Is It the Job You’re Growing to Resent… or a Values Misalignment?

How Values Misalignment’s Can Sabotage Your Career Satisfaction

Do you ever lie awake at night thinking, my job’s driving me crazy? Or fantasize about quitting, even if you have no idea what you’d do instead?
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If you've been in corporate middle management-land for some time, you might feel frustrated with your role, your boss, the team, and most likely the workload(!). Or you’re no longer disillusioned about the company culture.

But what if the real reason isn’t the actually the job at all that is causing you all this frustration and resentment?

What if you’re simply out of alignment with your core values?

Most women don’t realize how much our stress, confusion, anxiety, and inner conflict can stem from values misalignment.

We often chalk our feelings of discontent up to being “too busy” or in a tough season at work for (xyz) reasons. But when your work environment or role conflicts with what matters most to you on a  deeper level, it creates a subtle, constant tension that drains you… day after day.

What Are Core Values & Why Do They Matter?

Your values are your personal guiding principles. They're not goals or aspirations. They’re the foundation of what truly matters MOST to you, personally and professionally.
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Values might include the importance you place on integrity, creativity, collaboration, freedom, security, growth, fairness, service, achievement, family, or work-life balance.

​When you know your core values and live (and work) in alignment with them, you’ll find:

1. Decision-making becomes easier
2. Boundaries become stronger and clearer
3. You feel more fulfilled and purposeful
4. Work feels energizing (even when it’s challenging)

On the flip side, when even just one core value is out of alignment, the opposite happens:

1. Confusion and stress rise
2. Boundaries weaken and you might overcommit or come to resent colleagues
3. Work drains you and can feel meaningless
4. Anxiety or frustration lingers without clear reasons

This isn’t just “having a bad week”, it’s a chronic, systemic misfit between who you are and how you’re being asked to show up at work.

Signs You Might Be Out of Alignment with Your Company’s Core Values

If you’re wondering whether this applies to you, ask yourself:

• Do I constantly feel exhausted or resentful even when I get enough rest?
• Do I feel pressured to act in ways that don’t feel authentic?
• Do I feel overlooked, undervalued, or unheard?
• Have I lost sight of why I do this work in the first place?

Values misalignment doesn’t always mean you’re in the wrong profession or industry.

​Sometimes it’s about the organization’s culture, the leadership style, or a role that no longer feels like a fit. It might be directives from the CEO or senior leadership that don’t sit well with you or growing unrest within your team that signals deeper issues.

For example:

• You deeply value collaboration, but work in a hyper-competitive environment where colleagues undermine each other all the time
• You value fairness but see policies or decisions that feel inequitable
• You value family or balance but are rewarded only for overworking and being constantly available
• You value creativity but your role is highly bureaucratic with no room to innovate
• You value integrity but witness leaders bending the truth, overlooking unethical behavior, or prioritizing results over doing what’s right

​These are not small annoyances… they’re signals. Over time, ignoring them leaves you feeling unfulfilled and disconnected, which can lead to disengagement, burnout, or even physical symptoms of chronic stress.

Was it the Job… Or Your Values?

Have you ever left a job because of culture, leadership, or workload? Thinking you’d found the answer in a new company, and then realised the new role came with the SAME problems you were trying to escape?!

When women in corporate roles hit a breaking point, they often think, I just need a new job!

We want to believe there’s a greener pasture out there. A place where we’ll feel valued, supported, and inspired again.

But if you don’t know your core professional values, you risk jumping into another role that MIRRORS the same misalignment.

Then the cycle repeats, because your mind is focused on escaping the current “pain” instead of identifying what truly needs to change. It’s extremely easy to fall back into familiar patterns, even when they no longer serve you.

That’s why the first step isn’t immediately quitting and sending out CV’s, it’s getting clear on your core values and focusing on what you truly need to feel fulfilled, supported, and motivated at work.
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When you know what truly matters to you, you can:

• Advocate for changes in your current role
• Have a better understanding of why some work relationships feel strained or hard to navigate
• Set better boundaries with your time and energy
• Reconnect to what gives your work meaning
• Assess future opportunities with more clarity

​Even small shifts can help realign you with your values, reducing stress and increasing your sense of purpose.

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Ally's Story

Is it the Marketing Industry I Can't Stand Anymore, My Company... or is it Me that's changed?

Take Ally, a 41-year-old marketing manager I mentored and coached.

​On paper, she was thriving. She’d worked her way up over nearly 7 years at the same company. She was respected for leading her team through challenging campaigns, regularly earned accolades from senior leadership, and even received a promotion the previous year.

But every morning, she felt a heaviness in her chest. She’d wake up with a pit in her stomach she tried to ignore. Telling herself “She was lucky to have this role”, that “She should just be grateful”. Her intuition and body were sending signals, but she’d silence them, put on a brave face and show up as the capable leader everyone expected.

Underneath the praise and success, Ally felt like she was living someone else’s life. She realized she was constantly enforcing directives she didn’t believe in, prioritizing revenue over genuine customer value, which meant her team were sacrifice their personal time for deadlines that felt unnecessary.

Ally’s core values? Integrity, collaboration, balance, and authenticity. Yet her role demanded that use messaging that felt out of integrity, compete internally for limited resources, and reward hustle culture even though it left her team burned out.

No wonder she felt constantly anxious and disconnected! She wasn’t bad at her job, she was simply out of alignment with what mattered most to her.

When Ally finally admitted that truth, things started to shift in our sessions. We worked together to clarify her values and helped Ally understand why specifically the company culture and leadership filtering down for the top felt out of alignment with her own values system.

We also examined which aspects of her work she could influence, so she could begin advocating for more transparent messaging and realistic timelines.

Turns out Ally didn’t really resent marketing! She just hated feeling forced to betray her own values. Once she realigned with her values she felt empowered to make decisions from a place of confidence, not resentment or frustration.

Eventually, Ally chose to move to a smaller company whose mission and culture better matched her principles, and she has never been more content.

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Discovering the Values That Guide Your Work

In coaching, we help you to identify your top 5 core professional values, through a values elicitation process based on an NLP coaching framework.
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If three out of five of those core professional values are out of alignment at work, you’re still showing up and doing the job BUT you’re doing it while feeling increasingly unhappy, frustrated and disengaged.

When four out of five values are out of alignment, you’re usually already one foot out the door OR even thinking about quitting tomorrow without another job lined up, just to escape.

On the flip side, when you’re in strong values alignment with four or five of your top values being met, you'll experience a clear sense of purpose, greater satisfaction, and real fulfilment in the work you do. Even if the job is demanding in a fast paced stressful environment.

It’s also important to say that if just one or two of your core values are out of alignment, you'll usually keep going working there without too much distress. You’re able to do the job and move forward, often staying hopeful that things will change or even brainstorming ways you might create that shift yourself.

Perhaps my main message is to be aware, a nagging frustration or continued restlessness may serve as a clue something’s off beneath the surface.

• Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace consistently shows that employees who see their values reflected in their organization are significantly more engaged
• Studies show that when our personal and professional values don’t match those of our role or organization (what psychologists call 'person-organization fit'), job satisfaction drops and turnover intentions rise sharply

The better the alignment, the more engaged, committed, and fulfilled we feel at work.

Clarifying Your Values Alignment

If you suspect there could be a values misalignment with your work festering behind your dissatisfaction, here are a few  journal questions to help you reflect:

1. What parts of my work day consistently drains or frustrates me? Why?
2. When was the last time I felt I had to compromise my principles at work? What is something that I value that could have been violated in this situation?
3. What are the most important things to me in my work environment?
4. How much am I living and working in alignment with these values today?

Aligning your work with your values isn’t always easy. 

Before you blame your job, the company or industry entirely (or plan an exit strategy!), give yourself permission to explore whether it’s the job you resent - or a values misalignment that’s making it unbearable.

Aligning your work directly with your values isn’t always easy, but it’s the surest path to greater fulfilment, clarity, and your overall well-being.

​When you understand what truly matters to you at work, you can make intentional choices about where you work, how you work, and how you want to lead in your life and career.

-Janel 

​Wondering if your career is truly aligned with your values?
​Let’s find out together.

Learn More Here

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Janel Briggs, is a Confidence & Mindset Coach trained in NLP & TimeLine Therapy®, author of Becoming Fearless. As an expat who has moved internationally four times, she understands the challenges of identity crisis, rebuilding confidence after set backs and the power of personal development. Janel specializes in helping women break free from self-doubt, anxiety, and limiting beliefs, guiding them to rediscover themselves and create purpose-driven lives with confidence and clarity.