Here’s the truth: every job has its own challenge and difficulty as well as its ups and downs.

To achieve a meaningful and contented life, being employed should means more than just showing up at work every morning, getting tasks done, going home, and repeat the activities all over. While you are grateful to be one of those who receive stable income to make a decent living, it is not enough. More than just following the routine and earning the salary to pay the bills, a job should be engaging and challenging that helps you achieve both personal and professional growth.

Unfortunately, that is not always the case. Every now and then, there will be time when you feel unhappy and unsatisfied with your job that idea of leaving and pursuing career elsewhere crosses your mind. But is it wise to follow such thought hastily? Or should you talk about your misery with your boss and find a way out? The answer can be either a yes or no, depends on the situation you are currently dealing with. The following ways will help you address such dilemma:

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YES

If you can identify the problem

There might be a condition where you understand what makes you stressed and how you can make it better, yet you cannot solve it without your employer’s help. If you are trapped in such condition, you can come to your boss and tell him what actually makes you feel unhappy at work. You should share your thoughts on how to overcome the issue, too. For instance, if lately you feel overwhelmed at work due to the tight deadline and heavy workloads, then you can propose a new time-table that can help you work at ease.

If you think the boss has solution

Sometimes you know the root problems that lead to your unhappiness, but do not know what to do about it. In such cases, you can go to your employer and ask for help. Maybe your employer has better understanding about the matter on hand and can offer meaningful advices to solve it, especially if the problem is related to technical task, management, office environment, teamwork and similar things. While you need to be honest about how you feel, it will much better to emphasis that you just want to cure your unhappy feeling as you still want to stay in the job.

If the company adopt open communication

You will have freedom to talk about your feelings at work when you work in the company which invites regular feedbacks and embraces open communication between the management and the employees. Be it about the work patterns, employee management, training, or career opportunities, you can always have a candid discussion with your employer. Employers in such company will be glad to receive any complaints or opinions from employees and know the problems beforehand, rather than suddenly finding a resignation letter on their desk.

NO

If the problem comes from yourself

When you find that the cause of your unhappy feeling comes from yourself, then maybe you do not need to tell your boss. Moreover if that is something that you can hardly change, telling your boss will only make a new problem. For example, if you just realise that the job is simply not your passion and you do not think that you can stay any longer, then you do not have other choice but turning in your resignation letter.

If the problem is related to the company’s policy

There might be no use to protest policy even though it makes you unhappy. However, signing the employment contract means that you have agreed to obey the company rules. For example, you have fully understood that the company has been practicing the 9-5 workday for years. If suddenly you feel that you need more flexibility to work remote from home, then maybe you need to solve this problem by yourself either by blinking the thought away or pursuing your dream job elsewhere and leaving for good.

If your boss is not a good listener

Every employee wants a wise employer who demonstrates an ability to listen to the employee’s feedbacks and opinions. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. When you happen to work for a leader with excellent personal skills and experiences but poor leadership and management skills, telling him about the unhappy feeling you have will not be a good help.

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