Find a new job, while you have your current job, but negotiate with the new company to start after N weeks.

The difference between a good job and a bad job is night and day. It's quite possible you can find somewhere that's very enjoyable. At the very least you can find something better.

+1 for a good job making all the difference. Everyone should do something they love, that challenges and vitalizes them. And if you are a young developer, coming out of a good position at a good company, with no dependents, you are in a position uniquely capable of achieving this. Shop around now, and pull the trigger when you have a signed offer letter.

Don't waste years at a place you don't love. Three weeks after finding a better place, you will wonder why you waited so long to make the leap.

Since your current job is "not painful" and you don't have a clear plan yet, don't quit. Try the following:

1. See if you can change anything in the current job to make yourself happy - new project ? new team ? Most people quit because they don't like their boss or their peers. If that's not the case, work with them to make it more challenging.

2. Use your spare time wisely for soul searching - network, talk to people and find something that will give you the kick. This may even help you become self employed.

Not having a job / not going to work / living off of savings are all unnecessary pressures.

> I'd planned to hand in my notice tomorrow. I've been fortunate and careful, and can afford to live off of savings for 2 or 3 months and still have left overs.

Hmmm, Isn't 2-3 months worth of saving too low? For comparison, freelancers I know would feel nervous if they don't have cash that can cover living expense for at least 6 months.

I think you should take long vacation and think it over before quitting.

Or, try to secure some freelancing contracts on your area of interests before quitting your old job.

Thanks for your reply!

To be honest, by my calculations I'd have roughly 10 months's worth of cash to live off, but I don't want to use it all. I want some of it eventually to go toward a big investment, and some to keep for when I end up in hot water not by my own choosing :)

As for a long vacation... I could possibly take a sabbatical, but I know that I wouldn't want to come back. I can't take any more days off as I've already used most of them, so it'd have to be a sabbatical.

The freelancing idea though, that's a goodun. I dunno where to start, to be honest, but it would be an interesting new experience.

If you're bored where you are, perhaps you should try a smaller company. One of the advantages of small companies is you often end up wearing a fair number of hats.

#

I'd also urge you in the strongest possible terms not to live off your savings if you can help it. I've had to do it in the past (the company I was working for folded unexpectedly.) It was one of the most stressful and soul-crushing times of my life: sending job applications off and getting nothing back for sometimes weeks at a time, looking at my balance dwindling and wondering whether I'd be able to pay the rent next month....

Just feels like there's this crushing horizon of doom and no-one wants you, despite the fact you know you could do all those jobs.

I keep about two years wages in various degrees of fluidity (I think that's the word for it, how easily you can get to it) these days, and I still wouldn't want to do it. It's not a happy place to live for any length of time - and in the end you may, as I did, take something you don't really want anyway just to have money coming in while you look for something better.

Leaning toward becoming Self Employed . . .

Start listening to these . . . http://www.startupsfortherestofus.com/

My advice . . .

Stick with your day job for a while . . . save money and fund your side projects, recurring revenue ideas.

Learn and make connections with like minded developers who are creating SaaS Apps and Recurring revenue.

Your day job is a big asset and can fund your own business especially in the beginning until you have spun up a few recurring revenue ideas.

I hate to answer with a quote, but this one has been quite important for me lately:

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.” - Steve Jobs

Raph, the fact that it is important to you is enough to suggest that it is your personal advice to me, so thanks :)

...I sure hope you're not using it as a cautionary tale ;)

In my opinion, there's high possibility that you're burned out at the moment.

The desire to quit is one of the things, which I observe when I run out of steam.

Don't rush doing something, which can cost you 6-12 months of your life.

You seem that you're making decisions under emotions, rather execute rationally planned scenario.

Take some break and after that think what you want to do and how to do it.

Like others have said quitting without a plan is a bad idea. Start working on finding a job that's more in line with your personality.

You don't know if your ideas have a market. Get users if you think your ideas are worth pursuing. Sell first, build later. In the mean time build up cash to extend your runway. 2-3 months is too short.

You might want to set up another revenue source before you quit whether is be freelancing, another job, etc. Personally I'd never leave a job before I did that, regardless of how disillusioned I was.

I swear this post feels like I've typed it word for word. I'm pretty much in the same situation except I'm planning for a Masters next year. Hoping to see good advice here.

Take a week or two of vacation, think things over. Sometimes just taking a break and relaxing can give you ideas and put things in perspective. It has worked for me in the past.

Find a side project and work on it 2-3 hours every evening.

The thing is if you quit before you have something else you have no leverage with your new employer, they can get you for whatever salary they offer?