There are a million reasons to want to change jobs. However, some judgment might be passed on folks who jump ship quickly, especially from non-millennials. It’s hard for our parent’s generation to grasp just why we would pass up on a job that is paying – period.

What they might not understand is that the job market just isn’t what it used to be. It’s so much more difficult to find a job that you enjoy right out of the gate. Not to mention some jobs that we really do love just don’t pay well enough or jobs that we want require lots of experience that we just don’t have right out of college.

In any case, let’s explore some of these reasons that young people might change jobs more often and why that’s perfectly okay in today’s world. 

Change Jobs: What is a “Dream Job”, Anyway?

Let’s face it; the “normal” or traditional career path does not exist. In reality, finding your dream job right after high school or even college just isn’t the way it works anymore. Of course, many people are lucky enough to find something that they truly enjoy, but unfortunately, the vast majority of millennials are limited in their options no matter how many degrees they have.

According to CBSNews, “A new survey from CareerBuilder suggests that plenty of Americans never work in the field that they prepared for in college. Among the 2,134 workers surveyed, 47 percent of college graduates did not find a first job that was related to their college major. What’s more, 32 percent of college grads said that they had never worked in a field related to their majors.”

Now, this may not specifically state statistics about how many people achieve their “dream jobs” (which would be very hard to extrapolate). However, the underlying point is that it may not make a big difference whether or not you choose to go to college. Also, what college you choose to attend and what major you pick, has about a 50/50 chance of not pertaining to your chosen path, anyway.

So, if a job isn’t quite living up to what you thought it would, there is no harm in trying something else out.

Young People Have Always Changed Jobs

FiveThirtyEight Economics says this about changing jobs frequently: “Sure, most people in their early 20s are fairly new to their jobs, but most of them are fairly new to the workforce, period…Younger workers do tend to change jobs more often than older workers, but that’s always been true.”

Historically, there have always been a lot of young people out there looking for a job that impeccably fits their needs. It’s not that 20-somethings are lazy and want to constantly jump ship. Actually, in most cases, younger folks haven’t even been working that long. While some younger folks did start working before the age of 18, my guess is many did not.

College Grads Get a Late Start in the Workforce

Many students decide to enter college full time directly after high school. This means that some college students may not even have a “real” job until after college, putting them somewhat behind others that started working earlier. So, the chances of immediately landing a career that is a perfect fit is highly unlikely. Plus, college doesn’t always teach grads how to successfully progress in their career once they have it – let alone keep a job once they’ve found it.

Community College Review reports that most students don’t graduate any secondary schooling until at least four years of college or more.

There are more millennials now than ever.

The White House even released a study on millennials stating, “Millennials are now the largest, most diverse generation in the U.S. population.” With more 20-somethings walking around than ever, it’s no wonder that employers feel like they change jobs all the time. By 2020, millennials will make up an incredible 46 percent of the workforce. People always come and go no matter where they work and what age they are, but because there is simply more of us on the planet, employers feel the hurt of losing more young folks more often.

We are all working uniquely to find our path. “Not all who wander are lost.” – J.R.R. Tolkien

So, stop feeling guilty about changing jobs if the position you are in just isn’t a good fit for you. Get prepared to start or build your dream career.

[Related Posts: How To Transition From One Job To The Next]