Stuck in a dead-end job? Companies want to recruit people like you

Stuck in a dead-end job? Companies want to recruit people like you

Feeling unfulfilled and stuck in your dead-end job? While hating your day job may be a deterrent for some recruiters, new reporting from the Wall Street Journal finds that companies are actually seeking out these qualities in recruits.

The Journal talked with companies with locations in western New York, Richmond, Virginia, Thornton, Colorado, Miami, Florida and Tulsa, Oklahoma, who were looking at underemployed population demographics before setting up shop in these regions. For example, AvePoint, a software firm, said it looked at 20 midsize cities before settling on Richmond, Virginia, because Richmond had a highly education population where people took jobs “that were less than their level of education just to stay.”

To find underutilized people who are dreaming of better jobs, the companies looked at Labor Department data that keeps track of how many part-time employees are looking for full-time work. From there, companies see it as a win-win for employers and employees. Employers get to cut costs by moving to cheaper regions with high demands of full-time work, and workers don’t have to deal with the costs of moving to expensive cities.

The Pew Research Center found that millennials are less likely than ever before to move for jobs, which makes sense since this crop of millennials is also facing unappetizingly low labor market opportunities.

Jobs aren’t cure-all to being fulfilled

Waiting for one of these companies to pluck you from your day job is a hopeful thought. But there are other ways to take charge of your own career.

Recognize that if you’re feeling unfulfilled at work, this feeling of malaise may not change with a new job and title.

Feeling adrift at work is a signal for you to reflect on your career, dig deeper, and find the source of this uncertainty.

Do you want more autonomy, mentorship, or collaboration? You may be able to find this in your current job, and make the workday more bearable. Talk with your manager about not feeling challenged. The good managers will work with you to improve your workday, because they recognized that unchallenged employees are the ones who quit. Say “yes” to new projects.

As you brush off that resume and network for new opportunities, you can stave off corporate burnout and find creative fulfillment by going on retreats, and taking up side hustles and hobbies.

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Stuck in a dead-end job? Companies want to recruit people like you