When Your Gut Says, ‘It’s Time to Quit’

Quitting a job isn’t something we do on a lark. Financial considerations, career concerns, and a dearth of available alternatives keep many people at their current place of work even when they might prefer to be elsewhere. However, paying attention to sometimes subtle signs that you are done here may help you plan for a better future and save your sanity. Listen to your gut.

(Photo Credit: Kevin Krebs/Flickr)

When you recognize the following scenarios as normal, your body may be telling you it’s time to quit your job.

Your Health is Suffering

Emotional stress at work causes physical health problems. Sometimes, you don’t realize your symptoms are actually caused by stress at work. The Mayo Clinic has a helpful breakdown of different symptoms that may be caused by emotional stress. These include problems sleeping at night, frequent headaches or muscle tension, and an upset stomach. Feeling fatigued on a regular basis is also often a sign of ongoing stress.

You Have Become a Slacker

If you miss days at work more than most workers, it may be a sign you are no longer interested in your job. Others may start to see you as the slacker, the lazy one, the unreliable one. Rather than internalize the message, “I am a bad worker,” pay attention to the fact that you seem to be truly uninterested in being at your place of work. Perhaps it is time to look for a place of work you are excited to go to every day.

Even if you show up for work, if you are not putting all of your energy into your job and instead are simply going through the motions, your gut may be telling you it is time to start looking for another job.

You Are Uncomfortable With the Ethics or Values in the Company

Corporate culture matters. If you are uncomfortable with the way things are done, you should probably look for something else. Sometimes the ethics of the company are not good. For example, if managers routinely lie to customers and you are not comfortable with this, you are likely best off looking for another job.

Sometimes it’s not that cut and dried, and your personal values are simply different from the corporate culture. About.com’s human resources expert Susan M. Heathfield offers examples, such as that you work in a hierarchical corporate culture, but you want to work in a place where all employees influence all aspects of the job at hand, or you may work in an egalitarian office, but you believe superiority should have perks such as reserved parking spaces.

In these examples, it is not about right and wrong. Rather, it is simply a difference that is more important than you may think. If you are uncomfortable in your workplace, your gut is telling you to look for a job better suited to you.

Tell Us What You Think

When did you realize you needed a different job? We want to hear from you! Leave a comment or join the discussion on Twitter.