This is one of the most common job interview questions.
And rightfully so!
If you left your job without a solid reason, chances are, you might do the same in the job you’re currently applying for.
And since replacing an employee takes time, effort, and money, it only makes sense for the recruiter to want to be sure that you’re not going to quit on them, too.
So, you may be wondering, what’s a good reason for leaving a job?
I am about to answer that question!
Now, there are three things recruiters are looking to find out with this question:
First, they want to know if you were fired (and if so, why?). After all, being fired is quite a red flag for most recruiters (even if you got fired unjustly).
Second, they want to understand why you quit your last job in case the reason you quit is something that applies to the company you’re applying for, too.
For example, if you were overqualified for your last position, you may be overqualified for this one too.
And third – they want to understand what you value in a job and what your aspirations are.
If you quit your last job because it didn’t allow you to grow as a digital marketer, the recruiter understands that this is your #1 priority right now. So, if the role you’re applying for is about digital marketing, you’ll probably enjoy it and be a good fit.
Sounds fair enough, right? Now, let’s talk about the most common reasons for leaving a job (which you can answer if you get asked this interview question).
Even if you loved working this job, you might’ve discovered that it just didn’t align with your career goals.
Maybe one day you just woke up and decided that you want to be a C++ programmer (as opposed to being a web developer).
Or maybe you learned everything you could from your current role, and just stopped growing as a professional.
Whichever the case is, here’s how you can tell the recruiter about this reason for leaving a job:
Disclaimer: The information on this POST is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional advice. The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. All content, including text, graphics, images and information, contained on or available through this article is for general information purposes / educational purposes only, and to ensure discussion or debate.
Thank you ….Unjustly Passed over a Promotion
You worked so hard for years, hit and exceeded KPIs, and led projects proactively…
But when the time came, you didn’t get promoted.
Maybe they hired someone externally, or they promoted someone that wasn’t as qualified as you are.
Whichever the case might be, it’s a completely valid reason to want to switch jobs.
In such a case, when the interviewer asks “why did you leave your last job,” answer like this:
Got a Better Deal from another Company
Leaving an employer because you got a better offer from a different company is a valid reason to quit your job.
Whether they offered a better salary, benefits, or just a good working arrangement, you can use this as a reason for answering the “why did you leave your job” interview question.
Do you want to add a word or two…
Looking for a Different Work Arrangement
There are a ton of reasons why you might want to look for a different work arrangement:
You had a child and want to work from home or on a freelance basis.
You want to have more free time so you can pick up new skills, and hence, want to switch to part-time.
You want to move to a different country, so you’re looking for a remote job.
Don’t Get Along With Your New Boss or Supervisor
You had the most amazing boss ever.
They were compassionate, charismatic, with good leadership skills, and they trusted you to manage your work.
But then they quit and were replaced by someone the complete opposite.
Your new supervisor tends to get angry too easily, micromanages all your work, and is generally not too pleasant to work with.
Soo, you decided to switch jobs.
We don’t blame you – life’s too short to work with unpleasant coworkers!
You Had Personal Issues to Deal With
Family and health always come first before work.
If you had a personal emergency and had to quit work for a while, it’s totally acceptable.
If that was the reason you had for leaving your job, answer the interview question as follows:
I had a family emergency and had to take care of my mother full-time for a few months.
Like people, companies tend to change over time.
Maybe you were working in your dream company, but after it merged with another company, things just weren’t the same.
Or maybe, a new management team stepped in and completely changed the company culture.
Whichever the case might be, it’s a very valid reason to leave a job.
Your Comments……
You’re Overqualified for the Job
Let’s imagine you’re THE perfect sales guy:
You close every other sale call you get on.
In your previous roles, you were always up on the Employee of the Month board…
But the job you recently started doesn’t take advantage of your skills.
Instead, you’re sitting in the back seat, warming up leads for other sales staff (instead of doing what you do best).
If this isn’t a good reason for leaving a job, I don’t know what is.
The role didn’t exactly match my expectations, and I believe that I was significantly overqualified and underutilized.
Instead of focusing on what I’m good at – cold, outbound sales – I was tasked with warming up leads for sales staff that weren’t as qualified to close them, which led to a lot of missed sales for the company.
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