have you asked for growth opportunities at your current job only to find out there’s no room for you to move up? Yikes. You might want to consider this as a potential reason to start looking elsewhere. 

There’s nothing wrong with staying in one position for a while. In fact, consistency and experience is one attribute that might even help you get promoted! However, you want to be sure that you’ll be able to meet your goals and have new opportunities wherever you’re working. And, if your goal is to move into a supervisory position, but there’s none available for you, you might not be at the right place to achieve what you want for your career.

But, before you take action or consider a career change do a quick review on the reasons why there is no growth. Is it that you need more training in a particular skill set before being promoted? Then meet with your manager and request a plan be put in place to get you the training and experience you need so that you can pursue a higher position. Could it be that there are people in leadership positions who may be retiring in the next couple of years and waiting it out would be the best option? If so, consider waiting it out. It would also be wise to meet with the higher-ups at your employer to let them know that you’re looking to fill one of those roles in the future so you can be sure you’re on the right track as you wait it out.

Your work life balance is completely out of control

Remember how we mentioned that you’ll spend a third of your life at work? Well, we hate to mention this, but another third of your life is spent sleeping, which means there’s only a third left for enjoying your personal life. If your work-life “balance” is completely off balance, it might mean you’re not in the right career path This is especially the case if you don’t often find yourself happy at work.

And remember, it might seem impossible to find a true work life balance — and that’s okay. When most people think of a balance, they imagine things being split 50/50, but that’s not always the case. There will be times that work is more demanding of your attention, and other times where your personal life needs more from you. What you want to do is work for an organization that respects that state of flux. 

Before making any decisions, first determine what’s important to you when changing jobs. Is it hard stop times or a flexible schedule? Are you seeking more paid time off or remote-working opportunities? Audit your current work setup to determine what feels off. Then, you can make a decision on how to move forward. Before seeking employment elsewhere or different career options, see if your management team can help you get a better work-life balance. They might be willing to take some work off your plate or adjust your schedule in order to keep you from switching jobs!

You feel like you tried everything possible, but still aren’t happy at work

You might have rallied for a better work life balance or worked toward bettering yourself in the hopes of gaining a better position and more job satisfaction, but yet still find yourself facing a brick wall. Sometimes, even your best efforts will be met with hesitation — or worse, no response at all. This is why it’s vital to work for a company that truly cares about its employees and wants to put them in a position of success and ongoing professional development.

We’d be remiss here if we didn’t mention how much we care about our own employees. For the last 16 years, Embrace Home Loans has been named one of the Best Places to Work. Employee engagement and growth are central to our success as a company, and we’re so grateful for all of our hard-working, excellent teammates.

Curious about a new experience? Consider working with us! We’re actively recruiting essential positions to meet the growing demand for our mortgage products.

Visit our Careers page to learn how we support our teammates and view (and apply for) our open positions.