So I think at some point, a lot of us get there at work. You’re not getting the pink slip but does that mean you should just stick around when your gut is telling you otherwise?
Here are a few thoughts that you may want to mull around and if they seem familiar you might just want to update that resume!
What?! You Have An Idea?
Aw yes folks, there are those fearful managers in the working world that will tense up and basically give you the non-verbal “shut up” when you dare to suggest a new idea. This can be displayed in various ways such as the ever popular silent treatment or the equally effective erratic body language method.
Whatever the reason that they may be so defensive in dialogue that is supposed to bring the greater good for everybody, don’t worry about it if it persists.
You can’t stay in a place like that. Our brains are fuelled by new stimuli and thinking and the cost of dumbing or quieting down far exceeds that paltry paycheque that you may be clinging on to. There are other places, people and things to be around that WILL embrace you and the challenges of new ideas. Seek them out. You will be glad you did.
“So, have you got twenty years of work experience, or one year’s experience repeated twenty times?”
I found this age old adage quite entertaining when coming across it again having experienced it myself. If you find yourself in a position that the best reasoning your employer can come up with for not embracing your new ideas is that your manager has more seniority or experience, it is time to shove on.
It’s true we live in the year 2014…a time of embracing NEW and IMPROVED and EFFICIENT ways of doing things but some old school folk will never get that, so why waste your quippy dialogue on them? Again, just find the door and let “ancient history” take care of itself.
Your Employer Encourages Doing the Same Thing Over and Over Regardless of the Outcome
Not only will your brain turn to mush, but let’s face it if you are not used to keenly interpreting fresh perspectives on old ideas, your marketability as an employee over time also goes down. Time to get moving on.
I’m No Mathematician But This Salary Doesn’t Add Up
We all have to be somewhat aware of the market ups and downs which can affect an overall company’s ability to pay its employees (hello recession a few years back) BUT if you work for one of those cautious companies that are of the opinion small or non-existent salaries are acceptable AND YOU KNOW the company is making money, you should see the return in your paycheck at some point.
If you don’t, courage up and ask for it. If they deny you, it is time to move on. Someone will pay you what you are worth. But that would be someone who values you.
Hello Sahara Desert, Please Meet My Brain Cells
If you feel that you have gotten absolutely everything out of this job to the point where it is just routine and your brain fog exceeds your enthusiasm as you jump out of bed each day… It is time to move on.
You get to a point in your life where it is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to ensure you are not killing brain cells. Go for it. Yes I mean you.
Your Body Tells You It’s Time To Run Away
Good for your boss and his crew that are all so hyped up in carrying forward the company “vision” (or at least pretending to in an Oscar winning fashion).
But, that is their choice, not yours. You are not being paid to give your soul on a platter for somebody else’s “vision”.
Exit, stage left. If the ship is a sinking, it’s ok to save yourself!
BOTTOM LINE: Listen to your gut. Do any of these scenarios ring true? Perhaps you have a few of your own. The main thing to takeaway I think is that none of us have to settle for something that makes us feel like crap and unappreciated. So, with a little backbone and a whole lotta courage, make a choice and find your peeps. They’re out there.
