Hey all,
I'm 24, retail management. In the past 2 years or so. I was promoted from part time, to hourly supervisor for 6 months, to salaried management @32k per year for 9 months,. Then 6 months ago got promoted to a higher salaried mgmt position making 43k per year. I really don't like my job, not performing at the expected level (which is quite high) working 50+hr weeks and I'm getting fed up with it. I don't think I am in the right field. Is there any way to exit a job gracefully at this level? I love the money, and have learned a ton, but being stressed out 24/7 about my job is wearing on me. Job market is decent up here. Any advice on what to do? I feel like I can't get ahead in my current job and feel like I am drowning...

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My father always said when you get really fed up with your job to "wait two weeks it will get better".  Market is tough.  So....

Spent seven years in retail the last 3 in management and hated it...exited at 25.  52 hours a week and one day off.  Money was not bad, but i hated my job also.  I went back to school and did something I love.  Yeah I teach High School  history...money sucks, but I love what I do.  Made more at 25 years old then at 40, but I do not ever regret it.  I have to work residential construction in the summer to make it, but in August when they ask if I am ready to get back to school....I say heck yes!

Good Luck!

Work you ass off when you're at work and then forget about it when you're not there. I know a lot of people that are miserable because they are constantly worried about work. I don't think about it at all until I walk in the door and I stop thinking about it as soon as I walk out and sometimes a little bit sooner.

Education.

Learn a trade where you actually know how to do something tangible.  Forget about computers.  Any trade where your hands can take one thing, and physically turn it into another will serve you well.  What do computer people do when something non-software related breaks?  They call someone else to fix it or replace it and they shell out money.  What do businessmen do when they want to expand or build a new business/building?  They call someone else to do it and shell out money.  What would you have done as a manager when something in your store broke or stopped working?  You would have called someone to come fix/replace it and you would have shelled out good money for it to be done.  

As a bonus, you can drive down a road, see something you worked on, and say "I built/fixed that".

Some good advice in here. I know 'the grass is always greener' but I'm still wondering if there is something out there that will pay a decent wage and be less stressful. I'm more of a hands on person/builder/wrench turner in my personal life, but I for my job am managing food production areas that do a combined $8 million in annual sales. I have a bachelors in business admin and double majored in HR...Does anybody have any input or success stories on 'doing what you love and you'll never work a day in your life?

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Perhaps it's time to go for the master's degree....

Yes.  Alas, I gave up man whoring when I met the right girl.


The money was nice though...

You're in ND.  Do you have any opportunities in the energy industry?

What you are going through sounds eerily similar to what I went through, but I was in the retail food/drug industry.  You get to a point where you start thinking just a little longer and I can nest it away and start looking, or go back to school, or it will get better.  If you don't love it now (yes, not like, love) it won't get better.  I'm not saying leave but you need to know what your tolerance level is.  



Willing to relocate?  Family issues to consider?  Can you afford or are you willing to take a pay cut to start something else?  Keep your resume updated and send it to anything that even remotely looks interesting, or will give you experience to re-invent yourself.  



All totaled up I did 20yrs in retail.  10, 9, 1.  The last was a different form of retail but I quickly learned retail is retail.  Sure it paid good and there were lots of good times but I always wondered if there was anything more available.  Left it all, started back to online courses and a job hunt.  Landed a job that was a HUGE pay cut but offered experience in installation/tech work.  Just landed a new job that pays comparable to what I used to make, day 1 benefits, opportunity for growth, overtime that pays instead of salary, and I don't have the headaches of management.  Don't get me wrong, it's been a long process to get to where I am now but I am now doing something I enjoy daily.



As for leaving, don't give indications and go out on top of your game.  Once you make your decision to stay or go it will be easier to focus on what you want to do.  And try not to burn bridges if you can, a lot of jobs are researching previous employment history further and further.  



Good luck in your search.

Bend down and kiss the bosses ass and don't even think of quitting!

This is great advice. If you hate your job and think you are eventually going to leave you should do it ASAP. There is no right time and you will never have enough money saved. You might as well decide what you want to do and go for it while you are still young.



FWIW, I'm 27 and I just quit my job, which I liked a great deal, to go back to school in hopes of achieving even more.



 

It's work, most people don't like their jobs. $43k a year is pretty damn good money for a 24yr (you don't say if you college educated, with an in demand degree). Suck it up until the job market comes back, maybe see if your company will pay part/all of college and go, or get an MBA if you already have a 4yr.

I would not leave a job right now unless someone offered you one that was stable and you wanted.

I hate my job, hell, I hate my girlfriend 20% of the time.

Get a Government Job.