To ask if anyone has left a job with nowhere to go

[Heltonwelton]

I'm in a job that I loved for so many years. Worked my way up, had so much experience in the sector here and abroad, but now I hate it.

I dread getting up and starting work, it puts me in such a bad mood and I get annoyed at the smallest things at home and in work. I don't like/agree with the projects I am working on as they've changed in the last 2 years. If I wanted to stay in this job I would have to continue with these projects as that is now what the sector is and has changed to.

I don't have another job to go to but could afford to have a few months looking for other positions or try another sector.

I suppose my questions are (technically not AIBU):

• Has anyone else done this, and if so what did you say when you gave in your notice?
• Am I being totally stupid - what if I don't find another job?

I haven’t and I wouldn’t recommend it. You might end up panicking and taking just any old job. Can you take a week’s annual leave an spend the whole time applying for jobs and making your applications amazing so it’s more likely you’ll get some interviews?

I did this. In fact I've done this twice. The first time I picked up a temp job within a month which I had for 9 months before being offered a permanent position. The second time. I left I applied for an NHS job and had an interview a week after I'd left and that was 6 years ago! I think it depends on your finances and what type of job you do. I work in admin/management so there are a few jobs I can apply for/temp (if I have to) if your work is more niche you might struggle.

Can’t you apply for other jobs whilst still working? I’m applying internally for a promotion and use my evenings / days off to prepare

I did. Spent a couple of months doing DIY then did some volunteering for a few months. That led to me being able to update my LinkedIn and CV which led to paid freelance work and 10 years later I am earning way more than I was in my employed job. There are periods of drought e g during lockdown and it's risky but it worked for me.

Some people say it’s easier getting a job if you are working, but often organisations need people quick and don’t want to wait till they’ve worked their notice. I am 60 years old and have been made redundant 4 times, 2 of these with no notice. The longest I was out of work was a week. Once I did a temp job and got offered something else within the company. My husband and I have always had an agreement that if we weren’t happy in a job and had to walk out for whatever reason, it was fine, life’s too short to be doing something you don’t like.

I quit teaching with no where to go. It was difficult to find other work on comparable pay as employers didn't appreciate the transferable skills for a while. Had to take a pay cut of 10k to start at entry level somewhere but now I'm much happier in a sector that I love and earning more than I would if I stayed in teaching with pretty comparable holidays.

I'd really urge you to try and 'manage' your exit rather than going to nothing. PPs advice is what I'd follow - about taking leave to get your ducks in a row, cv updated, finances in order and research into what you'd like to do so you don't quit and then struggle.

Sending you positive vibes and best of luck.

I did exactly this a few years ago and have never regretted it. I'm now in a job I love on a lower salary.

I resigned and gave no reason. Bosses usually know if you hate your job.

My advice is to work out your finances very very carefully with all the 'what if' scenarios and go for it if the worst case scenario is manageable.

It's a tough job market at the moment.

Being hard up is miserable and this can be worse for your MH than a job you hate.

Also, if you have a few months without working, do something useful like volunteering, being a charity trustee. This is intrinsically valuable but also keeps your brain active, uses your skills and develops new ones.

Good luck!

I know 2 people who have done this & really struggled to find work. It set them back back mentally. One is in a good place now, the other not so much & has used all their savings.

Even If it’s really that bad, and you can afford to have a few months not working, then personally I’d still get my cv updated and start applying for a few jobs before chucking it in.

I was forced to (illegally) in my first job but luckily found a new role before notice ran out. I'll admit I was terrified - I had started to apply for jobs already at least, but stuff does turn up, even in what was, at the time, a competitive market.

Yes, I have.

It wasn't an easy decision and I was worried as I had primary school aged children and was the higher earner. But it has work out. The important thing is being able to pay the bills.

My tips
Don't make any rash decisions. Get your ducks in a row before you resign.

Update your CV
Look through your current role history and make a note of any key projects you have worked on (this will help with future applications and interviews).

Start looking for jobs to see what is out there.

Register with recruitment agencies, sign up for vacancy alerts.

Get on LinkedIn and network.

Take any training your current employer may give you.

Work out your financial buffer, save up as much as you can.

Do lots of interview prep.

Sometimes, companies need people quickly, so it can be easier to find work if you are immediately available. But, you need to make sure you are ready, so i do think it's worth spending a bit of time prepping before you leave.

Yes, it was a mundane job and I couldn’t stand it any longer although the pay was brilliant and thinking now if I was still there I’d be on double what I am now but for mentality it wasn’t worth it.

Leaving lead me to go back into education and get a few little part time jobs (care work, bar work) to pay the bills in the meantime.
I now have a vocation and a life long career that I love.
Sign up to agencies if you need to work to keep you going, it also might lead you to finding something that you love that you never would have thought of!
Good luck.

I did it, but I was in a field where I could locum if necessary. Never regretted it at all

I think it really depends how niche your experience is and whether your skill would appeal to other sectors. If you work in project management, do you have all the standard expected training, Prince and the likes? Of so, you are probably in a good place.

The other consideration is the impact on your family if you didn't find work for 6 months. If you risk losing your house, wouldn't do it.

I have done this. However, I was very very worried when I did it. As it happened, my partner was incredibly supportive - her view was that yes, money is important, but mental health for me, her and the family was more important. We were fortunate (?) in that we had just had some inheritance, so had a couple of months "buffer", but I was still scared and worried at the step into the unknown.

When I did it, though, the sheer relief was.... incredible. I cannot describe the feeling now, of knowing that I was leaving a place that had so ground me down that I was totally questioning my own skills and competence.

It is a risk; I was lucky in that I had skills that I could use for short term contracting, but even without that, with the support of my partner, I would STILL have done it. The situation was that bad (for me, anyway)

I have done this and it was fine.

Yes, twice. Once to take time out to travel and the other because management were bullies and my mental health was collapsing. It took less than 2 months to find something both times. It does depend on your industry and role though.

I have, we were relocating due to DH's job.

I wouldn't recommend it, it was really stressful not having my income coming in and not knowing when it was likely to start. Also factor in that generally wages are paid in arrears so that's an extra month unpaid even once you find a job and start working.

Keep the security of a guaranteed income, even if you don't like the job some money coming in is better than no money coming in, but start actively applying for new roles and commit to that process. At least you have the comfort of knowing you're finding your way out of the situation, but you're not adding unnecessary financial stress to that process. It also tends to be easier to find a job from another job, if, for any reason, you did find it difficult to find a new role then you don't really want a longer period of unemployment to account for on your CV (having been there it was viewed with great suspicion by potential employers and I ended up doing lots of explaining).

I did, I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown due to a bullying boss.
I handed my notice in to her boss giving all my reasons. They couldn't get me out of the door fast enough and put me on gardening leave.
I got a temp job straight away and applied for permanent jobs.

Yes. The best work decision I’ve ever made. Though I look back in slight awe at the risk I took - DH had just started a new job too so it was rather risky. We also had a big mortgage and big childcare cost and not huge savings at the time.

Reasons I did it were:

• i worked very long hours. When it calmed down a bit I liked my job (well my colleagues) but when it was bad it was awful. It was a bit like trying to leave a bad relationship

• I figured the best way to find a job was through my connections. So much easier if I could be open and honest.

• my job would have let me extend my notice period as I was leaving just before the busiest period.

I did indeed find a job through a former colleague when I was nearly at the end of my notice period - although I might have got wind of it anyway. The fact that I could start in a month not 3 months was in my favour too.

And my new boss sometimes remembers that I resigned from my old job with nothing to go to, and will double check I really am happy!

It was a great move because I found the most amazing job. And if I was unhappy then leaving it would be less daunting.

The labour market is generally in your favour now, but of course it depends on the sector, role etc.

Yes, I did. It was scary but it was so much easier looking for a job and interviewing with nothing else going on. I found a much better job very quickly! It kind of forces your hand and makes you more determined.

I was being bullied at work in a very toxic work environment and was totally miserable. Effected my home life. We had some savings, so I left. I think I was unemployed for about 4 months. Much much happier now.

My stance was if we can’t use (saved) money when we needed it then what’s the point of having money.

It was the right decision for me/my family.

Yes. It was the most terrifying thing I've ever done but I couldn't stay there any longer. I was able to get them to pay me a redundancy package, which meant that I left with quite a lot of money to tide us over. But it was still v v stressful.

I also struggled to find a new job. In part because I was so conflicted about what I'd been doing that I really wanted to do something that was at least a bit different. But of course, then I came up against all the "but you haven't done this exact job for 5 years so even though this job you want is similar, and has similar skills, we will not consider you."

Admittedly, it was at a very different time in the market - jobs were scarce and I am highly specialised.

I don't regret it though. I landed up doing some contract work for a while and then actually started my own business. It has been hard and money was tight for quite a few years but it's got better all the time and certainly lifestyle, time with family, has been better. The years of very tight finances were quite stressful but when I look back, i don't remember those so much as the many many times I was able to pick up the kids or do things for myself or with friends and family. So that's good.

Yes. I did bank while I looked for something else. Was in a new job four months later.

I did it. I walked out one day when I could stand it no longer. I went straight to the doctors and got signed off on stress. While at home I had the headspace to think through what I wanted in life, so then I officially resigned and enrolled on a college course to completely change career direction.

I haven’t regretted it for a second; I found part time work straight away while studying and when my course finished I set up my own company and have never been without clients since. I love what I do now.

I couldn’t have done it without Dh supporting me financially though. I earned very little while retraining, and my new field pays less than my old one.