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Personal Finance and Investing

Thinking of switching jobs? Here's why you should wait until the new year

Maurie Backman
The Motley Fool

Job-hopping is a pretty common thing to do these days, especially with the economy being fairly healthy. And once you're inspired to look for a new job, you may be inclined to blast out your resume and start interviewing immediately.

But before you make a drastic move, remember that sticking it out at your current job until the end of the year could prove beneficial. Here's why.

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1. You don't want to give up a bonus

Many employers give out bonuses at or near the end of the year. Sometimes, those bonuses are based on sales or companywide performance. Other times, they're based on individual performance. If you're entitled to such a bonus, then leaving your job before the end of the year could mean passing up a lump sum of cash. And unless you have a new employer willing to give you a sign-on bonus to compensate, you probably don't want to forgo that money.

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2. You can use up your vacation time

American workers are notorious for leaving vacation days on the table. If you have vacation time left for the year, and you leave your job before 2019 winds down, you'll likely end up forfeiting days you were entitled to. And that's a shame, because that extra time off could work wonders for your mental health, especially if you've been feeling burned out lately.

3. You'll have less stress about taking time off for the holidays

Chances are, you're planning to take some amount of time off around the holidays. Maybe you're traveling home to see family for Thanksgiving. Or maybe your children's school is closed between Christmas and New Year's, and so you need to take days off to account for a lack of child care. These situations are tricky enough to navigate at a job you've been at for quite some time. But they can be even more challenging at a new job. Remember, when you first start a job, you're generally last in line when it comes to time-off privileges. And you may not be entitled to paid vacation until you've been employed for a certain period of time, anyway.

4. Your chances of getting hired may be greater once the new year kicks off

The end of the calendar year can be a difficult time to find a job. Many companies spend much of November and December establishing budgets and wrapping up items with end-of-year deadlines. So employers often lack the financial or time-related resources to interview job candidates or to onboard new hires late in the year. If you wait until January, you may find that job openings are more abundant, and that companies are better able to focus on hiring.

Tempting as it may be to snag a new job quickly, in many cases, you'll be better served to wait until the new year to pursue one. The plus side? You'll have a good six or seven weeks to polish up your resume and practice your interview skills, both of which will increase your chances of landing an offer.

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