It has been scarily quiet at work to the point that I could go for long gym sessions during lunch break, listen to audiobooks and taking long naps in the afternoon.

This must be the calm before the storm. I kept telling myself that all this will end when the craze starts after Chinese New Year. It is still quiet after Q1.

I started checking out prices of air tickets and for holiday ideas since my budget determines my place of visit. Somehow I always gave up halfway because air tickets and hotels still cost a bomb. Seems like the only affordable place is Malaysia now.

During this quiet season, I have given some thoughts about my career and decided to stay put for another year because according to the Chinese Zodiac, this is a bad year for me.

My luck is ranked last on the charts for luck and things have truly not been smooth especially after CNY.

I stopped thinking about job change until I received my latest compensation letter. Wow… I thought we are made double digits growth last year? Oh wait, the whole group didn’t.

I started mathing and I realised it will take me 30 years to reach where my peers are at currently. I only have about 20 years of working life left, so I started updating my cv and uploading it on to career portals and then browsing and applying.

Since I can’t change a bad year, I might as well try to give myself a pay raise doing so. I will save 10 years if I get a 20% increase for my next role. I just need to do this four more times 😂.

Then, a colleague informed she tendered her resignation and is on two months of garden leave immediately.

I was reminded again how someone returned from maternity leave was given notice a week later and disappeared.

I was also reminded of the numerous people who suddenly disappeared and update their LinkedIn profile. Not a good place to work in I believe. This is the right excuse to look for something new.

I guess what people say is true. You have to have time to look for a job. My calendar looks pretty empty in Q2. This warrants a visit to the temple and hope I find something soon.