Career help! What’s the next steps?
I’m feeling really low, demotivated, and uncertain about my future right now. I’m still young and graduated almost two years ago. After university, I was fortunate enough to secure an incredible graduate opportunity at a globally renowned firm. On paper, everything looks ideal — I’m earning well, I have a strong career path ahead of me, and it’s the kind of opportunity most graduates would dream of, especially in the current job market.
The problem is that I’m genuinely unhappy.
I’m not enjoying my job, and I feel like my lack of enthusiasm is starting to show. I get the impression that my seniors see me as lazy or unbothered, which honestly feels completely unlike who I’ve always been.
In the five jobs I worked alongside university, I was consistently recognised as one of the hardest workers on the team. When I left to pursue my career, managers genuinely tried to convince me to stay, even offering pay rises. Some of my previous teammates still message me now saying they miss working with me and asking if I’d ever come back.
Going from that environment to where I am now has completely changed my relationship with work. I used to not mind going in at all — I’d regularly stay late and even work overtime unpaid because I cared about what I was doing. Now, I dread coming into work every day.
I honestly don’t know what the right next step is. If I leave, I risk entering a job market where graduate opportunities are limited and highly competitive. Part of me wonders whether I should return to university and pursue a career related to the sectors I previously worked in. Another part of me thinks maybe I should try the same role at a different company to figure out whether it’s the job itself I dislike, the company culture, or both.
At the moment, I just feel stuck and unsure of what to do next. Any advice would really mean a lot.