Taking time off to look for another job.

Hi everyone,

I'm in a job which I'm ready to move on from for a number of reasons - 3 hours on a train per day to get there, work is below my level but very intense etc. I've also been there for a long enough period of time that it's almost expected that I move on. The place is built like a management consultancy, with people in and out in short periods of time, and a year and a half is considered a long haul.

The problem is, I'm so busy all the time in my current job that I don't have the time to go to, or prepare for, any interviews. I'm constantly working flat out, for long hours, and I have a long commute on top of that. So going to interviews - particularly those closest to where I live, a long way away from work - is difficult. And that's just the getting there - I'm too exhausted outside of work to put in the preparation, and I can't get time off at short notice. An interview I was offered recently required preparing a 30 minute presentation, on a complex subject. I don't have the time to do that at all.

So I'm thinking, I might just leave my job and devote myself to searching, full time. I don't have any commitments, have a decent level of savings, and could live rent-free for around a year or so maximum. Is this a sensible approach or a huge risk? Will employers accept my reasons?

Do it! Life is too short to be commuting for 3 hours a day to a job you dont like. If you can live for a year on your savings you owe it to yourself to take that break and find something more suitable and closer to home. Have you considered starting your own business? My husband and I ran a business for 21 yrs and about 15 yrs into that we started an online version of the same type of thing that I mostly ran. He shut down the first biz when we moved, 1.5 yrs ago. We now run the online biz which is part time work, done our way on our own time. You might want to consider the benefits of working for yourself.

We cant answer your question about how your employer will feel about your reasoning, but my guess is he wouldn't be too happy about it. Can you arrange that year off without having to say why?

I'm worried that quitting your job might reflect poorly on you. Believe it or not, some companies do not want to consider any candidates that are out of work. There's come to be a stigma around quitters and unemployed people. The idea is that there must be something wrong with them to be unemployed or quitters. I would ask for an evening interview or take a long lunch or an afternoon off. You chances of finding another job will increase by doing that.

To prepare or job searching, you've got to make time to do the research you need to do. There's no other way around it.

I'd use my vacation time first to set up interviews with temp agencies in my area, at least one per morning, possibly another per afternoon (they require skills tests, so they take a long time). Then you can give notice after you've planted seeds for closer temp work while you seek your full time job.

Lots of places use temping to 'try before they buy' and this allows you to assess their work environments to find the right fit and to apply for better jobs from within that are never released to the public.