Executive Summary

Its normal to feel a bit of disappointment after starting a new job. After all, youve likely pinned a lot of hopes on this new opportunity. But before you decide whether to stick it out or start sending out resumes again, consider a few things. Just because you dont know how to do all of the tasks of your new job, doesnt mean you shouldnt be in the job at all. Ask for help early on and assume that everyone believes learning is a fundamental part of succeeding in the new position. It may be helpful to keep a running log of your performance so that you can determine whether you are actually making progress even when you feel like youre not. If you feel unsatisfied in the job, consider whether theres a mismatch between your values and the organizations. This can take time to assess but if there isnt a fit, its often hard to remedy. And be careful you dont stick out a bad situation for too long because of a resistance to change. If after six months to a year, you feel like the job is a poor fit for you, then you have to be willing to act.

Starting a new job is often a hopeful experience. In the weeks leading up to your first day, youre likely to think about the impact youll make, the relationships youll forge, and the ways in which youll succeed. The first few weeks in the new position may be disappointing however, and many people wonder at that point if they made the right decision.

This unpleasant transition from hopes and dreams to reality makes sense from a psychological perspective. Research on construal level theory suggests that we treat things further away from us (in time or physical distance) more abstractly than things that are close up. Before you start a new job, youre often more focused on the abstract potential than on the actual tasks youll be doing. Once youre in the new position, you may be mired in the day-to-day specifics, which may make it harder to see the contribution you hoped to make.

Youre also often focused on the desirable characteristics of a new job before you start. That can create a motivational state called a promotion focus, which makes you more sensitive to positive things in your environment. But once you start work and there are responsibilities you have to deal with, youre more likely to adapt a prevention focus, which naturally focuses on the negative things. The perfect job doesnt feel as perfect anymore.

This disappointment can make you feel like the new role is a mistake. And sometimes a position isnt a right fit. So how do you tell the difference between normal disappointment and adjustment and signs that the job truly isnt working out? Before you decide that you should look for something new, here are three things to consider.

One reason why the new job may feel wrong is that there are elements you feel unprepared for. Of course, you dont know the policies and procedures of the new workplace, and it will take time to get acclimated. But there will also be tasks that you dont know how to do.

Many people in new roles suffer from a variation of imposter syndrome, in which they feel like theyve risen into a position theyre not qualified to take. That can make you feel as though the tasks you dont know how to do are a sign that you shouldnt be in the job at all.

Its important to ask for help with new tasks early on and to assume that everyone believes learning is a fundamental part of succeeding in the new position. When you feel bad that you arent performing well, treat that as an opportunity for growth rather than a sign that you are failing.

Even if you adopt this kind of growth mindset, your progress will likely be slower than you want it to be. A well-studied phenomenon in psychology is the learning curve, in which you make fast initial progress when learning something new, but when it comes time to get polished at the details of what you are learning, your progress slows.

When the learning curve flattens out, its often hard to detect progress and you may begin to feel like you are not cut out for the job. Instead, find some metrics that allow you to measure what you are accomplishing and learning. Keep a running log of your performance so that you can determine whether you are actually making progress even when you feel like youre not.

Even when you feel like youre succeeding at the individual tasks of the job, you may find the overall work unsatisfying. One of the hardest things to figure out about a company during the application and interview process is the set of underlying values the firm promotes.

While research by Shalom Schwartz and his colleagues has shown that there are universal values across cultures, each person and organization emphasize different ones. Cultures promote particular values, but individuals adopt values based on their underlying personality characteristics and their experiences.

For example, some people value benevolence, in which they want to do good things for other people, while others value achievement, in which they want to be recognized for their success. Some people value tradition and want to uphold the way things have always been done, while others value hedonism and want to experience pleasure.

If you work for a company that promotes very different values than the ones you hold, then youre likely to feel unsettled and dissatisfied at work. It can take time to determine whether there is a match between the companys values and your own, so dont jump to conclusions. But, if you do detect a significant mismatch, that could be a sign that you may want to consider working elsewhere.

You certainly dont want to make a hasty decision about whether a new job is a good fit. It can take several months to determine whether you are progressing in what you need to learn to be good at your job. And it also takes time to really understand the values of the firm you work for.

But, if youve been working for six months to a year and feel like the job is a poor fit for you, then you also have to be willing to act. Because of a status quo bias, we have a tendency to stick with bad decisions for too long whether they are poor investments, bad relationships, or a job that isnt a good fit. We dont like making changes because doing so requires admitting an error and facing uncertainty (while the status quo is a known option).

Build some energy to make a change. Find an advisor, mentor, or coach to help you with this process. Often, the fear that comes with choosing an uncertain option will look worse to you than it does to someone else. A mentor can help you to see the advantages of making a change and can give you advice for navigating the uncertainty that comes from choosing a new path.

Even when youre hopeful about a new job, its normal to experience some disappointment at first. So think carefully about what youre experiencing so you can distinguish whats your brain adjusting to the new situation and what are true signs that its time to cut your losses and move on.

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Give It Time Before Deciding You Hate Your New Job - Harvard Business Review