It takes me about 3 years. And it turns out that no job has ever been right for me.
How long it takes to know if a job is right for you or not
181–190 of 235 posts
Re: How long it takes to know if a job is right for you or not
#182> That job turned out to be shoddy, ancient, flaky tech all the way down, with comfortable, long-tenured staff who didn’t know (and did NOT want to hear) how out of date their tech had become. Every time. I don't care about your stack; obviously I have taste and preferences but I'm a professional, I'll work with whatever, as long as it isn't Rails. (Because there is no good work in that world.) But it will not take m…
> That job turned out to be shoddy, ancient, flaky tech all the way down, with comfortable, long-tenured staff who didn’t know (and did NOT want to hear) how out of date their tech had become.
Yeah, yet their job listed a bunch of shiny "modern" cloud stuff they were doing, but they actually have three busted serverless functions and some dusty Java IBM Websphere things floating around running the whole business, while the job description listed 432 different things they were "looking for".
Re: How long it takes to know if a job is right for you or not
#183A couple of rules I have that have worked for me so far is: Colleagues, tasks, compensation - if at least two of the three are good, it's fine to stay. If not it's time to look for something new. The first year is a learning year, the second is a productive year, and the third is a "what else can I get out of this place" year. If nothing changes in the third year, then there's not much more to learn from the company…
Culture is a fourth one.
Currently working towards the end of a contract/earn-out at a company where people just toss stuff they don't want to deal with over the fence for others to handle with usually zero communication about why/what/how. Just suddenly get a new project with no context. Also, three different bosses in two years because they keep leaving.
Second worst company I've ever worked for.
The worst one involved multiple c-suite executives that would throw objects at employees when they didn't get the answer they wanted. Thankfully I wasn't under contract there and got out ASAP.
Re: How long it takes to know if a job is right for you or not
#184i worry that i've job hopped a bit too much and have a series of 2-3yr gigs on my resume. part of my problem is that I get unhappy (or bored) with a job but sit in denial for too long. so by the time I start looking for a new position, I'll desperately jump headfirst into a new gig instead of lining up the perfect gig. Or maybe not. maybe it's impossible to tell if a place is a good fit from the interview.
2-3 yr gigs in 2025 is completely OK, we're not in the 80's and people are not expected to work many years for an employer, especially in the modern workplace where the "normal" way to get a promotion is job hopping. FWIW I have several shorter gigs in my resume. A combination of me being still young and not evaluating things correctly, and employers not being honest about working conditions. I even once stayed at on…
> One more thing: I've been on the hiring side a few times and I have observed that candidates with very long gigs (5+ years in the same job) are often seen negatively (Why did they stay in the same job for 6 years? Do they lack ambition? Don't they like a new challenge? Etc.)
Even so, there's some companies with notorious reputations for culling staff (often only loosely correlating with performance). I'd be wary of hiring someone with long tenure from one of those places, to survive, you have to be a certain type of ruthless.
Re: How long it takes to know if a job is right for you or not
#185Earlier quoted context omitted.
Steve Jobs said it most profoundly: "love what you do". This is the opposite of "do what you love". I wish I understood where he learned this. It's very profound (and true).
One of many platitudes that kept me in working conditions and religion which were detrimental to my career and mental health. Maybe it's useful to some who are in objectively good circumstances which they haven't learned to appreciate. I'd still advocate for getting other perspectives from trustworthy folks about ones specific situation. And not taking advice from billionaires who think their fruity diet will cure th…
to play devils advocate, you can try to “love what you do” while continuing to better your circumstances. No?
The quote doesn’t suggest “the job/career you have now is perfect for you, ignore all red flags”.
Re: How long it takes to know if a job is right for you or not
#186This isn't at all a rebuttal of the post, more a different perspective. I started a new job while basically deeply depressed. It colored all my opinions of the company and my coworkers. As I'm coming out of that through a combination of medication and intensive CBT I'm realizing that a lot of the negativity I felt towards my job was the result of the depression. As things improve I'm realizing that the job is mostly…
Yeah, reading this I thought the author should suggest to their friend that they talk to a therapist.
This is a good insight, but they already have a therapist. :) (I am the author)
Re: How long it takes to know if a job is right for you or not
#187I think most jobs you can tell from a combination of the recruiting process and then onboarding and your first week. I have felt the "I hope this isn't how it is every day" that the author mentions at a few of my jobs and they've all been stinkers. Recruiting gives me an idea of how much the company generally cares about their processes. I like when am I given a timeline of the process and steps and now when I get a…
insightful; cosign. (i wrote the piece)
Re: How long it takes to know if a job is right for you or not
#188I hated my last job. Love my current job. The difference is good managers and good coworkers.
Re: How long it takes to know if a job is right for you or not
#189This isn't at all a rebuttal of the post, more a different perspective. I started a new job while basically deeply depressed. It colored all my opinions of the company and my coworkers. As I'm coming out of that through a combination of medication and intensive CBT I'm realizing that a lot of the negativity I felt towards my job was the result of the depression. As things improve I'm realizing that the job is mostly…
That is true, our own perspective is to be taken into account. Sometimes it's worth trying to adjust your own view, but sometimes it's important to bail out before you gaslight yourself.
Re: How long it takes to know if a job is right for you or not
#190"It depends, Charity. As always."
Word.