Why job-hopping shouldn’t be seen as 👎🏻

Venturing out of the usual home-related posts for something about my day-to-day. Not sure if many can relate but here goes!

My mentor once told me: If you are not in the right place now, don’t stop searching 🚗

It stuck with me and I was really determined to change jobs until I found one that is the best for me. Hence, I’ve moved across industries, companies, and roles for the past 5 years since graduation.

Everything was also happenstance but i’ll explain a bit more:

✨ I left my first job after close to 2 years as I wanted more exposure to firms in the corporate space. It was no longer suitable as I hit a plateau in terms of professional growth.

✨ Left my second company as the third company came by and offered a role that the second couldn’t counter-offer.

✨ Left my third job in a global firm as it just wasn’t the right fit anymore (think burnout after people left and I had to pick up the work, etc.)

✨ In my fourth and never been happier working with the best people in the best environment 🥹

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Job-hopping isn’t a bad thing imo because:

1️⃣ Your salary increase at the next company will likely be higher than what your current can give

Think of someone at the same company for 5 years, getting an annual increment of 5-10% vs someone who changed jobs and got 20-30% increments each time.

I see every company as a client that is hiring and paying me for my services and time. When my services improved/increased but the pay remained meagre, I’d feel like it’s unfair and this is not something I can control. Hence, I do something that I can control instead which is to have conversations with my manager and if nothing works then I’ll find another “client” who can pay me duly. 💰

2️⃣ You might have other reasons you can’t stay on anymore (say mental health)

I have friends who suffered verbal abuse but let the fear of moving stop them from leaving. For me, I wouldn’t let anyone treat me that way and even if I have to go without a job for months, I’d rather do this than put my mental health at risk.

“If I don’t have a full-time office job, I can always work part-time at the bubble tea shop opposite my house or do some freelancing. There’s always options.” - this is what I tell myself.

I couldn’t stay at my third role due to multiple burnout episodes. I was unhappy all the time and it affected my life after work. Left without regrets and never felt better! ☺️

3️⃣ You gain more skills, meet more kinds of people, and you adapt better

With more experience and exposure, our hireability increases. ⬆️📈

It also helped build my confidence in knowing that I can survive wherever I go. Some people are afraid to step out of their comfort zones and that’s okay if you’re okay with it. It’s only not okay when you’re not having a good time!

At different kinds of companies, you’ll also meet different kinds of people. Think global vs local - ngl I met more people I could vibe with at global companies. So that helped me understand what type of environment I am looking for. 🥺

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Now, at my fourth (and hoping for it to be my last for a while) company, I’m enjoying what I’m doing and everything that I want out of a career has been ticked ✅

Of course, wherever possible, consider an internal transfer first before looking elsewhere! I did consider this for all my roles but the opportunities outside far exceeded what the internal roles could give in terms of growth/salary. 😭

If you made it till here, let me know what you think about job-hopping! Have you also job-hopped every few years or would you prefer to stay in a company for longer? Would love to hear more opinions (:

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