Ask HN: I want to resign with nothing lined up
I'm so fatigued with my job. Opening up my work laptop gives me anxiety. Getting slack notifications gives me anxiety. I'm fatigued with the codebase, I don't care about the product or the customer (banks) and want to be done with it.
On the other hand I'm saving good money and I don't have to deliver to a particularly high level, but even this level of output is an emotional grind.
Feeling stupid because I should be feeling grateful to have a job. Had coworkers furloughed, furloughs at other companies across London, etc. Yet here I am looking to quit?
Facts:
- almost 2 years out of uni, 'Senior' Engineer doing Scala
- London based, under lockdown saving 50-60% of my paycheck
- cheap rent (£650), no dependents, no mortgage, subscriptions: contact lenses, spotify and PAYG phone
- good physical health
- by the time I'll have served out my notice period, I'll have:
- 8 months runway @ £25 a day for groceries and discretionaries,
- 10 months runway @ £15 a day
- got a good amount of social stimulation at my place of residence. Not reliant on virtual happy hours for getting my fix.
- got a software project I'm enthusiastic about. Would be keen to put more time into it.
72 comments
[ 270 ms ] story [ 1454 ms ] threadI was in a situation similar to yours some years ago. The writing was on the wall for the project, but I was so sick of the job and wanted to travel so I gave my notice and left. If I had just waited two more months I would have been let go anyway with two months' severance, which would have given me a lot more travel runway/options.
My 2 cents,
If you are still contemplating, think about how you might feel, say after a week or a month. Because the state of mind then would be different. The relief of leaving a job one does not like is temporary and then the anxiety of future takes over, generally. Now with the current situation, it can add to the stress. Side projects enthusiasm is good but again anxiety about future can bring it down.
If it is possible to push taking the decision, talking to your manager, having clear work timings / notifications might help. Also since you have decided to move on anyway, maybe it is an opportunity to be assertive in asking for some changes you might want.
Look for what else you would want to do, take a look at other openings, talk to friends all these can add some objectivity to the decision and their consequence.
While the immediate pain has to be addressed, looking for a long term solution helps one make better decisions.
Good luck and stay safe.
i.e. a sideways move into a different team in the company or asking for a mentor (e.g. 10 years ahead) outside your team might make a big difference to your job satisfaction.
Consider taking this assessment. It's helped a lot of people get their thoughts straight and make better decisions about their future.
https://www.understandmyself.com/
I'm not sure how much this would help with a career decision .
---
You are less agreeable than 90 of 100 people
You are less compassionate than 78 of 100 people
You are less polite than 92 of 100 people
You are less conscientious than 95 of 100 people
You are less industrious than 88 of 100 people
You are less orderly than 95 of 100 people
You are more extraverted than 40 of 100 people
You are more enthusiastic than 53 of 100 people
You are less assertive than 68 of 100 people
You are higher in neuroticism than 78 of 100 people
You are higher in withdrawal than 76 of 100 people
You are more volatile than 77 of 100 people
You are higher in openness to experience than 49 of 100 people
You are higher in intellect than 41 of 100 people
You are higher in openness than 57 of 100 people
https://www.selfauthoring.com/
Have you considered another angle, which is that you may have a health condition that is impacting you?
I had a similar experience, I changed job/country but I was still feeling drained. It turned out I was suffering from a health condition which was draining my energy and I was fatigued all time.
Some of this may include but not limited to:
- Iron deficiency - Diabetes - Blood Pressure - hypothyroidism
Whatever you decide to do, if you feel like you just want to sleep and don't want to do anything for a while, check with your GP first and do blood tests.
2 years is the bare minimum for something like this.
Some money is better than no money, and free money is free money.
I disagree. In this case, "free money" is actually being shouldered by the entire country (including those who aren't even paying taxes yet).
Whether or not the OP should take that money is of course a different question.
This amount isn’t just a rounding error, it’s dust in the wind. Your disagreement is noted. Less Econ 101, more empathy please.
Some of the other comments have advice like trying to get furloughed, and all those seem worth a shot, but yeah.... just walk!
It's not necessarily my career choice but rather the current working environment (scrums, daily standups etc.) and the underlying desire to make everyone as replaceable as possible although I can understand the business argument. Possibly a start up environment with some substantial upside would be better.
Our direct management layers are at best semi technical with limited coal face experience as a result I find it difficult to believe in their ability to deliver.
I won't be going anyplace for the next few months due to the virus.
At first I thought I was going to do freelance work, but the longer I didn't start doing that the more I didn't want to do it. So after a year or so of playing with new tech and starting several personal projects which didn't turn into viable businesses, I began making some money with a website.
Because that profitable website and others I built afterwards weren't actually that profitable, 2 years after I quit, I had to do some freelance work to not run out of money. I had to do 3 years of small freelance gigs while growing an online business. So for me it was 5 years before I could pay myself without having to sell my services.
Not knowing from the beginning what I really wanted to do cost me 5 years of, let's say, austerity. Never really had any financial problems during this time, but I also wasn't comfortable applying for loan to buy a house.
I don't want to offer any advice, just share a personal story which might be relevant.
Still, I'm glad I did it. Because a) I hated the job I'd quit and was much happier with the one I ended up finding afterward, and b) it answered questions for me about what I did and didn't want to do with my life. Now I don't have to wonder: I know I don't want to freelance.
For example:
- If you wish to continue working in Scala and living in London, check the local job market for that skillset. Is demand growing or shrinking?
- Are London's Scala-friendly employers likely to be hiring in 6 months considering factors like covid-19's impact on the economy?
- Suppose that in 6 months, it turns out that no attractive Scala-in-London jobs are available. Can you easily move to another region where they're more abundant? Is there another language / stack in which you are (or can be) proficient and lets you get an attractive job in London?
The scala job market is good and only getting better. If you’re good at the functional aspects you’ll be considered for clojure/Haskell jobs too.
Do you think the market will still be favorable while the covid pandemic lasts?
The OP said he has 10 months runway, and in normal times that would be more than sufficient to quit an unsatisfying job, but with the global economy tanking it's worth double checking it.
1.) The grass is not necessarily greener on the other side of the fence. Have you got an idea of what you want to do? What you will accept? Even if you just want to leave, you need a plan. Otherwise you'll take something worse out of desparation down the line.
2.) Even if you find a "dream job" or even just a better job things always change. Especially in London. This might also be the case for the job you are in. Is it a temporary rut you are in? Like another commenter said, do you like the company but not the current position? If so the company might do a lot to retain you rather than see you walk.
3.) Exploit your network to explore options before leaving. Use the current situation as a chance to seriously look and to build a plan. Its easier to find a job when you already have one that to find one when you are desparate. I am sure you have but... If you have friends or connections at other places tap them up. You never know...
4.) This lockdown is doing funny things with all our heads. Take a deep breath, work out if its just the insanity of the situation that is clouding your vision. If you commute into London normally and now you are stuck at home, you might be suprised how much energy that city imparts when you are in there.
I have experienced this first hand. I mean... Its nice to have flexible working, to be at home and in the city because the opposite is also true, London can really bite you! But... London in the summer, especially after work in the City... One of the best places in the world.
If after all those questions your mind is still set on leaving, then you are making the right choice! Hell there is no wrong choice. We only live once!
Best of luck mate!
That said, I have done the same twice. The first time I really just needed a break. I was classic burn out which is what yours sounds like. I recommend trying for a break, like 2 months non pay. You can work on your pet project, and after 2 months if you still want to quit, do so.
I just got a job at a bank (cloud architecture) and some companies are still hiring.
The job market is going to be weird for a while. Accepting that, you could still see if landing the next job is possible first, and take a little time between gigs to sort yourself out.
1. Maybe I’m a bit burned out and need a break.
2. Or maybe I’ve got a health condition that I should check out. Talking this over with a doctor or therapist could help.
3. Everyone is stressed and fatigued now. It’s the only new normal.
4. Covid-19 will likely flare up again this winter. And a vaccine, if one is developed next year, will take most of the rest of 2021 to roll out. Or longer.
5. More companies will go out of business and more employees will be shed during that period. Some of both may be potential customers of your “project.”
6. Try to search for another job before you bail. Thinking about how you can sell yourself is a good exercise.
7. Interview for a few positions, carefully.
8. If you can’t find any good jobs, stay where you are.
9. Start working on your project now and see if it’s got real business potential or is just a pipe dream.
10. If you really have no project, and it’s a pipe dream, stay where you are.
11. Talk your situation over with a mentor or an older friend. If you have neither, stay where you are and find a mentor.
12. Face the reality that two years out of uni is nothing. In the sense of a career.
13. Face the reality that soon you will appreciate your job more when you see how many people don’t have what you have. Don’t feel guilty about not feeling that way now.
14. Your runway metrics are insufficient in the Covid-19 era. I’m not sure you’re paying enough attention to the economic consequences of the pandemic.
15. Be more discreet on public forums; you are over-sharing at least 3 key facts.
16. Be wary of taking advice from strangers, including me.
17. “Do it” Is not advice, it’s a remark.
Good luck, take care, and remember your country voted years ago to leave the EU, and your PM who is supposed to lead your county through that maze was hours away from being put on a ventilator a week ago.
It never hurts to take advice from Ferris Bueller, though.[1]
[1]https://youtu.be/HbR7axof1wk
Set aside a few 45min - 1hour breaks throughout the day where you go for a walk, workout, do yoga, play a video game, basically take care of yourself.
There is nothing that states you need to be working yourself 100%.
The longer you stay at this job the longer you do damage to your future self and prevent yourself from doing great things and living the happiest life you can.
I had a contractor working for me who came and openly talked about this with me. After digging into the problem more, we found it is about the chemistry of the team and he was not getting along with their manager. He changed the job, got a lower pay and life continued fine for him. The point here is to identify the trigger than eliminate it.
If what you are doing is not making you happy, delaying the decision will only make you more unhappy.
I quit a job that I was miserable at after 3 years out of uni. I traveled and I enjoyed life on my own for a few months. And when the time came, I ended up taking a job that paid even less than the job I quit (it’s not all about the money) — it set me up for real success later down the line, and I regret nothing.
Granted, now is not an appropriate time to be traveling, so that isn’t really an upside ... but if you have other interests such as your side project, that can be just as gratifying.