10 Signs You Should Quit Your Job Immediately

Being stuck in a job you hate can be one of the worst fates to befall a person. I hope you don’t have the displeasure to ever feel like you have no way out but if you see a lot of the following signs you may have to carve a way out of your job yourself regardless. Here are 10 signs to look out for to tell whether you should quit your job.

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Table of Contents

Not everyone can afford to quit their job whenever they like

First of all, some disclaimers. Quitting your job should be your choice to make. No one else can decide whether this is the right decision for you. I can’t make that decision for you. HelloMoneyTree shouldn’t be blamed if you ended up quitting your job after reading this and realized that you can’t afford rent.

Not everyone can afford to quit their jobs because they may have bills to pay and children to feed.

If you don’t have enough emergency funds saved up, don’t quit your job. You should budget 3–6+ months of an emergency fund before quitting. In some cases, maybe even 12 months of an emergency fund.

You need to start saving up more money before you quit. You should also start applying to other jobs and maybe network with those in your field more.

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1. You don’t feel respected

We all want to feel respected. It’s inevitable that we may feel disrespected at times when we interact with certain people but if it’s a continuous habit of disrespect that you feel from your job, maybe it’s something to put your foot down and take your dignity back. Go where you feel valued and respected.

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2. You aren’t being paid your worth

Always discuss your pay with your coworkers (outside the hearing range of your boss) so you know if you’re being compensated fairly.

If you aren’t being paid your worth, you should schedule a chat with HR. And if they aren’t willing to pay you more, you can start looking for other jobs. But don’t make it obvious that you’re trying to find another job.

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3. You aren’t allowed to leave at the end of your shift

They may not physically prevent you from leaving when 5 PM is up but you feel compelled to stay a bit longer to not seem too eager to leave. This is a common sight in any workplace.

No one is willing to be the first to leave because it may signify laziness. Far from it. You’re getting paid up until that hour, who wants to work for $0/hour? It’s your right to leave at the end of your shift.

If leaving at 5 O’clock on the dot, will get you some “talks” about “laziness” or “needing to work harder” with your supervisor, it’s time to pack up your things. This company doesn’t respect you as an individual. They want you to work for nothing or risk being labeled as unproductive.

If this is what you have experienced, this should be your cue to find another job.

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4. You cry before going to work

There’s no clearer sign than crying before going to work. You may feel emotionally and physically exhausted from work. No one should be forced to do something they dislike to the point of tears.

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5. You find your work boring

Are you bored out of your mind at work? Perhaps your work isn’t stimulating enough. It may be time to find another job that is more mentally stimulating.

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6. Unsafe work environment

Is your job worth a finger or a leg or your life in danger? If your job is unsafe for whatever reason, (it could be a creepy coworker, unmonitored machinery, or exposure to bad people) you should rethink about you staying at this job.

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7. You hate your boss or supervisor

Now, a lot of people hate their bosses and supervisors. Depending on the depth of your hatred, you should decide to quit your job for the safety of your boss and/or yours.

If you can’t think about your boss without thinking about slapping him or her or doing much worst things to him or her, it’s maybe time to change your job before you actually carry it out. No one wants to be arrested for punching their boss in the face. It’s better to leave at an okay note instead of letting it escalate further.

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8. You can’t stand your coworkers

It’s the same thing with the above. If you absolutely can’t stand your coworkers, you should consider leaving your job before you say or do something you would regret.

Even if you don’t think you could say or do anything you would regret, it’s still better to not have to spend 1 more second of your life with them.

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9. You found better jobs

Are you looking at other jobs or have you found some job listings that sound better than your current job? Maybe it’s closer to where you live, maybe it pays more, maybe it’s on something that you’d actually enjoy, then, of course! You should quit your job.

You don’t owe any company any loyalty. You must understand that people don’t get rewarded for being loyal to a company. People get punished for being loyal to a company. Nobody cares if you don’t take any days off from work, nobody cares if you work an extra hour every day, nobody cares if you have worked at the same company for the last 50 years of your life, if there’s a fresher more skilled blood, they won’t hesitate to replace you. You’re simply a tool as an employee. Might as well go with the company you like more.

If you’ve just accepted the current job offer but another better one comes along, take the one you like better. Things like this happen all the time. You’ll be spending 8 hours a day at work and 5 days a week at work over 50 weeks a year for however many years in your life, might as well do something that you’d enjoy.

Don’t worry about burning the bridge. It’d be surprised how many companies would rehire workers who quit on them albeit it’s not every company. Companies have budgets set aside to hire new workers should the new workers quit.

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10. You’re thinking about changing career but you worry that you’re too old

I love this conversation I saw on the internet. It went something like this.

Person A: “I want to go back to school for a career change but I’m already 45, it’s too late”

Person B: “You’ll going to turn 45 anyway, you might as well get a career change out of it”

If you’re thinking about changing your career but believe that you’re too old, you should know that there’s no such thing as “too old”. You’re going to become older anyway whether you choose to change career or not. You may not have another 40 years to work at a job you truly want but it’s better than staying another 20 years at a job that you don’t enjoy.

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When you shouldn’t quit your job

You don’t have 3–6 months or even 12 months of emergency fund saved up

It’s recommended that you have at least 3 months of emergency funds saved up if you’re single. If you’re married and have kids, you should aim to save up 6–12 months of living expenses before quitting your job.

You had a minor disagreement with somebody at work

Don’t quit your job over a minor disagreement. I used to not like one of the female coworkers I worked with but now she’s one of my closest friends. Even after I quit, she still kept in contact with me.

You don’t have a plan for quitting your job

You must have a plan before you quit your job. Is it to find another job? Maybe you should start sending resumes before you quit. Is it to rely on your side hustle? Is the income from that consistent? If it isn’t consistent, where will you acquire the extra money? Do you think your spouse will be able to support you while you find another job? Make sure you talk to them first. Tell them a realistic timeline of how long it’ll take you to find another job.

Your side hustle income is inconsistent

It’s great if you have managed to build up a sizable side hustle income but you should wait for the income to cover your living expense for at least 3 months before you transition into your side hustle full-time.

Somebody in your family or yourself depends on health insurance to pay for medical bills

Depending on where you live, healthcare can be expensive. If you or your family member depends on health insurance to pay for medical bills, you should think about how you’ll afford the medicine without your job’s health insurance to cover it.

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Build up other sources of income

I would suggest everybody build up several other sources of income. Don’t rely on one source of income to sustain you because if that source of income is gone, so will your livelihood.

Even jobs that are traditionally considered to be stable and secure aren’t actually safe from termination. Think about physicians. Many premed students when considering becoming a doctor love the aspect of job security that comes with being a doctor. However, that’s far from the case. During the pandemic, a lot of non-emergency room doctors were fired from their jobs because there simply wasn’t a need for them.

You must build up other sources of income if you want more financial security. There are many people making a living on the internet with all sorts of things in all sorts of niches.

There are people making money online as a:

Most people won’t succeed in making a full-time income on the internet because they don’t persist. With consistent hard work in a proven-to-work niche, you should give it at least 1–2 years before you give up.

Final thought

I hope you find this article helpful. Think carefully about your next move because it can impact so much more later down the road.

Think about how you can quit without arousing too much tension. It’s never good to end on a bad term but if you can’t avoid it then you should take it at that.

I wish you luck!

If you’re wondering which one of those articles you should choose to read, start with this one.

10 Signs You Should Quit Your Job Immediately