Ask Efri

How long should I stay in a job before leaving?

Efri · 1 min read

Long enough to have finished something.

Key points
4 key points
  1. 01
    Not a number of months
  2. 02
    For most roles that lands somewhere around eighteen months to two years
  3. 03
    It was misrepresented and it's genuinely not the job you were sold
  4. 04
    But if it's just uncomfortable, or slower than you hoped, give it long enough to have something to show

Not a number of months. A completed thing. A project you saw through, a system you built, a result you can point to and explain. That's what makes the time on your CV mean anything.

For most roles that lands somewhere around eighteen months to two years. But it depends entirely on the work. Some roles you've delivered something real in six months. Some take a year before you're useful.

Leave early if:

It was misrepresented and it's genuinely not the job you were sold. It's damaging you. The company is going under.

Any of those, go. You don't owe a bad situation your time to make your CV look tidy.

But if it's just uncomfortable, or slower than you hoped, give it long enough to have something to show. Leaving with nothing finished means the next employer has no idea what you can actually do.