During a live webinar for my Insider Community, a viewer asked, “Should I leave my job, even if I’m not clear on my long-term plan?” I’ve answered answers here, sharing guiding principles you can use to make your best career decisions.

In the video, I reference both my latest book, “Red Cape Rescue: Save Your Career Without Leaving Your Job.” and the toolkit that goes with it (you can sign up for that here, free.)

“Should I Leave If I’m Still Not Clear What I Want?”

(5:36 minutes)

If it’s time for you to get clear about what you want in your life at work, check out my on-demand class, Get Career Clear.  It’ll help you get stuck and get going, fast.

Not sure about the help you need? Find other classes here.

Unedited Transcript

So here’s one for those of us who don’t have clarity in our job paths, whether the end game or even the next step, should we consider new jobs that are probably similar in scope, but improving logistical areas, salary, location, etc? Or should we stay still until we have clarity? Any general principles to guide this? So this is a great question. I’m so glad that you asked the question. So one of the things that I think is the first foundation of when we are, we’re asking these questions, is what I call listening to the whispers. And there’s a whole chapter in the book on listening to the whispers but you already sound like you are already hearing some whisper that says, Is it time to move on? Should I stay? should I go?

The first piece is to get clarity on what do I really want? Not just what’s not working where I am? But what is it that I really want? If I had a magic wand? What would the parameters be? What would the work look like? What would the people around me be like? What would the salary location be,some of the more tactical things? And I think it’s important to be able to trust those whispers to really hear and say,

I actually I want a place where I can lead more, or I want an opportunity to make a bigger impact, or I want to actually dial down my work a little bit. Because right now I really need to focus in on the kids and some of the things that they need me for. I think it’s really important that there’s no right or wrong. But we have to get clear on our whispers and what’s happening. Another tool in that and I really encourage this person to make sure that you get a hold of the toolkit is to then understand your values. Because your values are often things we all think we know our values. But what happens is we can’t really articulate them. And when there’s conflict, when we’re feeling like grrrrr about something at work, often it’s one of our values is being violated, and getting the clarity on what that what our value is, and how something around it is conflicting with that can be really powerful to help you understand. Great, so is that something I can control?

Because the truth is, we only control three things. We control everything we think, everything we say, and everything we do, what we think what we say and what we do. And that’s it. And that’s all we control. So getting the clarity first about like, what is the ideal state? Then you might ask yourself, Well, is there a smaller step that gets more of what I want? And is that something that I want to explore?

So you said to consider new jobs that are similar in scope but improve something. So if one of your values is right now one of my values is wealth generation, then if there’s something that’s similar, but it’s more money, absolutely nothing wrong with that. Or if it’s closer to family, and your value is about family. The thing that I hear people getting caught up in a little too much is the values of other people or in the book, I call that OPV other people’s values. And you know, hearing a voice of a parent, a teacher, their community saying you should want this you should want the promotion or you should want to make X amount of money. You got to get clear and honest with what is it for you? And when you have that, then you know is the new job. That’s just one element different is is that good enough? Or maybe it’s good enough for now.

So that’s my general principles. You said or sit to we have clarity. I don’t think you have to sit and get clarity. I think clarity doesn’t come until you work at it. We actually have to take some action we actually have to challenge ourselves. Clarity is not something that’s just one day going to lightning bolt and go. Now I know exactly what my calling is. No, I’m sorry to tell you it’s it’s work. And but it’s good work and it’s fulfilling work and it is it’s I actually was talking to a leadership team the other day and said what’s the what’s the up and coming leadership trend? And I said self-awareness and self-reflection are the difference makers.

And the more we can start to build in that habit, that ability to self-reflect, to say, so what do I want? Like who do I want to be in this situation? What I want to get out of this and be honest with ourselves, then we can make the choices that are right for us because we all have lots of choices, but making the choices that just look good on paper that aren’t right for us. They’re gonna get us stuck.