Five reasons you can't quit a job you hate

It’s easy to assume hating your job is ‘normal’. To believe the workplace simply can’t be an enjoyable environment or that it’s unrealistic to expect fulfilment from your job. People are incredibly resilient. We learn to adapt. We learn to adjust. We figure out ways to make a bad situation manageable. After a while, the things you once thought were unacceptable suddenly become bearable, and when that happens, your motivation to move can start to dissipate. Lowering your standards can hold you over for a while, but over time, you also start to realise you can only fool yourself for so long.

Excelling at any job involves a long process of gaining the credentials to be qualified, making it through an arduous interview process, building important relationships, and acquiring institutional knowledge to navigate your organisation. Whenever you make an investment of time, money, and effort, letting go of that investment is incredibly counterintuitive. No one wants to feel like they’re throwing away everything they’ve spent years working toward. Moving on is often harder than holding on. However, when your motivations are strong enough, cutting your losses in the service of something more important to you is often necessary to make the progress you want for your career and life.

Isn’t it nice to have a fancy title at a really well-known company? A flashy business card has a way of immediately affording you a certain level of respect amongst peers. Working for a reputable company gives you a certain level of status. Everyone likes being respected. Everyone wants to feel important. Walking away from a specific company also means walking away from the positive image people may have about you because you work for that company. Quitting a job can feel like giving up part of your identity – and a positive part at that. (Being gainfully employed is generally viewed quite favourably by others in society.) Yet ultimately, if you disappoint yourself for continuing in a job you hate, the admiration of others won't provide much solace.

Even if you don’t love your job, the idea of having something stable to go to every day can be quite comforting. Regularity and predictability are generally more manageable than volatility and uncertainty. Dealing with a known bad situation can be easier than taking a leap into the unknown, even if that leap could lead to a better outcome. However, over time, the emotional comfort provided by stability might not be enough to offset your dissatisfaction. Once you know you’re unhappy with your current situation, at least exploring the idea of pursuing something else is often a wise move. If nothing else, it might help you eventually figure out where to go instead.

The reasons for staying in your job are all legitimate. Nobody can blame you for wanting a steady income, an important title, a bit of stability. It’s very easy to become inoculated to your unhappiness, accept professional dissatisfaction as part of a normal life. Being aware of these common barriers, and identifying which of them is preventing you from making a desired change, is the first step in moving onto more fulfilling work. Websites such as reed.co.uk offer a wealth of alternative employment opportunities. It might not happen overnight but anybody can take control of their life provided the desire is there.