Should I Just Quit My Job?

[RonMcCord]

I've spent the past year working at a small print shop making less than $10 an hour with no benefits.  The work environment is okay and I get along with my boss, though for the most part I feel completely expendable since from what I've seen of my past co-workers, they all tend to mainly be ex-factory and retail workers who stay in less than a year before leaving for something better.  I've learned quite a bit from the job, but nothing that will really transfer to anything else except more jobs like it which don't pay much better, factories, or retail.  I feel stuck and there have been several times where I feel like I'm never going to do any better than this and I'll be here years from now stagnating.

I want to go into front end web development and been working on it on the side and a graphic design internship online, but it's been slow going.  I feel like if I just quit the job, I can live off savings, work on it full time, and not have to worry about having to losing entire days off without pay to go to interviews or network.  Downside is I'll have no money coming in, a gap in my resume, and the risk of not being able to find anything at all (I spent the whole first year after college not even able to get part-time work in retail, something I constantly get reminded of whenever I talk to this to people I know whenever I bring it up).  It still is money coming in, even though I am growing to dislike the job.

[pbkmaine]

Many employers do not like gaps in resumes.

[Trip]

Do not just quit your job. Try to find a new job and/or start a side hustle. As you said, quitting your job will put a gap in your resume and it may take some time to find something new. If you focus your efforts instead on finding something new while you still have a job, and building up your skills in your free time, you avoid that gap while saving a bunch more money.

[LeRainDrop]

Do not just quit your job. Try to find a new job and/or start a side hustle. As you said, quitting your job will put a gap in your resume and it may take some time to find something new. If you focus your efforts instead on finding something new while you still have a job, and building up your skills in your free time, you avoid that gap while saving a bunch more money.

Agree.

[DebtFreeBy25]

Finding another job first would be ideal. Unless your current job prevents you from getting another one (excessive travel, long hours, inability to get time off- none of which sound applicable), buckle down on your job search and get another job ASAP. I have had to quit a job without another one lined up (twice), and it should be a last resort reserved for extreme circumstances.

I left my last job at the beginning of February and am still struggling to find a decent paying full-time position. I'm freelancing to pay the bills and have 5+ years of living expenses in liquid assets, but it's still a stressful situation. I wouldn't have done it if my job were tolerable or if it were possible to find another job while working there. (I was being forced to work 60 hour weeks and travel 50%+ of the time despite having never agreed to either of those conditions. I had been job hunting with little success for 6 months before I resigned.) I ultimately may have to tap my stache to start my own business in order to create a livable work situation for myself.

I want to go into front end web development and been working on it on the side and a graphic design internship online, but it's been slow going.  I feel like if I just quit the job, I can live off savings, work on it full time, and not have to worry about having to losing entire days off without pay to go to interviews or network.  Downside is I'll have no money coming in, a gap in my resume, and the risk of not being able to find anything at all (I spent the whole first year after college not even able to get part-time work in retail, something I constantly get reminded of whenever I talk to this to people I know whenever I bring it up).  It still is money coming in, even though I am growing to dislike the job.

If you do quit-or get laid off or fired- you won't have a gap on your resume, list the graphic design internship and whatever web development work you're doing as your current position. Growing this work to be a legitimate source of income would be ideal, but even if you're not at that point you can still include it in your employment history. This eliminates any gap and helps refocus your experience towards the kind of work you want to be doing. In fact, you should be including it on your resume now.

[JeanetteDeguzman]

Leaving the job may not help you with the problem you are facing like disinterest in the job. Take a break of about 10 days to gain that interest back to the work  you are doing. Join something that can take you out of the present routine. This will not only help you take a right decision , but drag you out of the monotonous situation you are facing.

[SMCx3]

Do not quit the job.

Start looking hard for new opportunities.

Perhaps talk with your boss, be honest, and see if you can take on more at work.  Learn something new in the same four walls where you currently work.

[Retire-Canada]

See if you can work less than full time at the print shop for a stretch. If you get say 2 business days off dedicate them to finding a new job you like better.

If you do end up with a "hole" in your resume don't worry about it. You can "fill" it with training or a self-employed gig. Nobody is going to freak out you weren't working a $10/hr job for a few months before you got the new job.

[Apocalyptica602]

I think you, and a lot of other people fall into a trap of thinking 'factory work' is extremely low skill and low pay. Working in manufacturing can be extremely profitable. Those skills might be able to lateral you into a larger manufacturing company, I think the problem is the 'small print shop' job you're currently at.

For example, in my Fortune 500 manufacturing company, the absolute lowest paid machine operator position (with <6 months experience, HS Diploma / GED) is $15/hr and often is paid up to 10 hours of overtime a week, turnover is relatively high and the job is not without it's stressors but I have friends working for way less in unrelated jobs that either think manufacturing is minimum wage work or is 'beneath them'.

Work your way up to a group leader or if you have any mechanical aptitude a mechanical technician, and you'll be at $25/hr+ with overtime probably putting you at ~60-70k. This is in an average COL area compared to the US.

That being said, it sounds like you want to do something completely unrelated to factory work, which is fine, but either way it's an opportunity to leave your current job where you feel underemployed and disinterested, and possibly get into something a little more 'career-ish' in the event your web dev career never pans out.