l’m at the start of my vacation and I already don’t want to go back!

14 Comments

1. AnonymousAugust 14,2023 at 6:16PM UTC

   Wow. I could have written this word for word two years ago. No advice other than to keep looking, taking steps necessary to make yourself more marketable and have an exit plan ready. I was looking for months before coming to a mutual agreement with the COO that it didn't do any of us any good for me to stay there.

2. AnonymousAugust 14,2023 at 7:13PM UTC

   I had a similar experience - got a job I thought I loved and a week in ....bait and switch. Had me doing work they knew I had no experience and I got yelled at for being poor. Hired for accounting and ADDED Director of HR (??)

   I finally got something after looking and refusing to settle. Got cussed out because I put my resignation in before telling my boss I might leave (he took away my bonus and perks; why would I be obligated to tell him anything anyway??)

3. AnonymousAugust 14,2023 at 11:00PM UTC

   No this is what a bad fit feels like.

4. AnonymousAugust 15,2023 at 8:45AM UTC

   'Keeping options open' is a bit vague! Maybe use some of your vacation time to create a vision of what you life will look like in 6 months i.e. an exit plan with clear steps about what you will do to get there and put it in your diary so you do teh work to get there. Even if your next role is not your ideal use it as a stepping stone to teh future you are creating. You need to really think about what you do and don't want from work - hard to find something when your desires are vague...... best of luck!

5. AnonymousAugust 16,2023 at 9:27PM UTC

   I have been interviewing and am clear on what I want and what I don’t. I’ve been careful to note what feels like alignment, and been honest about what isn’t a fit. It is a bit tricky because I am also not willing to accept less pay, and there are plenty of jobs in my field, but the pay range is wildly different.

6. Becca CarnahanAugust 15,2023 at 11:12AM UTC

   That's a really tough feeling! At the same time, it's really great that you have pinpointed why the job feels toxic - misalignment with executive leadership and staff being uninvested in the work.

   If you were to flip the negatives into their positive opposites, and take the things that are great about the organization (mission, clients, maybe other things), do you feel like you have a clear sense of exactly what you are looking for next.

   ie. Alignment with executive leadership on X specific value.

   Utilizing X skills in collaboration with invested colleagues in service of X type of mission.

   With these criteria you can create a target list of other organizations you want to connect with for informational interviews to ask questions about whether that environment could be a better fit for you and make yourself a known entity for future roles.

   Always happy to chat further about this if you need!

7. AnonymousAugust 15,2023 at 1:06PM UTC

   Definitely keep looking! You mentioned that you really enjoyed your last job, so you know it’s not you. Keep track of what is important to you and formulate those attributes into questions to ask during an interview. Now that you’ve some experience with what you don’t want, pay attention to your intuition when interviewing. Sadly, there are a lot of people managers that are not very good at it, and a lot of organizations that are not paying attention.

8. AnonymousAugust 15,2023 at 1:15PM UTC

   I feel that! I’ve been at my job for a year and knew this was a bad fit before my first 90 days. I really wanted to give it a chance because of the awesome work/life balance. But I am depressed, isolated and now suffering from physical ailments .

   I’ve been browsing jobs for the last several months and finally found one that will be less stress and with great work/life balance. Since I accepted that job I am sleeping much better and feel like a giant weight is off my shoulders.

   I do feel a sense of failure quitting my job after only a year, but my mental health was suffering.

9. AnonymousAugust 17,2023 at 12:30PM UTC

   Don't feel failure. I think more and more people are realizing your mental health should be your priority.

10. AnonymousAugust 15,2023 at 6:11PM UTC

    Yes, in some areas it is what it is about. I would if I were you take what you shared here and march into leaderships office and let them know exactly that. Let them know that you feel morale is low and you came to their NP hoping to be passionate about things and be a part of doing good but it's been quite the opposite. Suggest to them that they get everyone together and see if they can rally the troops to be a better more cohesive team that drives betterment for all including those inside. Give it a set amount of time to turn around or if they don't respond favorably to your request for this then you know it's time to go.

    Be true to you and you can always root them on in the future from the outside knowing that is the limit to how you can help their cause and clients.

11. AnonymousAugust 16,2023 at 9:18PM UTC

    That is great advice and what I did more or less in my first 90 days. There have been some ‘culture building’ initiatives, and the other Director level folks have met in alignment generally, but the ED is struggling to bring his authentic self to the org. He’s even been vulnerable a few times, but his past and continued behavior has truly broken trust among the team.

12. GirlBossanova934974August 16,2023 at 12:41PM UTC

    Having run a non profit for half a dozen years, this is one of the potential pitfalls of working for a non profit. Of course in for profit businesses, you are going to run into people who are uninvested and don't cooperate. But in non profits, those type of employees can stick around for a long time and can gravitate towards that. The non cooperative types can multiply. It is all about the non profit's top management. They set the tone. Cooperate and work together or don't stick around. Make sure the grandstanders don't get an audience and make sure they don't rewarded.

13. Maureen B. WeisnerAugust 16,2023 at 1:22PM UTC

    Non-profits frequently have a very positive public face that engages in one way yet from the ED down there's dysfunction. Sad, but most staff lack business and leadership training and if someone actually leaves, they're rolled into another non-profit.

14. AnonymousAugust 17,2023 at 1:01PM UTC

    Honestly, I don't think it's just non-profit... unfortunately, it's management overall. I've been working in Local Government for almost 20 years. I love my job but unfortunately with every new administration comes changes; some are good but the majority have been for the worse. We currently have a Commissioner who lacks the experience with dealing with a work group as large as ours: we have over 8,000 City employees-she comes from a municipality with only2,500 employees. She came in trying to make unnecessary changes. Just recently, she has made provisions for my workgroup to be moved out of our office for a Training room and breakroom. We're L & D. She gave no warning. We just found out by mistake. But unfortunately, she has the "backing" of the Mayor and City Council. It's become toxic and after almost 20 years; it's time for me to find other employment.