7 Signs You Are In the Wrong Job

Every job has its highs and lows. 

Some days are better than others and you do your job because it's what you are paid to do-- generally speaking.

I would venture to say that the majority of people are doing jobs where they've given into acceptance rather than chosen it as a career. 

That's evident in statistics that you hear about employees that are not just disengaged from work, but actively disengaged.

1 out of 10 of us are not engaged in what we do. 

Unfortunately, many organizations feel like it's not their place to make work engaging or meaningful.

The onus is on the employee. And there is advice out there where you need to see the glass as half full, make lemons out of lemonade, follow a lot of Peter Drucker / Dale Carnegie self-help advice in order to become a good corporate citizen and move up the corporate ladder. 

The reality is that you may just be in the wrong job. Here are 7 signs that you are:

1. It gets harder each day to wake up in the morning. Regardless if you are not a morning person, it's easier to wake up when you are looking forward to what you have to do. When it's easier to hit snooze 3 times rather than wake up, there is nothing compelling enough to get you up and at 'em. 
2. Your social media presence has increased exponentially. Unless you have figured out how to use social media optimization tools, you're now spending time getting smarter by browsing the Internet and sharing your wisdom with your connections. LinkedIn, Pinterest, Tumblr, Facebook, and even Instagram are now all in sync-- not a good sign. 
3. Each interaction at work triggers a Hulk-like response. If you have anger management issues, then ignore this one. But if you find that your responses to every communication elicits some emotional turmoil deep down inside, it might be time to seek therapy to keep the Hulk contained and Bruce Banner more visible. 
4. You continually question what you are doing and why you are doing it. Life is too short not to ask 'why' you are doing something at least 10 times a day. Unless you're 3 and it's because your parents said so, you should be balancing the work you do based on the why. I understand that this is easier said than done. But when you are questioning why more than not, it may be time to evaluate your options. 
5. Your face remains in a state of utter disbelief throughout the day. Every job has its whuck moments. You just don't want those moments to make up your entire day. 
6. What you are doing adds little to your resume. Resumes should be about what you have accomplished versus what you are doing. Everyone can swing a baseball bat. But it's batting average that matters. Ask yourself if the job you are in further develops your personal brand or story.
7. You just know you're in the wrong job. This should probably be number one. They say that it takes 7 seconds to make a first impression. For a job, it's not 7 seconds-- it's probably more like 30 days. Zappo's pays people to leave if they realize that the company is not the right place for them after the first few weeks. We could all be so lucky, right?

When we choose jobs or careers there a number of external factors that drive us - status, compensation, work / life balance, etc... Any adviser will tell you that every job or career comes with trade-offs. But does this really need to be the case? 

Author Richard Leider asks, "What are the two most important days of your life?" The first one is obvious: the day you were born. But the second is not so obvious. It's not the day you die; that is the end of story, not a high point. It's not the day you graduate, get married, or have your first child - all significant milestones, of course, but not life defining for most. Richard's answer: it is the day you realize why you were born.  - John Mackey, Conscious Capitalism

Here's to the constant pursuit of realizing why.