10 Good Reasons for Leaving a Job

There are plenty of understandable reasons to leave a job. Poor management, low pay, inflexible work hours and no opportunity for remote work among them. Even so, there are key things you should keep in mind while making your decision. Below, we break down the top reasons employees leave their jobs, as well as examples for how to explain your decision to prospective employers.

10 Reasons to Leave a Job

1. Better Compensation and Benefits

Unsurprisingly, a lot of people who quit their jobs are seeking out better salaries and better benefits. The rise in pay transparency laws has given workers a better sense of how they’re getting paid in relation to those at other companies. As a result, 14 percent of businesses have seen employees leave their roles to pursue higher-paying jobs elsewhere. At the same time, fully paid healthcare premiums are the most coveted employee benefit and could encourage workers to stay longer if available.  

“Make sure that you’ve communicated these needs clearly and express to your manager what will make you more productive,” suggested Periklis Venakis, chief technology officer at Epignosis. “Then, judge by the willingness of your management to listen to your needs, and decide if you’re going to make the big step.”

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2. Stability and a Fresh Start

When companies undergo organizational changes, like an acquisition or new business model, employees may take a step back to assess if the organization’s future plans still align with their interests and career goals. If employees feel a company is unstable or their job is in jeopardy, that might prompt them to look for a new job before facing a potential layoff.

3. Bad Managers

Working under a toxic boss is another factor that drives people away from their jobs, said Richard Jolly, a clinical associate professor at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and director of the consulting firm Stokes & Jolly Ltd. 

“A toxic boss is somebody who could actually undermine your self-esteem,” Jolly said. “If you work for a toxic boss, get out, but very often, it’s just working with somebody who’s not a skilled boss.”

Around 60 percent of managers are poor leaders, Jolly noted. For companies to retain their employees, managers need to do a better job of facilitating two-way communication, especially as more companies manage hybrid or remote workforces, he said.

4. Toxic Workplace Culture

Company culture is all about the shared set of values, beliefs and attitudes that guide an organization in how it treats its customers and employees. Signs of a toxic workplace might include poor communication, constant turnover, lack of enthusiasm from peers and a sense of fear across the organization. 

Companies with toxic cultures can face mass departures when employees get fed up with how they’re treated. Just look at the mass resignations at X in 2022 after Elon Musk demanded workers become “extremely hardcore.” Or consider the food and entertainment brand Bon Appétit, where more than a dozen of its on-camera talent quit in response to how the company treated its employees of color.

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5. Limited Schedule and Location Flexibility

Many employees want the flexibility to choose when and where they work, whether that’s in a physical workplace or working remotely. Companies that don’t have flexible hours or work environments stand to lose talent as more employees desire remote-flexible roles. There are plenty of other benefits to allowing employees to work from home, too, like increased productivity and lower office costs.

6. Greater Career Advancement

Leaving a job after a year or two indicated unreliability 15 to 20 years ago, but today there is much more acceptance. Job hopping — the idea of moving from job to job after a short period of time — no longer carries the same stigma it once did.

The narrative around switching jobs has changed as employees have realized it’s not guaranteed that companies will recognize and reward their loyalty. Moving to new companies also allows employees to gain new skills and experiences. 

“Whether you’re young or old, you can build skills the market desires and needs,” said Mark Anthony Dyson, a career writer and founder of The Voice of Jobseekers. “If there’s demand for that skill, you’re going to be in demand.”

While Baby Boomers and Gen X workers might spend their entire careers at one or two organizations, Millennials and Gen Z workers are more willing to leave companies for career growth opportunities, according to Jolly. 

“What these people are doing is extracting as much value, mining as much value as they can, out of their organization, then moving on,” Jolly said.

7. Interest in Entrepreneurship

As the founder and CEO of a startup incubator, Jake Hare has started to see more people leave their jobs to launch their own businesses and startups. Launchpeer (now defunct) worked with nontechnical founders to take their very early-stage ideas and turn them into funded startups.

“They want freedom. They want control. They want to fulfill their potential,” Hare said. “Those are things that, unless you work in a great place, are very difficult to find when you’re working for someone else because the regular corporate culture is not designed for that.”

With the rise of remote work, startup founders are not restricted geographically. Plus, in recent years, access to technology and software templates has become easier than ever, meaning that founders do not need to be skilled developers or build original code to start a company.

8. Sense of Purpose

If your passions aren’t fulfilled by your current job, it might be time to consider a change.

It took contracting Covid-19 to change Kyle Walker’s perspective on work and his career. While hospitalized with ventilator support, Walker decided he would leave his job to do something he was actually passionate about if he recovered. Upon leaving the hospital, Walker quit his job running a call center remotely in Raleigh, North Carolina, and went head first into building a startup.

“I didn’t want to come out of that and then go into another year or two working a job just to pay bills and take trips,” Walker said.

Rayna Stamboliyska left her job as vice president for governance and public affairs at YesWeHack in October 2021 to found her company RS Strategy. She felt the time was right to focus on her diverse interests around making tech more responsible and holding tech companies accountable.

“I realized that now or never is the time for me to go out and bring things that only I can bring,” Stamboliyska said. “People were coming to me — for me — to advise them, to help them out. They were not coming to me because of my employer.”

9. Burnout

Burnout is when an employee has reached a critical level of exhaustion and disengagement, often because they’ve been overworked, mistreated, undervalued or subjected to extreme stress in the workplace.

According to a Fiverr survey, over half of workers surveyed suffered from burnout or mental health challenges in 2023. While 85 percent of business leaders recognize burnout as an issue for their employees, the same percentage still fear employee burnout will affect their ability to retain workers moving forward.  

Stressors like high workloads and tight deadlines can lead to physical and mental health issues and cause employees to quit their jobs.

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10. Lack of Skills Development

Over 40 percent of employees could leave their jobs in 2024 if companies fail to offer training opportunities. At the same time, 80 percent of employees would stay with their company in the long run if provided with improved training and development.  

The antidote to this is upskilling and reskilling. Employees who learn new skills or advance their skills are in a better position to find new jobs or grow at their current companies. And companies that encourage this learning are more likely to retain their current talent.

How to Answer, “Why Are You Leaving Your Job?”

Once you’ve decided to take the leap and quit your job, you’ll more than likely face the question, “Why are you leaving?” It’s an incredibly common job interview topic that you need to be ready to answer in your search for another position. Here are some common scenarios where you’ll likely face this question and how you can address it.
 

1. When You’re Unhappy at Work 

It’s OK to leave if you feel unsafe or unhappy in your current work environment. Be honest with the interviewer, but don’t ramble. They don’t need to hear every detail of what made the workplace so toxic.

Sample answer: “I feel like my current employer’s company culture and my personal values don’t align. I’m looking for an environment that emphasizes teamwork, leadership and a healthy work-life balance. After reading your employer branding page, I believe my team player attitude and compassionate approach to leadership will allow me to fit in instantly at your company.”    

2. When You’re Laid Off 

Getting laid off from your job can be difficult to process, especially if it’s sudden and unexpected. But don’t dwell on any negative feelings in interviews. Explain the circumstances, express gratitude for your past role and share your excitement for bringing your skills and experiences to another company. 

Sample answer: “Due to economic headwinds, my company was forced to downsize and, unfortunately, my role was impacted. I’m extremely grateful for the relationships I built with my teammates and my manager, who has offered to be a reference. I gained invaluable skills and expertise while working alongside some wonderful individuals, and I’d be thrilled to share my talents with your team.”  

3. When You Want a Better Opportunity

If you’ve found a job that enables you to take the next step in your career, highlight your desire for growth. Explain what direction you want to take your career in and how this position allows you to do so. Communicate what you’re looking for in the next stage of your career, but don’t complain about how your current role fails to meet those expectations. 

Sample answer: “I’m very proud of the work I’ve accomplished in my current role and have learned so much from my manager and teammates. However, I’m looking to gain more experience in backend development to complement my frontend development skills and become a more well-rounded coder. After reading the job description, I believe this position will give me the experience I need to expand my skill set and explore more avenues in software development.”  

4. When You’re Changing Careers

It’s not uncommon to shift gears at some point in your career. Explain why you’re looking to make a change now, and be sure to list any transferable skills that will make your transition into your new industry smoother. 

Sample answer: “While I initially thought a career in data analysis was the right path for me, my true passion has always been journalism. The analytical thinking, communication and problem-solving skills I’ve honed as a data analyst closely mirror the qualifications listed in the job description. I believe these skills, combined with my lifelong passion for writing, will enable me to adapt quickly as a member of your editorial team.”   

5. When You Went Back to School    

Switching careers or advancing along a career path may require going back to school to earn a more advanced degree. If an employer asks about this decision and any gaps in employment, emphasize what your goals were and any qualifications you’ve gained that make you more prepared for the role. 

Sample answer: “After working as a recruiter for several years, I briefly left the workforce to pursue a master’s in human resources, so I could become qualified as an HR manager. My master’s program deepened my knowledge of HR best practices, equipped me with leadership skills and exposed me to the latest HR software. As a result, I believe I now have the expertise needed to excel as an HR manager on your team.”  

6. When You Outgrow a Position 

As you gain new skills and experiences, your job may fail to grow with you. Rather than speak about your frustrations with your current role, think about crafting a forward-looking answer. Don’t just offer an explanation of why you want to leave a company, but also what you’re looking for out of a prospective employer.

Sample answer: “While I entered my role as a product developer with little experience, I have now helped build six complex products over the past two years and have cultivated a strong foundation of product skills and knowledge. I’m ready to take the next step in my career and embrace more responsibility. I believe your product manager role aligns well with my expertise in building software and managing projects with tight deadlines while offering me room to grow as a product leader.”

When Is It Time to Leave a Job?

Reflect on Your Sense of Personal Fulfillment  

Do some self-reflection before deciding to quit. Can you find more meaning in your current work through conversations with your manager about ways to tweak your role to better align with your interests? Have you had direct conversations about paths to grow your career at your current company? If you’re still not feeling fulfilled or seeing a future for yourself at the company, it might be time to look elsewhere.

Assess Your Risk Tolerance

As for leaving your job to start your own venture, that certainly depends on your own tolerance for risk, but as Hare said, staying with a company is not always stable either. If you’re looking for more flexibility or salary than your current job can offer, it can be useful to get a sense of what the market can offer you. 

Stacey Epstein, chief marketing officer at SaaS company Freshworks, encourages others to really consider if their needs will be a fit with a new organization before quitting a job where they’re established.

“Just really think long and hard about the reasons that you’re leaving, and are you sure those results are going to be satisfied at a new place because that grass-is-always-greener syndrome is a real thing,” Epstein said. “I know lots of people that are sorry that they left what was a pretty good thing just because they were restless.”

Consider Whether Your Current Role Could Be Improved

Before leaving a job, Jolly encourages adopting the concept of job crafting, which comes down to asking, ‘How can I do my current role in a way that is more meaningful for me?’ Trying to shape your role before leaving can spare you from that grass-is-always-greener effect, where you may be joining a new company with the same problems as your last. 

“What you don’t want to do is constantly be in that sort of state where organizations are seducing you with wonderful job offers, and you end up with no better off than where you started,” Jolly said. “Think deeply about what really matters to you in your career. When you look back over your career, what will success look like? What would have really mattered to you?”

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