when mental beatdowns become physical assaults...
it's time to quit.

i had one boss that was a total tweaker, blamed everyone for his own problems, didn't want his hands all over everything, but refused to let things out of the office without micromanaging everything. the guy couldn't manage the simplest project, and only utilized the "help" to boost his own ego (as it needed constant stroking). i gained 20 pounds, and it was negatively affecting my relationships outside of work. couple that with some of the worst projects i've ever seen designed (by an ivy grad, no less) - that's when i knew it was time to jettison.

if you dread sundays because you'll have to work the next day, it might be time to go.

if you meet up with friends/co-workers after hours, and constantly complain about how bad your job is, it might be time to go.

if you'd rather drive a bus and do competitions or small design jobs on the side, it's definitely time to go.

...if you think working at starbucks would be agreat way to see actual real people,
it might be time to go.

...if normally when you leave work, the birds are just starting to get up,
it might be time to go.

...if while using the restroom, you think seriously about hiding there till
the day is over,
it might be time to go.


..this could be a whole thread of 'you might be a redneck' type one liners, huh? huh?

One serious question is, what are you other options? Are you the type of person that wants to go out in a blaze of "Fuck you and the horse you rode in on" glory or do you care about making a righteous scene at all?

I have a friend who was vaguely dissatisfied with his job and idly wondering about other options. a friend called him from his position in a starchitect firm in Europe saying "If you want a job here, I can get it for you in a day". My friend moved his belongings out of the office at lunch that day and never came back. It was the possibility of a new job that made him open his eyes to how miserable he was. And something entirely new was what he needed - an adventure.

If you think you'll be shifting laterally from one boring job to another, then it frankly might not be worth it. And at the very least, looking into your other options while still gainfully employed will give you a sense of optimism, not panic.

bluesteel - you know its time to leave when you cannot learn or accomplish anything more from the current firm you are in...


- poor to mediocre projects - check
- dread sundays - check
- rather do competitions - check
- consider hiding in the restroom - check
- go to restrooom to get away from drawings - check
- boss with ego and little talent - check


- miss living in the city
- own a house, would loose money if i sold right now
- would take a substaintial paycut if i left
- barely making it by, wife and i are slightly above week to week
- having kids is 2 yrs out (if i can hold the wife off for that long)
- ARE's 1.5 yrs out
- boss wants to make me a partner (eek)
- go drinking with boss and partners on regular basis (slowly getting away from this)

migraines.
seriously - the halo and vomiting for days kind.
ahh, good times.

pro's - the partners dissolved their partnership about 60 days after i left (not taking any credit for that)

con's - the next project i was supposed to be project architect on eventually ended up on the cover of PA....

There is a small attic space in my office that is accessed by a tiny door. It's located in the kitchenette area so often while I'm trying to escape by making tea I fantasize about locking myself in there and curling up with the spare paper towels and toilet paper.

And I know many other architects with similar feelings, all smart and capable people.

It sounds like a pretty universal complaint so it seems to be a rare thing to find a firm that doesn't in some way crush your soul.

Out of the frying pan, into the fire sort of thing.

I think perhaps one of the bigger problems with quitting is again, later, selling yourself short.

I say quit (in general) whenever something starts nagging
you. Or when whatever it is your doing bores you or is
pointless.

^^at that rate, I'd need a new job every week!

Yeah, Philarct - I quit right now. And again in five minutes, and ten, fifteen...

haha

at least u guys got jobs,
im just an unemployed, broke college student
haha
i quit

if i get that callback in the next few days, i'm definitely ready to quit.
i have no idea why i ever joined a corporate firm...
(yeah i do, i made as much in 7 months as i did in a year at my previous firm)

when you start fantasizing about getting an MBA and working for a developer...quit.

when you start fantasizing about getting an M-16 and killing a developer...quit.

"if while using the restroom, you think seriously about hiding there till
the day is over" Crack me up. This is totally me. I've only made it like an hour, not the whole day. It's really boring.

i always say that when i quit a job that i dont
like im gonna destroy everthing and ruin stuff.
like - putting xlax in the coffee maker
- taping magnets to vulnerable parts of the computers
- taking the staples from the staplers
- coming in to work fully or half naked
- getting bags of raw fish and hiding them
in inconspicuos places so that, by the time
they are found the office has a horrible stench

i never do tho, its realy pety and juvenile
but it sounds fun

philarct - sometimes i dream about being a broke college student again. (maybe not the broke part)

maybe one day ill feel the same
(except the broke part)

when the wild goose calls...

strawbeary-

how did you log that time on your timesheet?

24out1in - easy, I billed it on the project/client that made me so pissed I had to wait in the bathroom for an hour to chill out. It's not like an everyday thing.

I like to leave the office and hide in fancy hotel or museum bathrooms - the music is comforting.

No...

If you dread Sundays because you have to work on Sundays, it might be time to go.

If you enjoy getting a cold because it gives you a legitimate excuse to call in sick, it might be time to quit.

Now where's my damn NyQuil?

if you go home complaining every nite about how crappy your job is, and when you drive your friends crazy with stories of your cheap and/or selfish boss, AND if your loved know more about your boss's/coworkers annoying nail biting or open mouth chewing habits than you do (because your office is so small you sit only 3 feet away from him)...
it's time to find a new job!

and the process of quitting is hard, esp. when you only have 2 people in your firm, and, oh yeah, you're person #2...and you need a good reference...

DCA -
nice revision. definitely true.

also, if you give a presentation on a fairly well known swiss thermal bath, and your boss says "that's nice, but why would anyone want to go there?" it might be time to go.

Lately all I can think about is marrying rich. Not so much that I never have to work, one job a year should cut it. And with Louis Vuitton buying Aston Martin, we'll have to find another 100k I'm sure for the VL interior

'if you meet up with friends/co-workers after hours, and constantly complain about how bad your job is, it might be time to go'

if you meet up with friends/co-workers DURING hours, and constantly complain about how bad your job is, it might be time to go

'if you meet up with friends/co-workers after hours, and constantly complain about how bad your job is, it might be time to go'

i thought that this is just what architects DO. ?

architectnophilia-I think you may have it all figured out. Marry up, marry well, and be independantly wealthy.
I made the mistake of marrying another architect. Ok, so it was not a mistake at all, but it would be nice if we could be comfortably selective.