I think I want to leave a good job for something I think will be better? 🧐

I have a kinesiology degree & after graduation I was working as a tech in a therapy clinic thinking I’d go back to school to be a therapist but at the time I didn’t like the work/life balance (I felt guilty taking time off cuz then patients weren’t getting help) so I got a job at a tech company making more money, more vacation, better benefits. That was almost 20 years ago.

I LOVE the benefits my job offers (work from home, good insurance, ample vacation) BUT there is NO WAY to move up in this company. They just let you do lateral moves to a new team. Plus they’re making the job more automated and just increasing our load & I feel like I’m losing opportunity to build skills to get another job without a new degree. We have to seek out projects to not just be doing repetitive work. There is also no schedule flexibility. They want us on a 9-5 mon-Fri shift which isn’t terrible but I have a young child with autism that’s pretty severe and I was able to get an adjusted schedule to help get him to therapy but they always threaten that they can take this special accommodation away if business needs dictate I need to work the same schedule as everyone else & I don’t like that. Even with the accommodation my husband has to leave in the middle of his shift to pick up our son & bring him home & go back to work which is in a different city. I feel conflicted. On one hand I’m grateful that I can work from home, have insurance, & can take time off if I need it. Plus we’re not struggling financially. BUT I really hate that I can’t spend more time with my son esp now we’re thinking about starting school, and that my job has become more & more mindless. I moved to a new team after finishing a project and after like 2 months at my review my boss was like..well your numbers look great so you have to come up with other career goals for you to work on 😐. I hate having to invent goals and then find projects (other job roles) to try and meet them and we don’t get paid more- it’s just “career development”. When I talk to coworkers they are in 2 camps 1- they want to retire soon and are just doing whatever is necessary to keep the job until they’re done 2- they are ambitious and will keep doing projects until they can get the job they want. Some of these people have been doing back to back projects for YEARS and doing a great job but still in the same position. They may have gotten a raise but all of them have said they don’t like this job & want to move and are getting pushback or a new hoop to jump through.

I really hate this scenario the job has created & it’s even more limiting for people who work at home b/c more & more projects are only for people who come in the office. So I took some career assessments & all the results were the same- I should teach or go into the medical field.

My thought right now is nursing school. Nursing would allow me to increase my salary & have schedule flexibility but that schedule flexibility might not be available until after I have more experience so idk. The pay increase matters though b/c I can get paid more by being more educated or training in a specialty- it’s not vague like it is at my current job. We’re trying to pay our home off & eventually move & use it as a rental property so we can work less & also have options for our child who may not be able to live independently as an adult. So I’m thinking about a career I can have beyond retirement age & nursing seems like something with the best prospects. Plus I really miss connecting with people and helping them in a more tangible way.

Any advice if you read this novel lol? Am I missing something?