Four Steps to Take Before Quitting Your Job
Posted on August 06, 2015 by susan peppercorn, One of Thousands of Career Coaches on Noomii.
Frustrations at work with an unsupportive manager, annoying colleague or poor cultural fit can easily reach a boiling point. Look before you leap.
Sometimes leaving without another job is the best option but often it’s not. A thoughtful process will help you decide before your emotions get the best of you.
Step 1: Widen your options (W)
The first enemy of good decisions is a narrow focus. In Lauren’s case, the only alternative she saw was quitting her job. To widen her options she could have asked herself: What other choices do I have or what do I want out of my career and what are the best ways of getting there?
Step 2: Reality test assumptions®
Lauren was convinced that joining a technology consulting firm would provide the rewards that the job she quit didn’t. Instead of presuming the grass would be greener somewhere else, she could have interviewed people in technology consulting to find out what they like and the challenges they face. These conversations would have allowed her to learn what it would take to make a transition and how long it might take. In other words, they would have given her the opportunity to reality test her assumptions.
Step 3: Attain distance before deciding (A)
When the emotions that confront us when making important decisions cloud our focus and narrow our vision, gaining perspective can help us shift the spotlight to reveal new possibilities.
In her book 10-10-10, business writer, Suzy Welch, suggests a simple strategy for keeping short-term emotions in check. Before making a decision, she suggests asking, how will I feel about my decision 10-minutes from now, 10-months from now and in 10 years?
Another way of gaining perspective is to ask yourself, what would you tell your best friend to do? Our advice to others tends to focus on their most important values while when we’re deciding for ourselves we get stuck.
Step 4: Prepare to be wrong (P)
“Our predictions grow more accurate when we consider the worst and best possible scenarios,” say the Heaths. Imagine the worst has happened and ask yourself why, they suggest. If Lauren had asked herself this question, would her decision to quit her job have been the same?
The WRAP process is a tool to stop the cycle of agonizing indecision and making an informed decision. Though nothing is foolproof, it’s a way for you to take calculated risks feeling more confident.
A career coach can help you reality test you assumptions and gain perspective. If you are looking for a Boston-based career coach, feel free to contact me for a free consultation.
