7 signs it's time to quit and look for a new job

Schezar/Flickr

• Everyone has bad days at work, but the bad days shouldn't outweigh the good.
• There are seven major signs that you aren't achieving sustained happiness and you should consider a new job.
• These signs range from no longer learning to experiencing negative team dynamics.

At one point or another we've all dreamt about changing jobs. The reasons vary. For some, it's about money.

For others, it's about doing something with meaning or maybe the chance to create their own business.

As someone who's lived in 11 countries, worked in 10+ different companies and started a few others over the last 20 years I know the feeling all too well. I also know that although change 'can' be good, it can also be bad if you don't think things through properly.

Everyone one of us faces frustrations with our careers and jobs. There will be good times and bad times. However, in today's age of "instant gratification" making job changes too quickly or without knowing where you're going next can literally be a career killer. So the question is: When should you make a change? What signs should you look for?  

Over the past few years, I discovered a powerful yet simple formula which I now apply to my work life and to assess how I'm doing where I'm working. The formula is this:

"When negative energy tasks (NET) > positive energy tasks (PET) over a prolonged period of time (T), then = Burnout (B)".  

Put differently, the formula for sustained happiness at work is simply:

So now when the formula is tipping towards "burn-out" I know I need to rebalance the way I'm working and focus on doing more positive tasks and reduce the amount of time spent on negative ones.  

The reality is none of us is happy at work all the time. There will always be days, weeks or even months when we're working flat out and some of the work we're doing is sucking positive energy out of us. That's normal. But when negative energy is constantly outweighing positive energy over a significant period of time you simply have to stop and say: "Why is this happening? When is this going to change? How much more am I willing to endure?"

Even today, running my own business, there are days when I'm working on things I dislike doing. There will always be tasks I enjoy less but the key is that they are outweighed by the tasks I enjoy doing more.  

Aside from the formula above, I've found that there are clear signs to pay attention to that might suggest your personal equation is out of balance and that you either have to find a way to redress it or look for other career options. Let's visit my top 7: 

1. Growth and learning

Part of what kills many jobs is simply the same old routine day after day. As human beings, were innately curious and many of us enjoy learning new things. Learning new tools, new skills, languages, or about new industries keeps us sharp and keeps us motivated. More importantly, the job market is changing incredibly rapidly and it's estimated that 47% of jobs won't even be around in 25 years time according to this article in Big Think.

So what does that mean for us? It means, we constantly have to be learning new skills, tools, and techniques to stay ahead of the job market and increase our market value. In my experience the onus is on you to start thinking of what you'd like to learn and where you want your career to go. Once you have an idea you need to ensure you discuss this proactively with your manager or HR person.

However, if, after repeated attempts, you're not being heard or can't get the training or support for how you would like to develop professionally, you may have to start thinking about other options for career growth. Be aware that this type of approach is really for those working in larger organizations. If you're working in a startup with limited resources, it's really up to you to craft your own role, take ownership, and ensure you're getting your own work done before starting to take on additional responsibility.  

2. Appreciation

If you're at all familiar with Mazlow's hierarchy of needs you'll know that once your basic needs are met (food, shelter, security) the next most important needs are purely psychological. Self esteem is important to people. Although appreciation by your manager or others may vary and will be more important for some people compared to others, a lack of appreciation may demotivate people, leave them feeling empty, and not provide them with guidance on where they are doing well and where they could be improving.

According to this article in Harvard Business Review, a study by Towers Perin (a recruiting firm) showed that the single highest driver of employee engagement at work was whether an employee felt that their manager really cared about their well being or not. If you're not feeling appreciated by your manager or team/organization for a prolonged period of time, you might want to investigate other options either on a different team, in a different role, or in a different company. Appreciation is a perfectly normal thing to expect at work but it's often a skill that's overlooked particularly by inexperienced managers.

3. Inability to leverage core strengths

Although growth and learning are important, research shows that we're more likely to be motivated, do well, and feel appreciated when we're working on tasks where we leverage our strengths to produce the best work (Strengthfinder is a great book that talks about this). Naturally, you won't always be working on things that you like or have a core competence in but the reverse is also true: If you're spending most of your time working on things that don't leverage your core skills/strengths, you won't be as successful or feel as satisfied.

It's more likely that you also won't be building the kind of "positive" energy we discussed earlier and may even be working on things that are producing more negative energy then positive energy (thereby unbalancing your personal equation). If you go too long without leveraging your strengths it may actually damage your self confidence which in turn makes creating new job opportunities harder. It might be time to consider a change.