To feel at breaking point with my job

[Helena93]

I used to really like my work and enjoyed going in every day (pre-covid) to work with my colleagues. I moved to a role (upwards) a couple of years ago, now work hybrid with very few colleagues (ones I have aren’t in same location as me) and am soul destroyingly bored for most of the working week.

I feel slightly guilty saying this because it’s not as if I’m unhappy because there are horrible people I’m working with, or it’s terribly stressful. I can do it with my eyes closed but I just feel so unstimulated and my motivation is at an all time low.

The perks are great, it’s well paid, flexibility, good holiday/pension etc. I have tried to apply for a couple of roles which I felt would be interesting with no luck and I’ve been keeping an eye out for about a year now so have to come to terms that nothing will happen soon.

Any advice on what you’d do? Put up with it until something comes along? I’ve toyed with the idea of a career change, it would mean a reduction in salary to begin with though albeit with good longer term prospects. I am only in my early 30’s and hate I find myself in this position :(

Sounds dire
I felt depressed just reading your Op

what are your personal circumstances?

Have a partner and DC, have a house (modest mortgage). Could potentially drop salary to a point but just means we’d delay plans to move, which I could put up with as I feel my job is making me feel unhappy outside of work at times now.

I think you are me! I could have wrote this !! It’s so hard and I’m also stuck in this similar position. I’m more tied to the company due to benefits (staff mortgage) but yeah it’s just flat

Some potential things to consider if your job is meh but not bad…

within your role:

• scheduling check ins with remote colleagues / managers
• start to do more projects with colleagues in your current office
• recognise there’s less reason for you to be in the office and work from home

within your company/outside of your role:

• employee development programmes / learning (coursera etc)
• joining / running employees networks
• get a mentor (or be a mentor to a more junior colleague)

outside your company / keeping your role:

• volunteering hobbies etc where you get to exercise the social / creative muscle your day job lacks

ultimately these may or may not be fixes, but they’re unlikely to make you worse off and may lead to you being a stronger candidate for internal mobility…

set yourself a deadline for when you want to review if things have changed, say after 12 months?

Thank you, the career change I mention requires a level of qualifications so I think I’ll bite the bullet and start studying. I put money aside a while ago incase I wanted to start them so that’s taken care of at least as would be over £1k. Then if something comes up in the meantime, great.