Your reasons for
changing jobs could be one, or a combination of these. What you need to
do is to evaluate your reason against certain criteria that are
important to you. Do a cost benefit analysis to see whether it is
advisable to change now. Would you benefit overall by this move?
This is not meant to
discourage people who consider changing jobs. Nor is it a case in favor
of loyalists to one company. All that is being re-iterated is that use
the problem solving approach in this decision to change jobs. Your
overall objective should be to improve your level of job satisfaction at
the new job.
For example, if you are
moving primarily because of a bad boss, you have no control over the
kind of boss you will have in your next organization. You may need to
consider other factors as well such as a higher pay or the job content
to ensure that you at least improve your working conditions in your new
job. The worst thing for you would be to be doing the same job with the
same responsibilities, in a new organization and with a tougher boss!
Identify
your long-term career goals
Once you have arrived at
the reason for why you need a job change, how can you go about it? When
is the right time to change jobs?
The most important step
here is to identify your long-term career goals. That is you should able
to chart out a realistic career path for yourself. You could ask
yourself the following questions:
When do you want to be
at different positions/designations in an organization ?
What is your job
description at each of these levels?
What responsibilities do
you need to handle to get there?
What skills do you need
to be able to work efficiently at each level?
Do you have all the
skills?
How will you acquire
additional skills with increasing responsibilities?
If you are changing
fields, do you have the functional skills that work in any industry?
How long will it take
you to achieve this goal in your existing organization?
With this clarity on
your future plans, you will be in a better position to decide the right
time to change your job. This will also help you aggressively go out
looking for jobs that fit in with your career plans, or suitably
evaluate offers that come your way.
In the meanwhile, update
your knowledge and skills regularly. Stay well informed.
You need to look out for
the right job which will give you a higher level of job satisfaction,
and match your aspirations. Of course, there could always be a certain
error in judgment, which you could not anticipate, of accepting an offer
which later on turned out to be a disaster. But the idea is to avoid
such situations as far as possible. Try and minimize such risks. This
especially, despite the dangling carrot of significantly higher pay and
benefits. You need to watch out for the following situation: (name has
been changed)
Dheeraj passed out of a
well-known management institute in 1986. He joined a large
multi-national consumer non-durable company, in marketing. After working
there for 2 years, he quit to join a small advertising agency. Within a
month, he quit and then joined a publishing house. After working there
for a 3 year period, he quit to join a large advertising agency. In two
years time, he was ready to move on yet again. This time he joined
another advertising agency where he stayed for just a year. Next move
was to a newspaper. After a year, he moved on to another newspaper at a
higher pay packet!
7 jobs in 13 years!
Whatever Dheeraj's motivations were, his frequent moves just go to show
that not much thinking and planning went into his decisions. His moves
do not seem to have been backed by adequate research or sound rationale,
regarding the company he was planning to join, or the reason for his
needing a change!
The point, therefore,
being made is:
THINK THROUGH YOUR
CAREER PLAN, AND CHANGE JOBS AFTER PROPER RESEARCH!
Evaluate
the counter offer objectively before you accept or reject it
What if the organization
you are currently working for makes a counter offer after you told them
about your intention to resign? How should you react?
Well, the first step is
that do not get carried away by emotion and feel so touched that someone
wanted you to stay. Or do not let this situation inflate your ego so
much that you suddenly feel indispensable to the organization and
develop unrealistic expectations.
Yes, it definitely feels
good to know that your organization felt that you were important enough
for them to make a counter offer instead of just letting you go. But
remember, you need to still do some thinking before you decide to accept
the counter offer. Some of the issues you need to consider are:
Think through such
issues before you get carried away to accept the counter offer. It may
turn out that you did well to stay on in your current organization. But,
let that happen after you have gone through a thought process like the
one above.
Do not
resign and then look for a change
Before you consider your
next job change, you could keep in mind the following tips:
1.Review your job
situation to see if you are on the right track to achieve your career
goal
Identify if there is a
need for you to look for a change.
2.Do not resign and then
look for a change.
It reduces your market
value. It is advisable to continue working and then look out for better
opportunities.
3.As long as you are not
a compulsive job-hopper, there is no stigma in changing jobs.
In fact, a positive view
to changing jobs is that it adds on to your experience and skills,
allowing you to advance in your career. You can also contribute better
to your new organization by bringing your expertise acquired in your
previous job.
4.Keep yourself aware of
developments and information in your industry/field.
Stay up-dated as it
would help you in your getting a better job.
5.Research alternative
job options before taking a final decision
This would reduce the
risk of job dissatisfaction after the change.
Whatever you do, let's
hope that you find what you are looking for in your new job!
