I love sitting on my couch. I also love to start new things. I love to stand so that I can move around and get things for myself.

I also like…well, I tend to like things. I like starting a new job, but I don’t like high levels of stress as much. I tend to stay where I am, workwise, because I can find things I like about just about anything.

Starting a new job is one of the highest life stressors there is. There’s a study that indicates that moving and changing jobs are two of the biggest life stressors we will experience in our lifetime.

I’m not sure how to express clearly what makes the changing of employment such a high stressor, but I have yet to met anyone who does not prefer to be the right temperature (hot or cold), fed the right amount (just the right amount of hungry) and well-rested when they are attempting to sleep.

A new job brings stress about all three of those aspects (food, temperature of body, and sleep).

If the new employment turns out to be the wrong one for you and does not work out, the money that was supposed to be earned from the position does not buy the food.

The money to turn the heat on, or the dollars intended to pay for the heat bill isn’t there. The heat might not be turned on because there isn’t enough money for heat.

The belly is either getting food it doesn’t like as well (possibly given to the eater of the food) or the food costs less than the purchaser may want to spend on food that goes into their bod.

I started my own company about 10 months ago. I have been asked by people who are in jobs they would like to leave and people with jobs they love what made me make the change.

For me, the benefits of a new position and the risks associated with it outweighed the risks of a lower income.

When I begin new employment, I try to think about what it is I like about change and higher stress associated with a change of employment.

I love meeting new people, I love learning new tasks and I love figuring out how to make technology work for me. The last statement is only true as long as the technology ends in success; otherwise I hate all things technology. I’m fairly ‘tech-y’, so I like the process of figuring things out.

As you think about weighing your decisions, whether they are about what to eat for lunch, whether to sit or stand, or whether to stay or leave current or future employment, I wish you luck and I hope you find benefit in your choice.

If your costs outweigh your benefits, I would encourage you to make some sort of change. The change could be with your position with your current employer; your feelings about your current employer; or determining it is time to begin a different job with a different employer.

If, once that new position starts, you change your mind and do not like it as well, I encourage you to think about a different decision next time. Or I would encourage you to change things about your new position so that you begin to like it more.

Happy decision making! It is one of my favorite things to do. Now…….what should I have for dinner?

Author(s)

  • Terri Parke

    Helping others by focusing on strengths

    Parke Counseling, LLC

    I am a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) in Texas, and a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor In Indiana (LMHC). I have my Master’s in Community Counseling from the University of Cincinnati, and my B.S. in Psychology from Indiana University. I have worked primarily in the field of Prevention, hoping to help prevent families from abusing or neglecting children, for most of my career. I have twin sons young adult and a husband Matt, and we all graduated from Indiana University.  I have a small private practice in Texas, where I primarily see teens and adults who are working to live with anxiety, depression, or attention issues.