SINGAPORE: After more than a decade of continuous work and two difficult career setbacks, a Singaporean accountant has decided to step away from the job market temporarily, expressing that he needs time to recover before trying again.
In an online post, the man revealed that he went through two job losses over the past three years. The first was when he was made redundant from the company he had devoted more than a decade of his life to.
The second came when he handed in his notice at a role he had taken out of sheer desperation, after realising that the company had an “unhealthy work environment.”
He said, “My boss was super toxic, and I was working at least 70 hours a week (yes, including weekends, and often working till 2 or 3 a.m. and continuing at 8 a.m.). I was super burnt out and very depressed.”
Though it took him years to land the position, he said he still walked away because of what it was doing to his mental health.
“I decided to call it quits after six months,” he wrote.
Now unemployed, the accountant said he has chosen not to rush back into job applications, opting to take a break to rest and recover after years of sustained pressure. “I’m [just] feeling really tired,” he expressed.
He also admitted to feeling apprehensive about returning to work. “I’m really, really having a phobia about applying for my next roles. I finished the WSG Polaris programme, which helped, but… just really scared to apply for new jobs.”
When to pause your job search
Job searching nowadays is much more tedious, which helps explain why the accountant feels hesitant about trying again so soon.
Some candidates go through multiple interviews, while others are assigned case studies or given tasks that can take up a lot of time and energy. Even before getting that far, candidates often have to pass through AI filters, including resume screening, chatbot interviews, and gamified assessments.
Considering all this, it is no surprise that many job seekers end up feeling burnt out and use online forums to share their frustrations.
Career experts say this kind of process can lead to job search fatigue and, in some cases, even affect a person’s mental health.
Ashley Sigmon, a Careers and Employability Officer at Gisma University of Applied Sciences, says that one way to deal with this is by taking a break. She explains that constantly scrolling job boards for hours each day, putting in generic applications, and taking these rejections personally can slowly wear a person down.
If it gets to this point, she says you either take a complete break or at least scale back your efforts and pace yourself.
“Maybe five applications this week is not possible. Do you still have energy to put in one good, tailored job application? If so, turn in that one strong job application now, and when you have more energy, submit more applications later,” she told Indeed.
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