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Ask HN: How soon is too soon to switch jobs?

10 points by cryopha ↗ HN
I'm asking in general, but here's my story specifically:

The company culture is great. My co-workers are all extremely talented people that I've learned a lot of good practices from. The company has a great reputation. Management likes me and has gone out of their way to make me feel welcome. This is my first full time job and I've been here for a little under six months. I have good internship experience from before this but no real open-source work to show. Leaving the company this soon would probably burn some bridges no matter how gently I did it. There’s an unwritten expectation that you stay for at least two years.

The main reason I want to leave is that the work itself ended up being much more simplistic than I thought it would be when I first took the job. Simpler than what I was doing previously as an intern at another company. I feel like I'm wasting months doing really trivial work and that it's going to hurt my chances of getting more interesting work later on. My current assignment is a CRUD front-end only app using an outdated framework that I was already proficient in before I started working here. I won't be able to get a new assignment for another 4-9 months, and my next assignment isn't guaranteed to be anything more interesting. Pay is slightly below average for my area, and benefits are extremely poor by any standard.

12 comments

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logn
"There's an unwritten expectation that you stay for at least two years."

Two years is a decent duration. At least view this as a job to challenge yourself on delivering projects successfully, even if they're routine CRUD apps.

It would be helpful for you on your third job to list your manager from this first job as a reference.

Generally it's never too early to leave. But if you have a string of job hopping, some people will hold this against you, and you'll have a short list of people wanting to endorse you.

poof131
If you feel like you are no longer learning or growing then you should probably look at moving, especially if pay and benefits are below average. At least start a slow search to see if there is someplace worth moving to. And since you aren’t miserable and are actively employed, you can move on your terms.

I wouldn’t worry about perception, especially in software. Moving after 6 months multiple times would be bad, but moving a few times in your first four or five years isn’t a big deal. I think the opposite actually applies in software, staying at someplace too long can be seen as a red flag if it’s not a top notch company using cutting edge tech.

The real risk though is leaving a good company culture with good management and a good team. Places with both are probably fewer and farther between then you would imagine. You may find better pay working on cutting edge tech with awful management and egotistically, unhelpful teammates, especially at some hyper growth companies.

The answer depends on what you want and it sounds like more interesting work is important. If there is no way to get your ‘simplistic’ work done and do interesting stuff on your own or helping another team, then moving is probably worth it. I do wonder though if the place is so great and your coworkers so talented, why is the work so simplistic? Is it a lifestyle company or are you missing something without the experience to know?

In any event, think about what you want, take your time and do research if you choose to move, and best of luck in your career.

bZfrank
Just talk to them. Tell them your bored and see if they are willing to help. I bet they will come up with some solution for you.
william_hc
Just tell your manager that you're bored and want (or need) something more challenging. If they are a good manager they'll figure something out.
panjaro
If the task is trivial at job, you can always go home at the end of the day and push some code to open source, learn new stuffs.
andymurd
Line up another job before quitting this one. As other posters have said: just don't make a habit of short-term jobs and it's easily explained.
ashleyp
Get the assignment done quickly and so you can get a new one. You're leaving because one assignment you feel is shit?
loumf
Pay is slightly below average for my area, and benefits are extremely poor by any standard.

Frankly, none of the other stuff matters to me as much as this. Look for a job while you still have one and move on if you think you see yourself there for a while. One short stint won't matter, but two in a row might.

tixocloud
Use your free time to hunt out opportunities for improvement. What are the issues that the company is facing? Are there any other areas that you can continue to grow and develop? It's not about waiting for your manager to assign you something - it's about finding ways that you can make the company better, which can lead to more interesting assignments. Ones where the management team hadn't even considered in the first place.
JSeymourATL
> The company culture is great; co-workers are all extremely talented people; Management likes me...

There's an old rule, people don't leave companies-- they leave bosses. Question for you, can you up manage-up? Can you assert to management that you're ready for more interesting, challenging work? Can you help your boss with his agenda? Can you challenge your peers to up their game?

If you can do that, then definitely stay. Incidentally, it also makes you more valuable to the company and will certainly justify a salary increase.

mak4athp
If you carry this attitude through a series of future jobs, you're going to demonstrate that you're a pretty awful employee. Not all work is exciting, and new hires are often going to get the worst of it until they prove themselves. If you can't suck it up for a bit and show some loyalty, then there's another candidate who can.

But realistically, you're very early in your career and can afford to burn some bridges and make some selfish decisions. Doing this once or twice isn't going to really stand out as a problem, so much as you taking a little time to get your bearings in the real world.

So be sensitive to your employer's needs (don't quit during a release crunch), and be open to any counteroffers they may offer as you tell them your plans, but do what you need to.

suprjami
If you are surrounded by talented people, in a positive work environment, you are doing better than the vast majority of the workforce. Most people hate their jobs and are surrounded by dicks.

A good work environment is a huge benefit that you won't realise you miss until you give it up. I would take "slightly below average" pay for a positive workplace any day.

Like others have said, talk to your manager. Don't just say "I'm bored and want exciting work". Ask if you can have more of a challenge. Ask if you can shadow one of your talented co-workers to learn more. Ask what other problems is your manager trying to solve. Take some initiative, look at the business more holistically, and add value by improving some part of the workflow or tooling.