What’s really happening when you’re so unhappy at work that you decide to go look for a new job, as approximately 10 million people are doing right this moment, according to LinkedIn? Well, after talking to hundreds of potential job changers in the past several years—even before the emotional chaos of the pandemic– and after digging into the job change and satisfaction data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Gallup, LinkedIn, and McKinsey—I’ve discovered this surprising fact:

Most people think they need a new job. But what they’re really seeking is more control.

Craving control is in our DNA. It’s essential to help us feel safe and secure.

But we rarely understand how much control we actually have, right where we are, just as we are. We’re taught instead that work is rigid, when in reality it’s extremely pliable, changing constantly. We defer to “the way things are”, rather than deciding on the way we want things to be for us.

We assume control is only found out there . . .so we waste precious time and energy in exhausting, time-consuming job searches. And then, if they don’t pan out quickly, we give up, deciding to settle, sacrifice, or even suffer. It’s such a waste.

That needs to end. We can teach people how to take back control in their lives at work, even in the most traditional of organizations, right where we are, just as we are. I’d be honored to share those strategies—The Stay Strategies, or the ways we can take back control of our lives at work–with your audience.