To stay or not to stay? That is the question.

Ok – so not exactly Shakespeare – but the question that is the title of this blog is one that many of us face at some point in our careers. In the short blog below I share an example of a marketing professional who is asking herself that very question before providing some tips on how to answer it for yourself.

Often, when we don’t feel happy in our current organisation for any reason it may seem easier to leave one company and start afresh somewhere new. Sometimes that is the right solution but sometimes not. How can you determine what is right for you?

Meet Amy:

Let me introduce you to a fictional character, Amy. Amy is 26 years old. She has always worked hard and done well academically coming from a family with a strong work ethic. She got a degree in Management with Marketing 4 years ago and, after some temping work for 9 months, managed to get a role as an Assistant Brand Manager for a company with 420 employees. Amy was excited when she first got her role with her organisation – at last a chance to start the career she hoped for. She knew she would have to start at the bottom of the ladder but was keen to learn. Three years later and Amy wants to progress to a Brand Manager position, already feeling like she should have been promoted a year ago; some of her friends are already advancing in their careers and she is worried about what it could look like on her CV if she doesn’t get her next role soon.

Amy’s Manager doesn’t recognise her as being ready for the next step. It seems at the moment that whatever she tries to do is criticised by him, either for not being of the right quality or not quite hitting the mark. Amy is starting to feel like she will have to look for a job elsewhere as she just can’t see any alternative.

Imagine you are Amy’s friend and she has asked you to meet for a coffee. As you read Amy’s story, what alternatives can you see for her? Probably more than just the one to leave but often when you are the lead character in the story you lose perspective and funnel your options so that you are blinkered. Here are some considerations for Amy that you might share with her over that coffee:

1. Implications of starting anew:
   

   If Amy leaves her organisation and starts in a new one she will have to set herself up for success in a number of ways – by building relationships and connections, by understanding how work gets done around her new company and by building credibility through new achievements to name just a few. Staying at an organisation and looking for a way to progress means that some of the foundations are already there – while Amy may have to build some new relationships, she still has her current ones to support her, she already knows how work gets done generally and her track record in the organisation speaks for itself.

2. Benefits of tackling unfinished business:

   Has Amy had a candid conversation with her manager? Does she understand why she is not meeting his expectations? Confronting the ‘elephant in the room’ can be a scary thing to do, particularly if Amy is imagining the worst. A story has probably built in her mind and a different story in the mind of her manager, both from the same facts. If Amy leaves the organisation without understanding what is happening she will potentially miss an opportunity for self-development which means that she takes some undeveloped areas with her into the next role. Being able to have a candid conversation in a way which leaves both parties feeling fine is a skill that will help her in her career. Similarly, she may benefit from developing her ability to explore expectations and standards so that she can deliver what is required. If she can consider that ‘life is an experience, not a performance’ she may be able to feel that she has nothing to lose in having a frank conversation with her boss.

While Amy is a fictional character, the situation is one that may feel familiar. If you are asking yourself the ‘to stay or not to stay’ question, read on.

Three questions to answer for yourself:

1. Are you looking to move towards an organisation because of what it can offer you OR are you moving away from a situation?
2. If you are moving away from a situation, is there anything that would be of benefit to you if you aim to resolve first? If so, what is the benefit you would potentially gain?
3. If you were to give advice to yourself from 5 years in the future, what do you think you might say?

Ultimately, only you know what is right for you – taking the time to explore options can help you be more confident that you are making an informed choice.

We will be exploring how Amy develops over the next year in future blogs.  Do subscribe to see how she gets on.