You’ve probably heard the term ‘buyers remorse’.
I personally get it all the time, especially when it comes to making big purchases like a car, electronics or furniture.
I buy the item at 25% off, only to see it on sale the next day at 45% off. Or I see another item and think that maybe I was better off buying that item instead. It’s made even worse when I consult about my purchase with family and friends, only for them to make unsavoury comments about my buying choices, that I end up then regretting.
I’ve looked into this and learnt about what they call in the study of psychology: ‘cognitive dissonance’. According to the website Simple Psychology, the theory of cognitive dissonance is the situation involving conflicting attitudes or behaviours which “produces a feeling of mental discomfort leading to an alteration in one of the attitudes to reduce the discomfort and restore balance.”
When it comes to our career choices (or just what job we do) some individuals may feel a level of regret and remorse about the job that they have applied for and secured. After two weeks in the position, they see another job advertised and start to wish they had have waited to apply for that role.
Why does this happen?
Probably for many reasons. But for many of us, our job has a fair impact on how we define who we are. It’s almost like an extension of us. We associate who we are with our job.
However, you may have secured a job, only to feel that the job does not fit in with your inner-most feelings and attitudes about who you want to be and how you define yourself.
One way to deal with this situation is to view your current job in a positive light. Look at the good aspects of the role, what you like about it, what you enjoy about the workplace and what you are going to learn from being in the job. Perhaps a new skill maybe. But such a suggestion means that you have to avoid looking at the negative side of your choice in a job.
That might even mean stop looking for alternative roles for a short while.
And when you are ready, use the time that you have actually been in a job to perfect your resume and cover letter in time to start applying for another job.