3 signs it's time to break up with your job...

I think it’s time we all get out of the scarcity mindset. You know the one - where you stick through, hang out where you’re not all that excited to be, stay in the job to collect that pay cheque or rack up that experience because we’re told we should, because we’ve been taught to be polite, thoughtful, not rock the boat and because we feel like we don’t have options.  Truth bomb - you do have options, plenty of them and your lack mentality is not serving anyone, especially yourself.

In this episode, we chat through 3 signs it's time to break up with your job.  You deserve to thrive at work, don’t wait for the right time to put yourself and your dreams first. It’s 2021 and never has there been a better time to shake that scarcity mindset off, to rethink your programming and consider the possibilities of a life lived on your terms.

If you ever want to connect, provide feedback, share your story or give me any perspective on topics you want me to cover, reach out anytime at thecolourgap@gmail.com

The Colour Gap Podcast is part of the Alberta Podcast Network, locally grown, community supported.

Licensed intro music from NoMo

Transcript

The Colour Gap podcast is part of the Alberta Podcast Network - locally grown, community supported.

This episode is brought to you by Taproot Edmonton, which publishes curiosity-driven stories, topical newsletters, and locally focused podcasts, all in the service of informing Edmontonians about their community. 

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I think it’s time we all get out of the scarcity mindset. You know the one - where you stick through, hang out where you’re not all that excited to be, stay in the job to collect that pay cheque or rack up that experience because we’re told we should, because we’ve been taught to be polite, thoughtful, not rock the boat and because we feel like we don’t have options. 

And those stories we tell ourselves around the right thing to do, the right time to take that leap of faith or to not take it at all come from somewhere. Many of you have stories like mine. My parents, immigrants from Pakistan who moved to Canada over 40 years ago didn’t have that much choice in the decisions they made around a career that aligned with their hearts desire. They role modelled hard work, sacrifice and doing what they had to do to make it work. Part of me hopes that they are and were happy that I didn’t have to make the same choices as them because I think that was their barometer of success. They chose opportunities that would put food on our table and each choice to move jobs or change career path was rooted in economic gain, no matter how small. Many of us grew up watching our parents navigate this push pull of working for their families well being while actively having to put aside their desires to do work that really lit them up.  Their lack of choices, the world that they arrived in that didn’t give a shit about their international credentials and their need to rebuild means that myself and maybe many of you out there as well are the sufferers of new age problems. My generation and those after me arguably have had access to all this education, knowledge sharing, information and opportunity at our fingertips and from that we get on a quest to discover the right path and perhaps jump around to find that perfect fit. We have choices, we aren’t in the lack mentality our parents were forced to be in, so why do we act like we are? 

Let’s put this in real time facts - a Microsoft survey of more than 30,000 global workers showed that 41% of workers were considering quitting or changing professions this year alone. The old mentality of being grateful for a job and pushing through toxic workplace environments need not have a choke hold on you anymore. And perhaps for you it’s not rooted in trauma or mistreatment or even feeling misaligned at a core career level with where you’re at. Perhaps it’s a redirection and shift - a realization that life is too short. With the last 18 months of our lives navigating collective trauma of the pandemic, lock down after lock down and this hyper focus on our own mortality in a way that no one has ever managed through, it’s no wonder space has been taken for reflection and reconsideration of what is needed to really make the most of life.  

I was part of the early trend of this in 2020 taking a big career risk, a pivot of sorts to reinvent my HR career path and I did it because I was stagnated. I didn’t know what was to come, it was very early on in the pandemic but I’ve always been a bit of a restless and sometimes reckless human, taking risks without a safety net outside of my own belief in my ability to figure things out. Perhaps a false sense of confidence that I can’t quite pinpoint the origin of or perhaps an inner knowing that there is a bounce back ability that is innate within me that could help me push through whatever the consequences of those risks were. I speak from experience, both as a person who was a part of the early trend of the great resignation and as someone who has taken risk after risk in my career despite being surrounded by more conservative mindsets, so I hope you take my perspective to heart because a big part of this platform is about inspiring and empowering other women of colour to step into the possibilities of their lives. 

I will say that I really do believe there is beauty in ending up in places that don’t light you up, part of the process of getting to where you really want to be is muddling through those opportunities that simply don’t align with what excites you. Sometimes we have to go to places where we aren’t appreciated or don’t have our full potential actualized to realize what works and doesn’t work, to know the good and to deeply appreciate when we’re in the right place. But it doesn’t have to handcuff you, the possibilities should be explored and limiting yourself to staying where you’re at because you’re afraid of how recruiters and hiring managers will perceive you is hopefully a thing of the past. We deserve to thrive at work, to work for leaders and in organizations that bring out the best in us, full stop. 

So, what if your next move could be your last major direction change and each subsequent move rooted in choices to grow, to do more in an area you loved with all your might? Novel idea to some, but with me you don’t get novel BS, you get the opportunity to consider the possibilities and get one step closer to a career to love.

How do you know when it’s time to pull the trigger on the big life change and even move towards a path of exploring that thing you’ve “kind of always thought you wanted to do but never really thought it was possible?” Well, funny you should ask because I’ve got 3 signs of when to consider moving on and cutting ties with that unfulfilling job or go nowhere career path and start on the path to get focused on what you really want.

Before I go further though, I will say this isn’t meant to brush over real instances of workplace trauma or mistreatment and inequity. There is a reality of how we’re treated as women of colour in workplaces that aren’t designed to help us thrive. Assimilation, trying to fit us into a mold of something that resembles the white supremicist cultures of our corporate environments is real and if it crosses the line where you feel like you’re unable to show up as your authentic self, where you’re managed from a lens of performance that feels unachievable because it’s inequitable or unfair, where you don’t feel psychologically safe to say what needs to change for the greater good, that is reason alone to not think twice about walking away. You deserve more than what a toxic work environment will ever be able to grow and evolve to give you. You don’t need to stick it out to fit some arbitrary and antiquated rulebook. You can walk away and find green pastures, and you should. 

When things are less urgent and you’re not making decisions from a place of saving your mental health, those reasons are still worthy of exploring and validating for yourself. Such as: 

1. Let's get back to where we started with our scarcity programming - you’re doing it because you feel like you have to. Let’s be clear in saying that you always have a choice. I’m not saying quit your job with no backup plan (although for me that exact move, a few years back, was the catalyst I needed to get into my current career path) but what I am saying is you always have the capacity to start making moves in the direction you want to be in, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant. It doesn’t have to be as drastic as breaking up with your current role right this instant, but if you find yourself complaining about not feeling fulfilled or feeling stuck in your current role because of external circumstances you feel are out of your control, if you stay put you will always find yourself settling and will you ever be any closer to working in a role or for a company that aligns with what you value the most? I think not. I would argue that those diminishing returns start popping up very quickly and suddenly you’re no good to anyone.

2. You’ve gotten comfortable. This quote by Helen Keller has always resonated with me, “life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all.” These daring adventures don’t come without some cost and for most of us that cost may be fear of failure. Fear is an interesting concept. One the one hand no one wants to live a fear based life. On the other hand a little bit of fear and being in a state of discomfort on a daily basis can push you to grow. Where there is an absence of fear there is likely an absence of opportunities to really test what you’re made of and that simply means you aren’t challenging yourself and even settling for less than what you deserve. If every day is run on autopilot eventually you’re going look back in regret at what more you could have done. I can almost guarantee that if you’re working in a career path that you are passionate about that sense of complacency will be non-existent because you’ll be invested – fear or no fear – and always looking for ways to grow and expand your learning and add value.

3. You’re ready for growth but you’ve been pigeon holed in your current role. Perhaps you work in an organization that hits most of your check marks – you believe in the brand, you believe that what you do contributes to a better and higher cause, even if it’s not the perfect path to your personal self-actualization, you are paid well and you have a cool or awe inspiring job title. But what if you’ve hit that peak where the challenges are no longer enough and you know you want more, that you can do more but there just aren’t the opportunities at present to do so. Do you wait it out or do you take charge of your own path and start exploring your options? I think you know what option I would suggest. I’m living proof that you can reinvent yourself and that being in the driver's seat of what comes next for you is a choice you can make to take. 

I’ve just scratched the surface here but my goal is to help you think through what you may have been putting up with for far too long. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, you deserve to thrive at work, don’t wait for the right time to put yourself and your dreams first. It’s 2021 and never has there been a better time to shake that scarcity mindset off, to rethink your programming and consider the possibilities of a life lived on your terms. 

Before we end off, I wanted to take a moment to highlight one of the amazing podcasts that are a part of the Alberta podcast network with me. If you know anything about me, you know that I love books and when I came across the Glassbook Shop, an independent bookstore located in Edmonton bookstore last year, I fell in love. Inclusivity, representation and kindness simply ooze from their offerings presence online and Glassbook Radio is the official podcast created and produced by the Glassbook shop where they interview their favourite writers, publishers, and readers. It’s an absolute treat and I can’t recommend it enough. Find out more about Glassbook Radio and other locally grown podcasts on AlbertaPodcastNetwork.com

If you haven’t taken a moment, I would love for you to be a part of the conversation with me for the long term. Hit subscribe on your favourite podcast player and tune in every 2 weeks for new episodes and conversations. If you’re so inclined, I would love for you to leave a review or for you to connect with me to tell me how I can be of further service to you. My contact details are always left in the description box of each episode and I’m grateful for each of you coming along on the journey with me, trusting me and giving me all this space to be my authentic self. I can’t wait for what comes next.