If you are looking forward to this 3-day weekend a little too much, you might need a new job! I know how debilitating it can feel to be stuck in the wrong job. It may not be a “bad job” or a “dead-end job,” it may actually be a job a lot of other people would envy. (How many times have you told yourself: “I’m really lucky to have this job”?) But you know it’s not the right job for you. Or maybe you have a friend who never stops complaining about their job. You (and your friend) are not alone. According to a 2014 report by the Conference Board, a New York-based nonprofit research group, 52.3% of Americans are dissatisfied with their job. If you are reading this, my guess is that you have worked too hard, studied too much, and paid too much for your education to be in a job that you dread going to every morning.
I made the jump in 2003. After graduating with a degree in Finance from Texas A&M, I moved to New York City to work as an investment banker at a major bank on Wall Street. This was a “dream job” for a Finance major. Exciting city. The chance to make a lot of money. And a gateway to a career in private equity or a hedge fund. But it didn’t take long for me to realize something was wrong. I was unfulfilled. I dreaded going into work. Unfortunately it took me a lot longer to know what to do. I questioned everything: Was I in the wrong city? Was I in the wrong field? Should I leave finance all together? Then I discovered an opportunity to serve as both Finance and Community Service Director of a church and Executive Director of a small nonprofit. In my entire life, I had never felt as free as I did when I walked out of my boss’s office after giving notice at the bank!
Making the switch to a role where I could use my skills and talents at an organization that fit me was just what I needed. Obviously there would be a pay cut, but I knew I could make it work, because what did extra money matter if I spent all my time slaving away at a job I hated?
Many others have similar stories. For my wife, it was leaving a highly successful role at an international law firm to become a legislative counsel on Capitol Hill. (Patriotic job perk – watching fireworks from her office!) For you, it might be a Fundraising Manager at a nonprofit in Dallas or becoming a Human Resources Director at a Public Charter School in San Francisco.
That’s why I recently created WorkMonger. With our profile-driven job matches, similar to online dating profiles, we match jobseekers with the right role and organization in the Social Impact Sector. As you might imagine we match based off skills and responsibilities, but we also factor in so much more of what makes You, You, such as mission and values alignment, organizational culture preferences, and work style. We believe your career will thrive when you are in the right role at the right organization for you.
So, how will you use your extra day off this week? Grilling some hot dogs? Watching fireworks? Why not declare your independence from a job that doesn’t excite you? Why not take 20 minutes to fill out your WorkMonger profile? What do you have to lose?
Click here to complete your WorkMonger profile today!
