Comfort is a Trap: Don’t Get stuck in the Wrong Job!
Today, while browsing LinkedIn, I came across a connection suggestion. The person’s profile photo had the “Open to Work” banner, and out of curiosity, I clicked on it. I noticed that this gentleman had worked at the same company for nearly 29 years, and now, they had asked him to leave.
This immediately took me back to my own past, to a time when I was unhappy at a working place, but due to my personal circumstances, I was hesitant to leave. Even when I tried (though not very hard), I couldn’t make the move.
Of course, I can’t help that gentleman to get new job, and I can’t change my own past. But I do hope younger generations can learn an important lesson from this: no company or job is worth getting stuck in.
At the end of the day, businesses care about one thing: profit. The bitter truth is, where market is hard and business is in danger, one big move is reducing costs which includes less employees. In many large corporations and consulting firms, employees are seen primarily as assets. You’re valued as long as you’re making money for them. But when things go wrong, or worse, when investors see decline in revenues or a manager’s bonus is at risk, you are not family. You are not their friend. Business needs to survive.
So, here’s my experience, six things I keep in mind to evaluate my well-being at my career that I would like to share with you:
Evaluate your growth potential in the first year in a company.
Ask yourself honestly: is this a place where you can learn and grow? Does your manager have a plan to help you develop as an expert in your field?
Check if you’re being paid fairly.
The harsh reality is that salary discrimination still exists, especially between men and women. If you’re a woman and you discover you’re earning less than male colleagues with similar experience, that’s a big red flag.
Assess your manager’s commitment to your development.
Does your manager push you to improve your skills and guides you how to get out of your comfort zone? ? Do you have one-on-one conversations at least every quarter? If not, that’s another warning sign.
Look at opportunities for external learning.
Can you request to attend reputable seminars, conferences, or earn certifications? Or is the approval process so difficult it feels like Mission Impossible?
Watch out for a “comfortable” culture.
In today’s fast-cycle markets, if a team made by very long-tenured leaders, or key people is associated with strategic persistence and conformity (ASQ), structural inertia (ResearchGate), and learning myopia (Stanford), then it suppresses innovation. Although there is no hard research on that (or I couldn’t find), but my experience and observation shows if 30% or more of a team has more than 15+ years in same position or organization, it is a leading indicator of cultural stagnation, less dynamic, resistance to innovation, therefore less ready for big disruptive chanages in the market.
And most importantly: Are you feeling happy and cheerful at the end of your workday?
Are you enjoying what you do? Do you come home feeling satisfied , maybe tired, but still energized enough to spend quality time with your family or on your personal hobby after work? Do you feel a sense of joy or excitement on Sunday evening when you think about going back to work the next day?
If not , or worse, if you experience any of the following symptoms, it’s time to pay attention:
You collapse on the sofa in front of the TV every evening, or scrolling endlessly on social medias; too exhausted to do anything else.
You feel like you’re coming down with a cold every Friday evening or Saturday. Only by Sunday do you regain just enough energy to handle a few personal errands.
You wake up in the middle of the night, usually between 2:00 AM and 3:00 AM, and you are too alerted to fall back asleep.
These are signals from your intelligent body telling you that you’re overconsuming your energy on something that doesn’t give anything back. You must take these signs seriously before you hit the wall of anxiety or, even worse, burnout.
To those who believe that hard work alone guarantees reward: if you consistently sacrifice family time and personal well-being without receiving the recognition, growth, or promotion you deserve, it is a mistake. It’s important to understand it’s not the company’s “fault” if restructuring or layoffs happen one day. The business is taking care of itself, as it must. The real risk is when you forget to take care of yourself along the way. Loyalty to your work is needed, but loyalty to yourself is essential.
To my readers that are impacted by job market turbulance and layoffs:
This is not your fault and you are not alone on this.
Ask immediately for help from trusted friends, relatives or your network. Do not carry the sadness and burden of it alone.
You are not a victim. This can happen to anyone.
Do not rush to get a new job. You NEED sometime to take care of yourself first, to reflect, make yourself calm.
The law of the universe is simple and true: if you send out stress and anxious signals, if you radiate fear of being homeless or jobless, those are the outcomes to come back to you. But if you take care of yourself and gain some relaxing energy, good things find their way to you.
I have experienced this many times. The good things only knocked on my door when I tuned into inner calmness, became the eye of the storm, observed without panic, and cleansed my soul of self-destructive thoughts.
Start learning new things you always wished you had some time to do: there is an enormous great source of valuable materials are available on the internet and through AI, and free or not too costy. Start updating your knowledge in the areas that bring you joy and make your CV stronger. Gain positive energy by learning new things.
And to that gentleman, I would say: congratulations on getting out of the prison. Now you can learn to swim in the bigger ocean and never is too let to break free. It might feel scary at first, but believe me, the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.
