First, I’m Not Quitting

People sometimes assume that what you write about on your personal blog is a mirror of what’s going on in your life, whether that reflection is direct or indirect. That might be the case for posts like the one I made yesterday, in which I discussed how to address a problem. This post, however, is not about that. I’m not planning on leaving. I think my job will keep me occupied for a while because I like it. However, I was recently asked to respond to a query concerning the appropriate moment to give up (or move on).

When to quit/move to the next thing. I’d love your take on that in a blog post.

— Zach Skaggs (@TheZachSkaggs)

Four Scenarios That Tell Me It’s Time to Quit

These are the four situations in which I would advise you to give up. You must have others. However, these are based on my own experiences and those of others I’ve known, who have opened me to the difficulties they’ve encountered.

1. Illegal Stuff is Going On

We all picture the first scenario. You are reporting illegal activity, but nothing is being done about it. Illegal activity is occurring. Ultimately, you may find yourself entangled in the entire situation.

I knew a guy who was employed by an airline years ago. After writing all of the documents that were required of him, he realised that a piece of equipment was broken. However, he was disregarded by all. He thought the fact that no one wanted to address the problem was more significant than the importance of the problem. He then went on.

Then one of their aircraft went down. due to the problematic area he had indicated. The only silver lining in the court cases that followed was that he had already left the organisation.

Going along with the flow is not an option when there are gravely dangerous criminal activities taking place. Thus, depart!

2. Work is Making You Sick

I recently watched the 2016 film Miss Sloane again. I believe that the reason I adore the movie so much is due to its strategic and prescient elements. This quotation (as well as picture) comes from MagicalQuote.

But there’s a more important line in the movie that applies here.

Career suicide is not so bad when you consider the alternative is suicide by career.

Miss Sloane (2016)

At times, it’s necessary to take a step back and assess whether your work may be more detrimental than beneficial. If your employment is making you ill, it’s probably time to go, whether it’s because of a toxic workplace, emotional abuse, physical harm, or just so much stress that your blood pressure is rising.

3. You Aren’t Having an Impact
More than any of the other two, these final two have pushed me to grow and progress. Before I go any further, let me clarify that, in my opinion, there are good reasons to move on while you’re in a leadership position. When you work in an entry-level position, it’s different.

One front-line employee at another company sent me a series of text messages (I wasn’t the only one) lamenting how horrible things was at their job. It’s called “spilling the tea,” I believe, these days. I was receiving information that wasn’t supposed to be disclosed.

Nevertheless, I had a straightforward query that I have posed to a lot of people: “Have you been hired to solve that problem?” It could be time to move on if the response is affirmative and you aren’t making a difference. However, if the response is negative, it’s time to take a backseat and unwind.

It doesn’t imply you have to fix something just because you see it isn’t working well. Something may not be incorrect just because you perceive it to be so; you may not have the necessary context.

However, I have known people and experienced this myself, where we are recruited into an organization with the intention of bringing about change. Eventually, though, you come to the realization that the change you were hoping for is not possible.

I’m not advocating that you simply leave the room.

But I remember having a very clear one-on-one with a manager a few years back because I was utterly unable to have the kind of impact I thought my hiring was supposed to. We worked through a number of instances, and his advice was quite beneficial. So beneficial  I stayed for several more years.
But I’ve watched and worked with others who didn’t get the same feedback and their decision was different. It was time to move on for them. And so they did.

4. You Aren’t Learning Anything New

In the majority of these cases, the issue has been determining when to leave a corporation. I haven’t spent any time discussing leaving a product, leaving the startup you established, or anything similar.

But everything of the foregoing is relevant to this final one.

I consider work to be a trade. Usually, you exchange your skill and time for money. However, I see it as a trade-off for the chance to learn new things—along with my time, talent, and effort.

Therefore, I’m prone to think that it might be time to give up or move on if I’m not learning anything new at all.

Let me change that again. I’m not advocating that you quit if you’re not getting the knowledge you want or anticipate. That is, if you are not picking up any knowledge at all.

We’re not always very good at knowing what we ought to be learning. We believe there is a single thing we should be learning, and if we aren’t understanding it, we want to move on. That’s not my recommendation.

I’ve said it a million times: I believe that everyone needs a brief stint working for a corporation at some point in their lives. Friends who are startup founders detest that advise.

However, you are in charge when you are the founder.

You’re probably never in control in a corporate setting. Rather, you have the power to mold and sway events. The objectives are not departmental. Someone who doesn’t work for you has the power to thwart your goals. If ideas are not properly formed and marketed, they never leave the boardroom.

In different circumstances, none of these things are taught in the same manner.

However, the purpose of this final one is not to advise joining a large, slow-moving corporation. All I’m doing is reminding you how vital it should be for you to continue learning and developing. Additionally, make sure you are learning something if you aren’t learning anything at all.

which necessitates pausing and considering, “What am I learning?”

And after giving it some thought, if you’re still unable to respond, perhaps it’s time to move on.
There’s Only You

I put a lot of effort into supporting and assisting my employees as well as the people I work with every day. I want them to know that I’m here for them. And I want to give them more authority.

Let’s be clear, though. I want to be helpful, but your career is not under my control. or your narrative. Indeed, you are.

Just you.

So, the decision to go on or not is solely yours. These four situations might be helpful, but ultimately, you have to choose whether the circumstances call for your departure.