A client who’s planning to leave her job is trying to figure out WHEN to say goodbye. I asked her to take me through her thinking. The LEAVE column was long and vivid and compelling. It’s not an exaggeration to say that this job was making her very sick, and deeply unhappy.
The STAY column was empty except, she said, for anxiety. And that anxiety came from this belief.
“It’s easier to get a job when you have a job.”
So let’s talk about this. It’s said so often that it seems like a law of nature. But is it true?
Maybe. Let’s take this in two parts. Let’s think about YOU, the job seeker. And in the next part, we’ll think about THEM, the hiring decider.
As we think about YOU, I want to offer more precise language to consider.
“It’s easier to get a job when your nervous system is regulated. It’s easier to get a job when you are relaxed, optimistic, confident, and curious.”
Let’s assume the people spouting the platitude “It’s easier to get a job when you already have a job,” mean it kindly and are well-informed about hiring practices and job searching. I’m going to attribute them with a high level of knowledge and benevolence. (In my experience, that’s not always the case for well-meaning volunteer career coaches.) They are right to recognize that leaving a job can bring about some unsettling circumstances.
You might feel anxiety about money. You might find yourself isolated and unstructured, not sure how to spend your time. You might be hankering for interesting projects where you are contributing something that is valued by others. You might find yourself struggling to talk about yourself without a familiar job title.
Each of these obstacles can ding your confidence and unsettle you. If you’re not careful, you can get into a circle of dread, self-doubt, procrastination, shame, and overwhelm.
That’s not the way I want you showing up looking for your next position.
But here’s the thing about your situation: you want to leave for a reason. If the job you are in is preventing you from having a regulated nervous system, if it’s spiking your adrenaline and cortisol, if it’s making you irritable, anxious, resentful, or overwhelmed, is it really easier to get a job?
You need mental space, optimism, creativity, and conviction to find a great fit. That might mean staying where you are, to manage your financial reality and to give yourself a runway. But it might mean leaving work that is diminishing you and harming your mental and physical health.
In Part 2, we’ll talk about THEM. Do hiring managers prefer to hire someone who’s already employed? And if so, does that mean it’s the right decision for you?
