Written by: Aileen Carson, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
People who stay in the same job for a long time are often seen as being loyal to their employer or their colleagues, but it’s not always loyalty that keeps people in jobs for years. Very often it’s fear – fear of moving on, fear of trying something new, fear of rejection, fear that other employers won’t value or recognise your skills. It can feel safer to stay where you are, even if you’re not enjoying your work. I’ve seen people stay in jobs for years even though they’re being badly treated by their employers which makes me wonder how bad things have to get before they’ll leave. Getting caught up in your fears can make it harder for you to gain clarity on the outcome you want. What will it take for you to push past your fear and move on?
Question your assumptions
If you have ever stayed in a job you no longer enjoy, is this because you believe no one else will want to employ you? Have you got so used to doing things in a certain way that you don’t think you can change if you move to another job?
If your fears are based on your assumptions, start to question them. Look for the evidence to support them. It’s very easy to believe the assumptions you’re making about yourself and others, but when you try to find the facts to support those assumptions, very often they’re not there.
Embrace uncertainty
If you’re finding it hard to decide whether to change jobs, it’s often uncertainty that makes it difficult to make that decision. You can’t be certain of the outcome, so you need to decide whether to embrace that uncertainty or allow it to prevent you from taking action. What’s the worst that could happen? You could move to a different employer who is just as bad as your current one, but you’ll never know if you stay where you are.
There’s a risk with any course of action, so you need to decide whether it’s worth taking that risk. The alternative is staying in a job you don’t enjoy and letting it drain you of energy, making it even harder to move on in the future. If you do embrace the uncertainty and find you’ve made the wrong decision, you can change it. It’s your choice. You are in control.
Work out your non-negotiables
If you’ve started to think about making a change, but you’re not sure how to go about it and fear is getting in the way, work out your non-negotiables before you start looking. We all have things we’re not willing to compromise on which affect the decisions we make, such as deciding what kind of job we want.
When it comes to work, understanding your non-negotiables and how these align with your values can help you make the right career choices. Examples of non-negotiables could include:
Flexible working
Short commute
Opportunities to develop
Psychological safety
Company values that are aligned with your own
There are lots more and you’ll have your own. It’s worthwhile reminding yourself of these whenever you’re looking for a job. You may feel you have to take whatever job you are offered, and if you are out of work and need an income, this may be the best short-term option, but there’s often a choice.
Think about your non-negotiables and remind yourself why they’re non-negotiable. You’re less likely to end up working for a company that isn’t aligned with your values if you keep this in mind.
Regardless of how you find a way through your fear, remember that if you want to move forward, you need to step outside your comfort zone. Nothing will change if you don’t. Once you have stepped outside your comfort zone, you will start to grow. You might even find that it’s not as scary as you thought it would be.
Aileen Carson, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Aileen Carson is a professional coach who specializes in helping managers find ways of reducing stress and avoiding burnout to help them gain clarity on the next steps of their careers.
Aileen works with people who are unclear about where their career is heading as they are under constant pressure to achieve results. She helps them work out strategies to deal with stress so they can focus on their career ambitions.
Aileen’s own career transitions and personal experience of burnout have given her valuable insight that feeds into her coaching work. Her previous clients have learned to recognize their own needs, improve their wellbeing, work out their next career moves, recognize the signs of burnout, increase their confidence and improve their leadership skills.
