Job hopping or changing jobs frequently within a few months has been something new, since the early 2020’s. Some often wonder if Covid-19 had its play as it affected everything else. But people were hopping from one job to another even before Covid-19 took over!
Before I start explaining if it’s acceptable or not, you should watch this!
They want quality of life, not standard of life. Which means, quality of workplace, environment, role, opportunities, learning & rewards. You need to figure out the place you apply is what you want.
You can easily do this, by doing a LinkedIn search of your reporting manager before joining the company. You can also check the career progression of employees in the line of work. This is all the research you need to find out, before you join!
Is frequent job change acceptable?
It completely depends on you! For example, if you can’t be a team player & every-time you’re asked to leave or you don’t get along with the team, leaving is unacceptable. But if you have the right reasons, you’ve made the right choice!
Work experience doesn’t make a great employee. Their work ethic does! A person who does the same task repeatedly could survive in a company for 3 to 5 years, doesn’t mean that the person is up to date with industry standards!
At an interview, if the interviewer asks, “Why do you have so many companies for such a short time”, this is a good time for you to explain the correct reasons
- I felt like I can deliver more but my manager doesn’t let me
- My company doesn’t value me & my line of work
- I don’t like the culture
- There is too much of micromanagement
- Having a career gap (this is totally OKAY – if the hiring manager doubt you for having a career gap, don’t even think about joining that company)
- I am not learning anything new – repetitive work
- There is no appreciation for the tasks I deliver
- Favoritism in the team (make sure you’ve confronted your boss about this)
- You’re not given enough responsibilities no matter how many times you’ve asked for
- No personal life (no work-life balance)
The list will go on…
But, if the interviewer is still in doubt, that is a green light for you to say ‘thank you very much for arranging the interview’ and start your job search again.
I recently had a job interview at a renowned tech company in Sri Lanka. The first question the interviewer asked was, “So Vishmith, tell me your story. Why do I see so many big conglomerates & multinationals in your CV”?
Undoubtedly he was listening to every word I said and nodded as if he gave me permission to leave all those companies!
I’ve gone to almost 15 job interviews, in which I have failed 3, accepted 6 & turned down 6 jobs. I failed 3 mainly because of the number of companies in my CV. I’ve turned down because I didn’t like the attitude the recruitment panel had during the interview!
So, what is a good company culture?
Recruiters should also realize, people often switch jobs frequently, is because of the toxic work culture & 100 reasons more. The employee can’t be blamed for leaving a toxic company!
At every job, you should either earn or learn. Either is fine, both is best! But if it’s neither, QUIT!
Have a look at Parag’s career with many gaps and many career changes. You may find similar careers like this all over LinkedIn, yet don’t force yourself to stay in a toxic environment. Everyone deserves to be happy & if you feel things will get better, it won’t. Mental health is important than anything else!
With so many opportunities for you to grab out there, if you feel like you’re stuck or not valued at all or simply put, ‘not happy’, it’s time for you to start your job search (try LinkedIn or a local job search website) . Unlike in the 1980’s or 1990’s, candidates have many opportunities. Nowadays, its the employer who is the candidate, not the employee.
