Daily Archives: December 19, 2017

Poll Results: Are You Over or Underemployed?

Last month we conducted a Movin’ On Up poll asking whether readers believed they were over or underemployed. A resounding 85% said they are underemployed.

Only 9% said they were well-suited for their job, while 4% said they were over-employed.

It can be hard to keep going at a job where you’re underemployed. You aren’t given a chance to use your skills or show people what you can do. However, you should still try to do your job as best as possible, even in these circumstances.

Why? For one thing, it’s better than the alternative—being unemployed. It’s always harder to find a job when you don’t currently have one. Additionally, you never know what kinds of opportunities could arise when you really give it your all. You might get a promotion or take advantage of a chance to move to a different department.

In addition, you can build skills and network. As long as you find a way to keep learning, that’s experience you can use in your next job. Contacts you meet in this position (whether at your current company or with employees from other companies) could be valuable in your future job search.

At the end of the day, if a job makes you absolutely miserable, you need to move on. However, before you do, make sure that you learn everything you can from that job. Learn as much as possible, meet new faces, and pair all of that effort with a renewed focus on your job search.

How have you dealt with being underemployed? Let us know in the comments below!