Increasingly unhappyI have been working at this company for over 4 years now, but only lately have been increasingly unhappen with the job. I am thinking of finding myself another job at a less choatic company where I perhaps can work on only a few projects at a time without having to keep track of 10+ other things. More "streamlined" so to say... Any comments? I think you're experiencing a common problem. People who are proficient in a technical field are often promoted into Management and out of the area where they excel. While you may be able to take a step back out of Management, stop and think first. You've only been in this new job a few months. You may not have given it enough time. You may need to learn more about the "business" of lab work. If you EVER want to be in management this may be your one and only chance. So, don't act hastily. Talk to your boss and see if you can get some guidance on the areas where you feel insecure before you totally give up on this. This could turn out to be a great growth experience for you.
Tess Still complaining about my team for "not doing enough" and popping sleeping pills at night because I am too worried about the next day... Could it possibly be burnout?
Yeah, one less engineering/technical person in management would be a godsend.
Busto could not help but laugh about this. Not at you and your situation, but at how companies applying for contracts and grants usually fail badly when it comes to providing the funders/grantors with the information stated in the grant agreements. "I remember one agency we were working with simply did not understand the concept of grant accounting, and they had to pay back all the funds expended because they failed at keeping proper financial records, as well as failing to keep records of the program deliverables," said Busto. Busto continues: "Check your grant budget and see if you have funds available for program assistants who will be responsible for doing this important work, and if not, it should be included in the indirect costs portion of the budget, because if your company/agency fails to provide this information to your grantors/funding sources, you can be forced to pay back the grant amounts, and even be dis-allowed to apply for future grant opportunities." said Busto. Busto wishes you good luck, because you will need it! Busto BTG:lbj/njn Not much changed since my last post although I write an increasing ammount of grant proposals and try to guide my collegues in doing their job. However, I have come to the conclusion that I do not want to do this for much longer and have decided to start looking for another job. But here is the problem: my field of expertise is so small that the moment I contact someone to inquire about a job, my collegues and boss will probably find out. How should I approach this?
Have you tried to talk to your boss and co-workers about the problems that are occurring? You seem to have a handle on what the problem is, but because of the disorganization at work, you can't come up with and implement a solution. If you have an idea on a way to solve the problem(s) at work, and present them to your boss, things might begin to improve. And should you need to re-career, putting on your resume' the fact that you solved a problem of this magnitude will impress an employer--who doesn't appreciate a problem-solver? Once you get things straightened out, you could request a return to the lab. It's happened before.
I would definitely not continue doing what you are doing--you don't like it. Why spend 1/3 of your life doing what you don't like? A promotion is always nice, but being promoted out of the job you enjoy is not a promotion at all--it's the company saying, "we want you to do this now". You might try talking to your supervisor about it. Ask to be put back to where you enjoy. If they don't then start looking for something else. They can't blame you for that!
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Career Tips
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