‘I’m just tired and defeated’: S’porean worker questions if another career break is the answer after a decade on the job

SINGAPORE: When a local Reddit user, sounding like they’re burnt out at work, asked for advice as to whether they should take a second career break, many commenters encouraged them to do so. They underlined that stepping away from the rat race to take care of one’s mental health is worth pursuing in the long run, but only if you can afford it.

In a post on the r/askSingapore subreddit on Thursday (Oct 30), u/littydumb wrote that they’ve worked for a decade now, except for a short break they took at one point.

“Fortunately, I’ve made good progress over the 10 years, i.e, the break didn’t set me back career-wise; and now I’m thinking of having a break again. I don’t have a mortgage or kids, and have > 2 years’ worth of expenses in liquid assets, which can last longer if I try to stretch the dollar,” they added.

However, the post author can’t afford retirement quite yet and will need to work for another 20 years or so.

The problem is that over the past year, they “can’t help but feel despair” about their situation at work. Though they did not give any details, they wrote that “things are getting worse at my job and I’m just tired and defeated,” and that they “tend to spiral easily as well.”

“I used to look forward to the next job/opportunity, but not anymore. I just want to stop caring about SLA or deadlines,” they added.

Their fears stem from not having a plan yet for what to do if they quit their job, and that they’ve heard from others that their unemployment went longer than expected.

“What should I do? I’m just feeling this great fatigue and dread from working too much,” the post author wrote.

Much like flight attendants reminding everyone to put oxygen masks on themselves first before they help anyone else, Reddit users advised the post author to put their well-being first.

“Your only goal now is to make sure you live well. My advice is to quit, and do whatever helps you heal your body and mind first, like travel or just rest and do whatever you like. That’s how things will slowly fall back into place… but I believe a healthy mind and body will bring clarity and strength.

Resting is just preparing yourself to go farther,” one wrote.

“Live the life you want!! Don’t wait until you are 65 already. You have so many years to continue working,” urged another.

“If you have enough vitamin M and don’t have pesky family members, etc, to explain yourself to, why not? A hard reset may be good for you to figure out what you want to do in the next chapter of your life,” advised a third.

A commenter with similar circumstances wrote, “I would say take the break. I’m in the same situation, no mortgage, no kids, relatively healthy parents who don’t need much support at the moment. Left my job last month for the sake of my mental and physical health. My friend just told me today that I’m glowing.” /TISG

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