Was set on leaving my job until one convo with my boss flipped it

I was dead set on quitting my IT help desk role at a company in Austin for like 3 months. Then I had a 20 minute chat with my manager where she straight up asked what I actually wanted to do, and she set up a shadow day with the network team. Realized I was just bored of the grunt work, not the field itself. Anyone else have a boss talk them off the ledge like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

charles_green3d ago

How many people do you think quit jobs they actually like just because they got stuck in the boring part of it for too long? I've seen it happen a lot where folks hate the daily grind but never stop to think if they'd like the bigger picture. Sounds like your manager actually paid attention, which is rare these days. Most bosses just want you to keep doing your job without asking questions. Good on her for taking that 20 minutes to ask what you really wanted instead of assuming you were just lazy.

the_kevin3d ago

I spent 8 months doing nothing but data entry for a marketing job I actually liked. It got so bad I started sending out resumes every Sunday night. Then one Friday my boss asked why I seemed checked out, and I told him I wanted to do the creative strategy stuff, not just punch numbers. He moved me to a different team the next week. That simple conversation saved my career there, and I stayed another three years. Now anytime I catch myself dreading the boring parts for more than two weeks straight, I just ask for different work before I start job hunting.