After more than 4 years at a consulting company, I tried to leave a year ago. My boss bumped up my salary and pushed me to lead a huge project (he literally said, ‘I need you to lead this!’).
Fast forward a year, after surviving the worst summer of my life with 12-hour days to rescue the project from a horrible launch, and now they’ve assigned me to something else because I 'might need a change.’ Translation: ‘We’re moving you away from the project you stuck around for.’
Now I’m stuck asking myself: should I quit? Should I take a break to figure out if all this is even worth it anymore?
Sounds like classic burnout, dude. Sometimes the grass looks greener, but when you’re pushing 12-hour days, you gotta ask if the money’s even worth it. I’d say take a break, clear your head, and then decide. You don’t owe them more stress.
I’d take the new project but set boundaries—no more overworking. Use the extra time to job hunt. Hopefully, you got paid well for saving that last project at least!
Take some time for yourself in whatever way works best—whether that’s stepping back from work, quitting, taking a leave, or just hitting pause. Give yourself the space to figure things out, and you’ll likely get some clarity on what you really need. Best of luck!
Looks like you’re already deep into burnout, and trust me, from my own experience, it’s a long road to recovery. Quitting on the spot might feel like the answer, but it’s not always realistic unless you’ve got some savings to fall back on. I’d suggest following some of the advice here and stepping back for a bit—just do the bare minimum. Worst case? You get fired, but you’re already thinking about leaving anyway, right? At least that gives you a cushion with unemployment benefits while you job hunt.
It could take a couple of years to reignite your passion, and only if the stress doesn’t come creeping back. Honestly, I’d say try finding something similar but different enough to feel fresh and give you space to heal. Work cultures like yours don’t change overnight, and it sounds like while they might pay you well, their work-life balance is pretty toxic.
Oh, and that post about Cognitive Distortions from another user was interesting—I’m definitely going to check it out and suggest you do the same. Good luck!
I’d say do the bare minimum at this point and focus your energy on applying for a new job. Most importantly, learn from this experience! Stick to the hours you’re contractually obligated to work, and don’t go beyond that. The second you start giving extra, they’ll not only take advantage but eventually expect it as the norm. And undoing that expectation? Almost impossible.
At the end of the day, remember—you’re a worker, and you’re selling your labor to survive. Companies buy your time because they can profit from it way more than what they’re paying you. It’s a business transaction, plain and simple. So treat it that way: they want more work, you should get more $$$.
You might want to check out something called ‘Cognitive Distortions.’ (Using something like ChatGPT4 can help avoid the fake info floating around on this topic.) There’s a tool called the ‘Cognitive Distortion Checklist’ that asks simple questions to help you spot any biases or false thoughts you’re treating as facts in your inner dialogue.
In simpler terms, it’s a more formal way of saying ‘don’t play yourself.’ The job situation you described probably has more layers than what you’ve shared here, and it might be tough to explain it all publicly, or even fully process it in your own head.
Grab that checklist, go through it, and see if your self-talk is actually honest about your situation. From there, you can figure out the next steps.