I graduated and started a position at a company as a project coordinator. I went into this career because initially I thought it would be much easier and a decent career path to then become a project manager after half a year or so. But now that I am in this position after 4 months I don't believe i'm qualified. I stress out to the max about attending meetings and don't initiate much to the conversation because I still don't have a full grasp on the projects I am helping with. I just wanna quit and give up but don't have another job lined up yet. I just don't want to have to deal with this anxiety of not saying much in meetings and freaking out everytime I have to speak to clients because I don't fully understand the project. Should I quit my job to relieve the stress and focus on finding another or just tough it out while I search for another job?
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1Is there any chance things will get better? Especially since you just graduated, at a new job it sometimes happens that you need several months before you feel comfortable. Keep in mind that they hired you knowing that you just graduated, so the "I don't believe I'm qualified" thought that you have is probably just your own self doubt.– BrandinCommented Dec 16, 2019 at 6:28
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Never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, quit without having a new job lined up– MawgCommented Dec 16, 2019 at 7:00
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Duplicate of these and many others... workplace.stackexchange.com/questions/22888/… workplace.stackexchange.com/questions/65630/… workplace.stackexchange.com/questions/133458/… workplace.stackexchange.com/questions/54480/…– Dave GremlinCommented Dec 16, 2019 at 13:11
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Does this answer your question? Why is quitting without having a new job lined up seen so negatively by employers?– Dave GremlinCommented Dec 16, 2019 at 13:11
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Does this answer your question? Is it really that bad to leave my job as a software engineer before I have an offer?– LumberjackCommented Dec 16, 2019 at 14:11
2 Answers
Quitting transfers the anxiety to the job search. Consider that while job searching is easy for the first few weeks, it gets harder if it doesn’t turn up results. We can’t tell you definitively which one is worse (depends on your job) but the high of quitting and being free does not generally last.
It is easier to find a job when employed The process of finding a job is easier when you have one. And for all you know, the markets could collapse tomorrow and we could enter another recession.
Don't quit - talk to your boss and tell him/her that you're struggling, stressed and unhappy.
'Fake it until you make it' doesn't work for technical stuff. If you don't understand something, pretending to will only cause more trouble later on.
As Brandin said in his comment, you were hired as a new graduate, not as an expert, so you shouldn't be expected to know anything. It's probably a mistake that you're working on stuff that's beyond your experience, maybe someone underestimated the complexity of the project, or someone forgot to train you but it's your job to bring the problem to someone who can fix it.
Your boss is probably too busy to notice that things are going wrong - until a year from now when he'll check up and be rightfully upset that you've not mentioned any problems.
Ideally you should have a short weekly 1-to-1 meeting to ensure that new staff are coping and have everything they need.
