Career switch: Employee questions his decision after switching jobs, says he isn’t fit for the new role

SINGAPORE: To switch or not to switch? That is the question. An employee took to an online forum on Monday (Feb 17) to ask Singaporeans for advice after realising he made the wrong career switch. Surprisingly, many responded to the post with their own experiences with switching industries.

“I made a career switch and I realised that I wasn’t a right fit for that new role,” the post read. “Despite spending extra hours to learn I just won’t get it right. I made many major mistakes affecting multiple people that cannot be repaired.”

This led the writer to ask a few specific questions. “Is there anyone (who’s been) in my shoes before? What steps have you taken? Did you stay or quit to stop affecting team morale? For those who left, did you go back to the same industry or (did you go to a) different one?”

According to a 2024 report by The Straits Times, there was a downward trend of people leaving their jobs for another one.

From logistics to healthcare, many Singaporeans who have been in the workforce for a while took to the comments section of the concerned writer’s post to share their job-switching experiences. While it worked for some, others saw it as a mistake. There were also those who said they were in the same boat as the writer.

“I changed from the logistics industry to the healthcare industry, my new workplace had a toxic mentor that used fear tactics to coach me and I developed anxiety disorder and mild depression from my experience there,” said one. “I tried to stay on for a year despite all these and regretted staying for so long as I am still dealing with the anxiety disorder. Seven years of therapy still cannot erase the one year of toxicity.  I went back to the logistics industry. I’m so happy here with an awesome boss and fair remuneration. My advice now is, don’t let your job affect your mental health to the point of no return.”

“Yes, that’s called a first job. Everyone has been there before,” said another. “Don’t give up, I’ve seen greatness appear in year five before, it’s a matter of perseverance. Preferably, don’t revert, move forward and be strong. You should read the stories of successful businessmen, they never look back.”

A third wrote, “I’m in the same boat, made the switch from 3D art to IT engineering/support. I’m four months in and I don’t know if I see myself doing this long-term. Wondering when should be the point where I make a decision to leave or stay.”

Still, one saw a silver lining and wrote, “Hey—at least now you know this isn’t the right fit and you won’t always wonder about the what ifs.”

See also: Man, 27 y/o, has net worth of $260k, thinking of quitting job to travel