So you got what you thought was the job of your dreams. The selection process was tough but you got it!! The excitement, the relief and the anticipation probably don’t even begin to describe how you felt at achieving that moment.
Then you start, it has all come true or has it? The training is as you hoped, or close enough and now you are a few weeks in or maybe longer and something isn’t right, it just is nowhere near what you thought. So this is the time to now reflect on you. Question yourself as to how this has come about, how did you perceive the position to be something it isn’t? Go back to the original job spec you had and think about the selection process, do you feel now that maybe you read something into the position that wasn’t there? Or is the job you are doing just so different that you cannot understand how this is the job at the end of that process.
Now you need to decide what to do. Is it so vastly different that a) you are not enjoying it, b) you can’t do it and have no interest in learning, c) this just isn’t the journey you want for your career? Your next course of action will depend on whether you answered a, b or c. Just because you are not enjoying something it may still be a key contributor to your next opportunity and may be worth staying to get the learning and deliver what is required, even if it isn’t what you thought. If you answered b or c you need to sit down with your manager and the job specification and get an understanding of why it is so different and at what point is it likely to become the job you applied for. This meeting might establish that everyone goes through this process before the job becomes a reality and therefore you need to get some timescales, so you know how long you are likely to be doing something you are not totally happy with.
If the job is never going to become what you want, but you know you need to stay until you have secured another opportunity then don’t give your manager any reason to doubt your commitment even though you have had that meeting, unless you are in a position to resign without a job to go to.
Many many jobs are not what we thought when we start, for so many reasons. Your perception and theirs differs based on previous experience and knowledge and sometimes neither party really heed what is being said at the interview as we are convinced we know what the job involves. Take care too when coming to this decision as there are elements you will not enjoy about most roles you undertake, however if those elements make up more than 40% of the work you are doing then you probably are not in the right role for you. The time you take to re-evaluate is important here, as you want to understand how you went form that desire, excitement and anticipation to disappointment, once you understand this your next round of interviews will work more effectively for you, as you will question accordingly to ensure this doesn’t happen again.
Remember this happens to all of us at some point and it is just how you handle it which makes a difference. The learning experience alone means it very rarely happens for a second time resulting in you being in the job you really want!
