When it comes to handing in your notice to your line manager or answering that dreaded interview question, “why do you want to leave your current job?” It's important to give a professional, honest and clear reason.
Knowing how to answer this question can be difficult, and hiring managers ask this question as it gives them a chance to get to know you and your values.
At IDEX, we’ve got years of experience in providing recruitment services in the Insurance, Financial Services and Legal sectors and know just how difficult answering this question can be. So, our experts have given their advice to help you prepare for your interview or meeting.
Reasons for resigning from your job
You want to relocate to a different country/county/city or town
Your values don’t fit with the company you work for
Your work/life balance is getting difficult to manage
You struggle to balance your family responsibilities with work
The company you work for is in financial trouble
You don’t feel valued at work
You are looking for a more challenging role
You are looking for career growth Family or personal reasons
The hours aren’t working
You want to embark on a different career
You decided to go back to school, college or university
Your personality didn’t align with the company culture
You found a better opportunity
You want to experience a different industry
You were made redundant
You had health issues that are no longer prominent
How to answer "Why do you want to leave your role?"
Remain professional It’s important to remain professional and positive when telling an interviewer or HR why you’re resigning. You should reframe any negative experiences or idle gossip so that potential employers can see that you are a problem solver who can work in tricky situations.
For those who’ve had bad experiences, it might be easy to say, “I’m leaving because I can’t stand my manager, they never listen to me and I feel undervalued.”
Instead, you should reword it, and say something along the lines of, “I’m ready for new challenges - in my current role I have developed my skills as much as possible, and now I want to gain new skills and grow my existing skills set in a new environment.”
Bad reasons for leaving your job
As mentioned earlier, there are some reasons you shouldn’t share with a prospective employer as to why you are looking for a different job. When you’re negative or too honest, it can give hiring managers a bad impression. Here are a few examples of bad reasons:
I despise my coworkers
I don’t get on with my managers
I got arrested I’m going to get fired
I was going through family drama I didn’t like the role
I had to do overtime
I couldn’t separate my work/life balance
Really think about why you want to leave
Before you hand your notice in or you go to your interview, try and answer the following questions:
Where do you see yourself in the long term?
What are your values?
What do you look for in a job?
What’s the next step in your career progression?
What do you enjoy about your current role?
What could be improved?
What are your relationships with your managers and colleagues like?
What industry do you want to be in?
Are you passionate about your company’s values?
Once you’ve thought about your answers, there will be a few professional answers that stand out to you. Lead with these. If there are personal reasons, you should lead with the professional. It is much better to say that you want to leave your current job because you’re looking for that next step in your career, rather than a life change.
Honesty is the best policy
It’s important to be as honest as possible when answering this question, but there’s no need to go in heavy with the details. Make sure to keep your answer short and succinct, and try to flip the conversation back to the opportunity ahead.
Withholding details may not help in the long run as your prospective employer may contact your current or previous employer for references. What you tell them should be in line with what they’ll learn in those conversations. If you’ve got gaps between job roles or you’re unemployed, you should be transparent about the situation.
If you’re looking for your next role, speak to the recruitment specialists at IDEX. We provide independent recruitment in the General Insurance, Financial Services and Legal sectors.
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