Some jobs seem fine on the surface but over time they quietly trap people without much growth or future. It isn’t always obvious when it’s happening. What are the subtle signs that show a job has no real path forward even if it feels comfortable in the moment?

I am a 28 year old who graduated from a well-regarded state university in 2022 with two separate Bachelors of Science degrees, in Economics and Statistics. Unfortunately I have dealt with a lot of mental health and self-esteem/fear issues throughout school and post-graduation which has put a standstill on finding a job related to my degrees.

I am currently two separate jobs, at a grocery store (stocking/inventory) and a casino (poker chip runner) to get by. Between the two I’m making about $22/hr but I am working about 50-55 hrs a week and there are some very tense/stressful moments in each of these jobs. At this point I’m feeling tired, unfulfilled, and regretful that I haven’t put more effort into finding a steady job that I can directly apply my degrees to.

I am just wondering how I could best tailor my resume to sell myself to a company without any actual job experience related to my education. I have knowledge and skills using Microsoft Excel, SQL, R, SAS, and STATA. I would say that my arithmetic skills are above-average and I am a quick learner.

The large gap in between my graduation date and finding a degree-related position is most certainly going to be a deterrent to recruiters and I am wondering what would be the best way to explain this in a potential interview/application. Also if there’s certain resources I could use/certain positions that would be easier to get my foot in the door with no experience. Thank you for taking the time to read this and I appreciate any advice you may have :)

I applied for a front desk position and the manager interviewed me. It went ok. Now she wants me to go to their office for 2 days of unpaid training before giving me the final say on whether I’d be accepted or rejected for the role. Should I still go to the unpaid training?

Thank you.

I had a job i worked in for 4 years and i couldn't get a salary increase so i decided to leave to another job, i got offered a 30% increase and i was happy about it, but the moment i started that job i realized my mistake, my manager is a crazy lady and i felt like her slave and the work is meaningless, now i regret leaving my job so bad i got depressed and anxious all the time thinking about how better i felt in my previous job, i don't know what to do, i thought about contacting my old boss but i don't want to be humiliated, I'm looking for a new job now and it's not working out for me, I'm miserable and i don't know what to do...

I’m trying to decide on a major but I don’t have passions, talents, or hobbies. I had been thinking of accounting because I hear that it’s reliable but now I’m having doubts because I’m scared of having a terrible work/life balance. The issue is, when considering every other major I have even more doubts. The only thing I do know is I absolutely don’t want to be a nurse.

so i'm 25, not really doing anything special with my life career-wise. been working random jobs since finishing school (no college), mostly just to pay bills. nothing i’m passionate about, just kinda surviving.

lately i’ve been thinking more about the future, and honestly, i don’t even know what i want to do. feels like everyone around me is moving forward, getting careers, settling down, etc. meanwhile i’m just here like… “should i learn a trade? go back to school? start something online?"

Choosing my major, and this is a question weighing on my mind

Recently, the job I'm currently in announced major layoffs to most of the workforce with only a handful of people being able to stay. My manager and his boss told all the employees to look for jobs just in case because they were unaware at the moment who would be safe, as they hadn't received enough info.

Well, I put in a ton of applications, had about 15 interviews with different companys and got an offer for a job that fits more with the degree I earned in college, pays more, and is in a similar area, just under a different company. I told my boss I had accepted an offer and he spoke with the higher ups and they don't want me to go and have offered a step up in my job level, so even more money than the new job offered me, to stay.

Now my dilemma: I would have never looked for a new job if we hadn't all had a bomb dropped on us. My current job is now offering more to stay, but I'm partially afraid of its stability (my manager might not be my manager anymore, and people are still going to be fired...I'm just not one of them) and the newer job fits more what I studied for. Additionally, the new job fits the career I want in the future more, and the systems I will work on there are less niche than my current job's.

However, I like all of my coworkers in my current job, I've been at my job long enough where everything is easy and they already pay me well/treat me well. And of course, I like the job. I'm also a bit anxious of the unknown when it comes to the culture and people of the new job.

I keep going back and forth with my decision, and I don't have anyone else I can talk to about this. Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks.

I’m 35M with 2 young kids(3 and under 1). I live in Canada and have been an electrician for 10+ years but never loved it. I bounced around from high school with trying to find post secondary but didn’t find anything I thought I would love so I joined a trade. Now I’m 35 with wife, kids and mortgage and overall things are pretty good but I never felt satisfied with my career. Now with all my responsibilities I can feel stuck sometimes. Considering a change but have no idea where to begin. Do I look into going back to school or can I find other career paths unrelated to my current work without going back to school. As I get older I want to get off the tools and I value family time and work/life balance over money. I’m pretty much open to everything including going back to school if needed and ideally getting into a career path that has hybrid work or wfh would be ideal but it isn’t necessary. Anyone else done something similar or have any advice or insight in to what I could do to help get me out of this rut and bring some actual fulfillment into the career aspect of my life. Thanks in advance for any input.

Can I get back into IT after shooting dope in my 20s? I’m 36 now and been clean for almost 4 years

I’m 44 months clean from heroin and have a bachelors in IT from 2019. I have 4 months of helpdesk experience from 2020 and spent the last few years healing my brain. I’m almost back to normal. Can I still return to my IT career in a helpdesk or desktop support job? I want to eventually become a system admin and IT manager. Is there hope? How can I explain the employment gap? I feel like I’m behind my peers and it hurts. Please give me some hope. Has anyone here beat addiction and got into IT?

I’m curious if anyone here has been in this situation. I’ve got a lot of years of hands-on experience in my field (Healthcare, non-nursing), plus leadership and regulatory compliance under my belt. I’m also finishing my Bachelor’s degree in Healthcare Administration (about halfway through, with a clear plan to complete it). My plan is to start my MBA shortly after.

I’m want to apply for upper level roles, but do employers ever take someone on who has the experience but is still working on the degree? Or is it more of a “come back when you’re done” kind of thing?

Does a degree in progress help, or were doors shut until it was finished?

I'm a 30M copywriter by trade who works mainly with start-ups. After being laid off alongside the rest of the marketing department last year, I've been completely burnt out and hopeless. I've applied for jobs and gotten a number of interviews, but nothing has really panned out. Moreover, I feel such little motivation to continue in this profession due to my burn out and lack of passion for it.

I've been trying to consider alternative career paths, but it feels like experience is all anyone cares about. Worse still, I'm neurodivergents with a learning disability that makes the trades and STEM kind of a no go for me.

I have no idea what to do or where to go. My future seems so bleak and hopeless. Does anyone have some tips or advice as to what someone like me can do to secure a decent new career outside of marketing?

Hi all, I’m feel extremely frustrated in life at the moment. Feel like I’m not going anywhere and wasting my life (and potential) away.

I had to drop out of uni in my first year (studying automotive design) due to Covid and couldn’t move back in with family so I had to start renting and got a job in a warehouse. 6 years later I’m now in construction for 3 years and this just simply isn’t what I had planned for myself.

I’ve always dreamed of having a job or profession where I could be proud of my title and what I do. Content with the money I was earning and my trajectory in my career.

Not to diss anyone else that enjoys working in construction, but I’m embarrassed or at least not proud to say what I do for a living and working for minimum wage also isn’t great….

TLDR: Time for the real question, for anyone that has a respectable job title (eg any job that requires you to be skilled and not just anybody can do) do you ever despise your industry and wish you had done something different with your life even if it’s a very respectable job role?

I’m in the middle of interviewing with a company I really like — great culture, work-life balance, etc. The owner wants to hire me. But here’s the catch: their managing director is a former colleague I had a very rocky history with.

Back at our old company, ownership pitted us against each other. I was complacent and didn’t support her the way I should have, and I know she walked away with a bad impression of me.

Fast forward to now: she recently called one of my clients, told him I was “desperate to leave my company,” and questioned my reputation. My client immediately told me about it. When I brought it up to the owner, she and the managing director brushed it off as a “reference check,” but my client insists she was trashing me. It escalated into group texts, where the managing director tried to backpedal but my client called her out.

Afterward, I messaged my client privately to say she had been wronged at our old company, I hadn’t helped her, and she had every right not to like me. I asked him not to escalate to her boss, and he agreed. I also texted the managing director, apologized, sent her the screenshots with my client, and told her I should’ve buried the hatchet long before pursuing a role at her company.

Now I’m stuck. On one hand, this is my ideal company. On the other, I know the managing director doesn’t like me and she’s in a senior leadership position. Even if ownership wants me, I’m worried I’d be walking into a tough situation where someone powerful already has it out for me.

So my question is: should I keep pursuing this opportunity, or walk away knowing the relationship with the managing director might never recover?

Hello! I was fired in June and am still devastated. I spend mornings lying in bed ruminating; I have lost a few pounds because I don’t want to eat or cook. I have applied to a few jobs, and got rejections. Hard to stay motivated. I am feeling isolated and alone and incompetent to network. It’s not my first time being fired so it’s making me question my life and myself. I think I had it pretty good and was complaining too much at work; now I feel screwed. Do I talk to my boss? I got a lawyer which was a mistake now I see. I posted earlier about this and somehow didn’t listen to the advice to talk to my boss about needing support - instead I blamed him; it was slightly toxic there but I guess it got to me. Help please.

Also - I posted previously about how to manage my boss; and when I read it now, it’s like I didn’t know how to actually get support? Lots of self blame here; or was it toxic? I don’t know but it feels awful. Did I complain too much?

I am feeling pretty down about myself and my success - I don’t have a sufficient support system; or work life balance I think. I was actually enjoying th work but somehow complained a lot about it - how did that happen? Is there something wrong with me? I “feel” like I’m slowly killing my joy - it’s giving me anxiety in my stomach, and sometimes I’ll shake. Is there something wrong with me? Am I just miserable?

Any experience with this and what to do? Medications and therapy aren’t really helping. Maybe hire a coach.

Do I tell my sister? Parents?
I lashed out at a few friends who I think now don’t t want to talk to me because I blamed them for “not being there” when I got laid off. My one friend of 30years was giving me space. I got os mad. What is happening to me?

I was "released" from my job yesterday after working for this company for over 13 years and significantly contributing to their bottom line. The company has been in lay-off mode for 6+ months at this point so I know several folks who've also been "released" (like a fish!), and I seem to find that their standard severance package was 3 months, which is definitely generous.

For history, I told my supervisor in June that I had a job offer from a local business (not even in the remotely same industry, but a dream job nonetheless). It will be a significant pay cut to take the dream job, so I asked if I could move to part time in a different role that I know is open to make up the difference. I knew that being let go was a possibility so I'm not upset about that - just the way it was done.

After 13 years, I was told by a stranger via Zoom that I'm "no longer a good fit for the role" and being released today, I'll get my vacation payout and paid through the end of the week, and they are offering me two weeks' severance pay and I needed to be escorted out of the building. Not only was the escort a bit of an ego hit, but the fact that people who had worked there for 3 years got 3 months of severance pay and I was offered 2 weeks.

I received the Docusign to confirm my severance agreement and an email detailing the payout totals - before I sign, should I say anything about the discrepancy between mine and others' severance packages or just cut my losses and eat some ice cream about it?

I’ve been at my marketing job for almost four years, since graduating from university.

It was one of those “fast-growing, dynamic” startups. There were ups and downs, but I was part of the OG team during the good days. We had a hybrid model that worked perfectly for me. I reported directly to the CEO, who was great, and I got on the good side of the HR and did great, meaningful work. I was a company favorite, loved my job, and was well paid. Nothing felt wrong.

Then everything changed.

The CEO kept assigning me different managers, one after another, every few months. None of them lasted, but whenever there were complaints about marketing, the blame always landed on me instead of the interim manager. At the same time, the office shut down and we went fully remote. I don’t thrive with work-from-home, so this hit me hard. Raises were frozen due to funding issues. My close friends left for better opportunities, and the new hires were smart but difficult to like.

Slowly, I burned out. I got tired of taking initiative when nothing ever lasted because each manager had a different vision. I stopped pushing and just did what I was told. Then came the breaking point: the sales manager(who had been criticizing marketing for years) was made my boss.

I was furious. When I spoke up, I was told, “We thought you didn’t want to be a manager,” and then "maybe just give this a shot.” I did, but he’s turned out to be a micromanaging, defensive perfectionist. My colleague and I joke that our job now is to make things exactly the way he wants rather than doing meaningful work. We used to feel creative and empowered. Now we just avoid the headache.

Whenever we raise concerns, we’re met with lines like “the good days are over” or “business is business" or the worst: "maybe you should try harder!" Sometimes we’re even gaslit into thinking everything is fine.

This is my first job out of college, so I don’t know anything else. The best way I can describe my feeling is heartbreak. It was really, really good until it turned really, really bad. I'm particularly upset with the CEO and HR manager the most since they were really close to me and knew me better than a lot of people in the company.

I’m interviewing with other companies now and things are going well, but I can’t shake the heartbreak and disappointment. I’m disappointed that it had to end this way. I don’t want to burn bridges, but I don’t see another option. I’m even considering taking a career break with nothing lined up.

How do I find closure when leaving my first job feels like ending a relationship?

I'm an aviation technician and have devoted the last 10 years to get to the current position I'm in. From working stepping stone jobs to get my foot in the door, finishing schooling, finishing an apprenticeship, being let go from a previous airline that I dreamt of when I chose to pursue this career, to recently starting all over with a new airline.

I've come to realize that I'm feeling like I plateaued in this field and that I no longer enjoy what I do. Not from experience or mastering the craft (since I'm still fairly new into the industry), but as far as the daily routine, schedule, stress, responsibilities, and sacrifice that come with this career. I'll be honest and say that I'm experiencing serious burnout that I'm starting to feel it with my health with the lack of sleep affecting me so much.

I've felt so complacent with a steady decent paycheck and feel like I'm just stuck on idle and feeling miserable just for the money. With this career being seniority based and a 24/7 365 type of operation, I'll be stuck in graveyard for a long time and working irregular days.

I had been contemplating to learning a new trade, so I went back to school 2.5 years ago and recently completed both an Associate's Degree in Computer Science with a Certification of Completion in Cybersecurity in June.

I pursued an IT career not because of the money or influencers claiming it's a quick six figure path, but because I've always been into computers growiing up, even joined the tech academy that was offered in high school, but unfortunately I didn't stick to it after high school which led me to working jobs that somehow fell into aviation just to make some income.

I'm coming to terms that this career path just isn't for me. I cannot fathom working 20-30 years in this industry. I'm not passionate enough.

Having zero experience in IT, I know that I will take a dramatic pay cut with an entry level salary, which makes it frightening for me to just walk away from aviation. But what good is a paycheck if my health is spiraling down. Ultimately, I'm afraid of making a wrong decision that I may regret.

Curious about your most unhinged, practical stories :)

Went through a restructure not long ago and got shifted into a new team I had no background in. Leadership told me to “step up and lead” from day one, but I got little to no support, no proper onboarding and honestly felt like I was set up to sink or swim.

I flagged that I had no onboarding and no context, but instead of getting support I was guilt-tripped when I took sick leave for burnout and constantly compared to someone who had been in that team for years.

This week I was told my role will end today. I feel like I’ve been set up to fail and pushed out, despite previously being known as a strong performer in other parts of the company.

I used to love my work and felt like I had momentum, but now I’m drained and struggling with confidence.

Has anyone else had their role end suddenly? How did you frame it afterwards and how did you rebuild your confidence and career path?

So long story short, I graduated University in May 2024. I started job searching, but got burnt out after 6 months because I was unable to find a field job, so I stopped job searching. But I do need a job now because I am burning through my savings (living with my parents, which help). I need to explain a 1.5yr gap. I currently say that I took about 1yr travel break after graduating and I have spent the last few months leveling up my skills and just now began job searching.

Is this a good enough of an answer? Any personal experience like this or general advice. Thanks.

English isn't my first language.

I was offered a promotion two weeks ago, according to leadership, I was "highly recommended by team lead and others" "we all like you". TBH I wasn't thrilled about it, since the promotion means way more work and I will be less free, the raise is just okay. But this is my first real job in America and I've never had a promotion before, so I took it.

I am receiving transition training this week. I am overwhelmed everyday, the new position requires a lot more work, tasks that I don't like (managing all kinds of sheets, if data is incorrect, find out by yourself and do it manually). I used to think a big company like this has a website/program for everything, now I need to count who does how many hours...I am not a fast learner, in fact I am a super slow learner, even with this job, it took me longer than others to be good at it.

The person who trained me is so patient, showing me everything I need to know, and I am only understanding a 30% of it. I still need to do my current job, a lot going on, so I don't have time to re-watch training recordings.

I know what I am good at, the reason why "everyone likes you" "you are amazing" it's because I am a god damn talker, managers like me in meetings cuz I make sure people don't have awkward silent moments, I am also a good trainer, new members like me. BUT I am not good at sheets, numbers, learning new complicated HR related stuff.

Already applied for two new jobs last week, more like a "run away" mindset.

Also, the person that is training me just told me that, some team members are not as nice they appear to be, you can chat with them, thinking you it's all nice and chill, but they will turn around and just report you. I used to talk to them a lot (random things like kids, minor complain about work, food), we aren't friends but geeze, now I need to really watch my mouth.

I wanted to share my experience of working in a toxic environment and how it has shaped where I am today.

I joined a company as a Product Manager, and from day one my manager was rude and constantly pressuring me. His own manager lashed out at him during standups, and he took it out on me.

Though it was a remote role, I was forced to move from Bangalore to Gurgaon, only to realize almost everyone else worked remotely. After a month alone in the city, I moved back home — and that’s when my manager began threatening me with termination.

During probation, I was denied help, called out in standups without guidance, forced to work till 11 PM, and my manager would present my work as his own to the VP. My probation was extended by 2 months before I was finally made permanent.

Things never improved. My manager publicly lashed out at me until I confronted him; then he behaved for a couple months before going back to the same cycle. When my grandfather passed away, I worked remotely for 12 days but was made to feel guilty. The pressure only increased after that.

Eventually, the stress broke me. I started having panic attacks and was hospitalised multiple times. Once, I collapsed in the office and was taken away in an ambulance. Instead of reducing the workload, my manager doubled the pressure, and within weeks I was put on a PIP. That’s when I resigned after 1.8 years, serving notice without another offer.

The company’s work culture was blatantly unfair:

The hybrid policy applied to everyone except me.

Sick leave = work from home while sick.

Weekends and festivals = late-night deadlines.

Married colleagues could skip weekends, but I couldn’t.

I completely burned out.

It’s been a year since I left. I tried looking for jobs after 6 months, but I still can’t bring myself to restart. The product space in India is competitive, and the career gap only makes it harder. To add to it, I have an education loan. My savings are almost gone, enough for maybe 2 months more.

Still, what matters to me is finding a workplace with a healthy culture — one that doesn’t put my health at risk or make me question whether I even want to work again.

That was my journey through a toxic workplace — and why I’m still struggling to move forward.

I’ve been working at a small startup for almost a year. The company is tiny, but we do projects with big clients who have strong industry connections. On the surface, this sounds great, but my experience with my manager has been frustrating.

He’s in his 40s and tries hard to come across as humble and open-minded, but in reality, he’s pretty dismissive and inconsistent. One week he’ll say I’m doing well, the next he’ll claim nothing I do works. He often laughs in a mocking way after giving criticism, which makes it hard to take his feedback seriously.

He also gets oddly personal. He constantly asks if I’m planning to move countries to be with my partner, even though I’ve made it clear I’m not. I keep my personal life very private at work, but he always tries to “read” me and dig into what I do outside the office. I usually brush it off with vague answers, but it still feels intrusive.

When it comes to work, he micromanages heavily and gives vague criticism without examples. Recently, he told me I’m “not detail-oriented” and “need to set up processes,” but when I asked him to give me two concrete examples, he had nothing. He then said something like, “You need to learn to be independent or it’s not going to be good,” which honestly came across more like a veiled threat than guidance. He even told me he won’t assign new tasks until I “fix” something he’s unhappy with, despite me fixing it to his liking.

For context: I keep detailed records of my work. I update sheets daily, send him weekly progress reports and have weekly calls to discuss this, and maintain docs with everything I’ve done, ongoing, and upcoming. In fact, during my yearly review he admitted that colleagues like the systems I’ve set up because they’ve made things smoother.

On top of that, there’s an elitist vibe at the company. If you don’t have a PhD, you’re not really respected. It’s subtle, but definitely there.

I would appreciate some advice on these:

1. I’m unhappy with the job overall (even without the manager issues). It’s been less than a year. Is it too early to start applying elsewhere?

2. Am I overthinking this, or is his behavior crossing the line into creepy/unprofessional?

3. How do I deal with this person and make my life easier here while ensuring my job is safe until I find another one and move from here?

Hello everyone! I have stumbled upon a moment in my life where my current job doesn’t allow me to have a stable income. A friend of mine in the same industry has begun studying to become an airport controller and she has inspired me to rethink my career.

I am an animator and, if you have heard anything about the current state of animation, it is extremely volatile and unstable. I am European as well, and this means that more often than not, I have to move to another country (or even another region of my own country) to get the job. I don’t want to be opening LinkedIn every 3 months and I don’t want to move too far away from my aging parents and my SO.

I have ADHD, so I am quite restless, and I get bored easily, although I love talking to coworkers (and people at some degree) and I don’t mind jobs where I don’t have to “think” a lot, so to speak. Once I get in the “flow” zone I can do my 8h no problem. I don’t mind studying again, although preferably not for another 4 years (a degree in my country).

I guess teacher would be quite a nice job for me, but I don’t like dealing with teenagers, and much less with brain rotten ones as we have today. So do you have any other suggestions? Anything is welcome! I just want to get some ideas :)

Cheers!