Most workers have career regrets, survey shows
New research by Ciphr reveals people's biggest career regrets.
New research by HR software and eLearning content provider Ciphr has revealed people's biggest career regrets.
Nearly four in five (79%) employees say they have regrets about a career choice or a decision they’ve made at work.
People mid-way into their career, aged 35-44 years old, are the most likely to report having work-related regrets (87%). This compares to 82% of workers under 35 and 75% of those aged over 45.
Only 21% of the 2,000 UK workers surveyed didn’t have any regrets.
The top career regret, for one in six (17%), is overthinking or worrying about a work situation or conversation that they can’t change.
Younger workers are more likely to have regrets over doing this. Nearly one in four (24%) 18-24 year olds say they regret worrying or stressing about unchangeable events or conversations, compared to one in five (21%) 25-44 year olds and one in seven (14%) workers over 45.
The next two most commonly cited regrets are staying in a job for too long (16%) and working too many hours (16%).
Senior and middle managers are the most likely to regret not prioritising their work-life balance and working too many hours (20%, compared to 12% of non-managers). This is backed by previous Ciphr research, which estimates that 64% of managers regularly work extra hours unpaid every week.
Other notable regrets include ‘playing it safe’ career-wise (15%) and not having enough pension savings (14%).
The survey also revealed that a significant one in six (15%) surveyed women regret putting up with a bad manager for too long. A situation that will undoubtably have negatively impacted their wellbeing and happiness. This compares to 9% of surveyed men, or 13% of all UK employees.
The most common career regrets:
- Overthinking or worrying about work situations and conversations they can’t change (17% of survey respondents)
- Staying in a job for too long (16%)
- Working too many hours or not prioritising their work-life balance (16%)
- Playing it safe: not taking opportunities to advance their career (15%)
- Not saving enough money into their pension or not starting to save into their pension sooner (14%)
- Putting up with a bad manager for too long (13%)
- Not working in a higher-paying profession (12%)
- Not pursuing their ‘dream’ job or the career that they wanted to (11%)
- Not leaving a job that they didn’t like (11%)
- Not changing their career sooner (10%)
- Not speaking their mind enough (10%)
- Not speaking their mind enough (10%)
- Not staying in touch with former work colleagues (9%)
- Not asking for a pay rise (8%)
- Not negotiating for a higher starting salary (8%)
- Not spending more time on their professional development (8%)
Claire Hawes, chief people and operations officer at Ciphr, says: “As these findings show, the outcomes most people look back on with regret are the things they didn’t do – the career path not taken, the job opportunities missed, or the work problem not dealt with sooner.
“Very few people don’t have something in their past they’d do differently, perhaps, given the chance. The important thing is that we take time to reflect and learn from our work experiences. The good and the bad. Regret might not always seem particularly helpful or productive at times, but it can be a big motivator to help people avoid repeating certain situations, to build self-awareness, and make better decisions going forward.
“One of the biggest benefits of having regular manager check-ins (scheduled or ad-hoc) is that it helps to normalise constructive self-reflection and performance conversations. Employees can use this space to reflect objectively and get feedback on their successes and challenges, and talk through any concerns or issues before they escalate.
“Done well, 1:1s help build trust, align priorities, boost job engagement and reinforce a sense of purpose and focus.”
While 1:1s are not always standard practice in all types of organisations, employees should be encouraged to check in with their manager or supervisor when they need to, advises Hawes.
Personalised employee development was recently ranked as one of the top 10 benefits people value most.
Using an integrated HR and learning system like Ciphr can help streamline the performance management process and enable better development conversations. Logging performance reviews and recurring 1-to-1 discussions centrally enables employees and their managers to consistently, and fairly, track progress against organisational objectives over time, to help inform goal setting, improve productivity and identify specific training and upskilling needs. Employees can access and complete customised learning plans and compliance training via the LMS, and employers have a consolidated, real-time view of their skills development and performance data.
Hawes adds: “If people aren't having regular 1:1s with their manager, or their scheduled meetings are often shortened or skipped, then they are likely to feel overlooked and unsupported. This could lead to reduced productivity and performance, and, ultimately, attrition."
Ciphr's new HR AI assistant provides immediate and clear visibility into an HR system’s data. So HR teams and leadership can get quick intel about who hasn’t completed their 1:1 meetings that month, or their performance reviews that quarter (or year), for example, without needing to build reports. Making it easier for organisations to spot gaps in manager support and take action.
The full results of Ciphr’s research into people’s biggest career regrets is available at https://www.ciphr.com/infographics/workers-share-their-biggest-career-regrets.
Ciphr is the go-to HR, payroll, and benefits software partner for UK organisations with 200 to 2,000 employees. Its integrated HR, payroll, benefits, learning and recruitment software, services and content provide invaluable insights to HR teams to help inform their people strategy and grow and develop their organisations. Ciphr is on a mission to amplify the voice and value of HR through intelligent people data solutions that help HR be heard – in the boardroom and across the business.
For more information, please visit www.ciphr.com.