New year resolutions have been forgotten about and you’ve settled back into your routine. Your heart isn’t in it and you might be asking yourself if you’re going to last another year in your job or if you’d be better off somewhere else.

Are you happy at work?

Before you answer this, you should really ask yourself what you enjoy about your work life and what could be better. I’m not just talking about your job here but also other element that contribute to your (un)happiness at work:

• The job itself – what you do day-in day-out, your level of responsibilities
• The company – do their values match yours, are they treating you well
• The money – this is your salary but also any bonuses, benefits, opportunities to get an increase or a regular review
• Work-life balance – are you getting enough time to look after your own life
• Your colleagues – boss, team..

The list is not exhaustive and you should list everything that is important to you.

What are your priorities?

Now you have your list, prioritise what is important (or what is making you really happy/unhappy) and what isn’t.
For example, you’re doing a job you love but the hours are crazy and you keep complaining about working late. You might think that working hours would be at the top of the list but would you prefer a less interesting job with good working hours? If the answer is no, the job will be higher than the working hours.

So, is your job that bad?

Now that you know what is important to you, score your job against everything on your list. Go for a simple rating of Good/Ok/Bad 0r 🙂 😦 and look at how you scored your job on your top priorities. Is it really that bad?

Finding the perfect job that will meet all your expectations in a company where you’re going to stay forever is like finding your Prince(ss) Charming. Some might be lucky but most of the time you have to compromise and go for the almost-perfect-one. If a job scores well on your top priorities then you should give it a chance, the rest might follow (and maybe isn’t that important).

Don’t leave yet!

If your job isn’t doing too well it doesn’t mean you need to break-up and find a new one, there might be a chance to revive the relationship. Speak to your manager about what is missing in your job to make you happy. You spend most of your week at work so you might as well enjoy it.

There’s little chance you’ll get more responsibilities, training, money and work-life balance all at the same time so focus on what will make you stay or go (your top priorities). Imagine you really want more money but ask for everything at once; your boss might come back offering you to work from home because you also said you wanted more time with the kids. Will it solve your problem? I didn’t think so…

Sorry but there’s nothing I can do…

If the answer is no, then it’s time to look! When looking for a new job you need to keep your priorities in mind at all times and know what you can compromise on.

You wouldn’t want to make the same mistake twice…
Hope this will help you find a job you love or love your job again.

The Job Matchmaker

#LuvYourJob