

My first job was working as a floral assistant and cashier at a local flower shop. It was quite rewarding, engaging with consumers as they picked up bouquets and arrangements for various occasions. I kept that job for a year before transitioning into a completely different industry. From then up to today, I’ve had over 20-something jobs. Now, I know what you may be thinking: “How have you been able to have so many jobs and bypass the flood of questions that come with job hopping?”
Much of job hopping appropriately requires a clear strategy and understanding of what you are hoping to achieve. Leaving an organization preemptively because you are underpaid, undervalued, or treated poorly is a justifiable reason to job-hop. Leaving an organization because you feel you have capped on growth opportunities, even if it's sooner than expected, is a justifiable reason to job hop.
You shouldn’t, however, job hop if you aren’t clear on the fundamentals of your job function. For example, leaving your well-paying role as Project Manager after four months because a TikTok video made you feel you could make more money elsewhere is not a good idea if you are still new to the responsibilities of a Project Manager.
There is a right and wrong way to job hop. To keep things easy as you navigate your corporate journey, here are the general steps you should follow:
Step 1: Stick to the rule of 6 months for entry-level and 18 months for mid-level roles.
Entry-level jobs (0-2 years of experience) are not as challenging as corporations make them out to be. Depending on the industry, responsibilities for early career roles can be mastered in under one year as they tend to be more supporting roles than project-owning roles. Some people may even master their responsibilities within 3 to 6 months. Whether your reasoning is to make more money or have a higher title, you should start looking for new opportunities around the 6-month mark.
Mid-senior level roles are a little different as you’re more likely to own projects from inception to completion. It’s better to remain in these roles until a project completes which spans, on average, from 12 to 18 months. If you leave too many mid-senior roles after 6 months or so, future employers will question or ability to see a projection through completion. It will be a challenge for them to invest in you when you have not shown your ability to invest in a company project.
After this allotted amount of time, you should start to explore other opportunities for higher pay and/or a higher title. Another reason to remain in mid-senior roles for 12 to 18 months is to ensure at least a fraction of your equity vests if you are awarded any at the time of accepting your job offer.
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Step 2: Leave the job after you have mastered the role.
As mentioned above, it’s important to put a 'skill frame' on your job opportunities as opposed to a 'time frame.' The 6-month and 18-month rule in the first step is in regard to the minimum amount of time you should spend in a role. Many people will remain in a job, that does not serve them, for 5, 10, or even 15 years. They have mastered their role and won’t leave because they don’t think they have spent enough time with their organization.
To be frank, your allotted amount of time means nothing if you’re not growing. The reason a professional with 4 years of experience gets the role over the professional with 10 years of experience is that the person with 4 years (the job hopper) had robust experience. They left jobs that stunted their growth and matriculated into roles that diversified their skill set. Meanwhile, the person with 10 years of experience can only serve future employers in limited capacity. They lack a diverse skill set due to their stagnancy.
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Step 3: Address your “job hopping” when transitioning to new roles.
When you are interviewing for a new role, and they ask you why you left company a, b, and c, each after 1 year you explain that: (1) you outgrew your role and felt it was time to transition into a more challenging position or (2) you would have loved to continue growing with your previous organization(s), however, there were no opportunities for growth and no transparency as to when such opportunities may become available.
If you are wanting to job-hop but fear what companies may say, don’t. I promise you, a good company will care less about the amount of time you spent and more about what you can bring to the table. Good companies will understand that leaving a toxic work environment or a place that stunts you professionally is a viable reason to job hop. Don’t let a company, recruiter, or colleague guilt you into staying in a role or at a company you’re not pleased with.
A recruiter once told me, “You’re going to ruin your career. You can’t just go hopping from job to job thinking companies will still hire you.” August 2022 marked my 9th year working within the pharmaceutical industry. I am gainfully employed, and content with my current employer. I turned out okay and you will too.
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Adrian Marcel On Purpose, Sacrifice, And The 'Signs Of Life'
In this week's episode of xoMAN, host Kiara Walker talked with R&B artist Adrian Marcel, who opened up, full of heart and authenticity, about his personal evolution. He discussed his days transitioning from a young Bay Area singer on the come-up to becoming a grounded husband and father of four.
With honesty and introspection, Marcel reflected on how life, love, and loss have shaped the man he is today.
On ‘Life’s Subtle Signals’
Much of the conversation centered around purpose, sacrifice, and listening to life’s subtle signals. “I think that you really have to pay attention to the signs of life,” Marcel said. “Because as much as we need to make money, we are not necessarily on this Earth for that sole purpose, you know what I mean?” While he acknowledged his ambitions, adding, “that is not me saying at all I’m not trying to ball out,” he emphasized that fulfillment goes deeper.
“We are here to be happy. We are here [to] fulfill a purpose that we are put on here for.”
On Passion vs. Survival
Adrian spoke candidly about the tension between passion and survival, describing how hardship can sometimes point us away from misaligned paths. “If you find it’s constantly hurting you… that’s telling you something. That’s telling you that you’re going outside of your purpose.”
Marcel’s path hasn’t been without detours. A promising athlete in his youth, he recalled, “Early on in my career, I was still doing sports… I was good… I had a scholarship.” An injury changed everything. “My femur broke. Hence why I always say, you know, I’m gonna keep you hip like a femur.” After the injury, he pivoted to explore other careers, including teaching and corporate jobs.
“It just did not get me—even with any success that happened in anything—those times, back then, I was so unhappy. And you know, to a different degree. Like not just like, ‘I really want to be a singer so that’s why I’m unhappy.’ Nah, it was like, it was not fulfilling me in any form or fashion.”
On Connection Between Pursuing Music & Fatherhood
He recalled performing old-school songs at age 12 to impress girls, then his father challenged him: “You can lie to these girls all you want, but you're really just lying to yourself. You ain't growing.” That push led him to the piano—and eventually, to his truth. “Music is my love,” Marcel affirmed. “I wouldn’t be a happy husband if I was here trying to do anything else just to appease her [his wife].”
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Colman Domingo’s Career Advice Is A Reminder That Our Words Shape Our Reality
When it comes to life, we are always here for a good reminder to shift our mindsets, and Colman Domingo just gave us one we didn't know we needed.
In a resurfaced clip from an appearance at NewFest shared as a repost via Micheaux Film Festival, the Emmy award winner dropped a gem on how he has navigated his decades-spanning career in Hollywood. The gem in question? Well, Colman has never identified with "struggle" in his career. Let that sit.
Colman Domingo On Not Claiming Struggle
"I’ve never said that this career was tough. I’ve never said it was difficult. I’ve never said it was hard," Colman said. "Other people would say that—‘oh, you're in a very difficult industry. It's very hard to get work and book work.’ I’m like, I’ve never believed that."
Instead of allowing himself to be defined by other people's projections about their perceptions of what the industry is or was, Colman dared to believe differently even if his reality was playing catch up with his dreams:
"Like Maya Angelou said words are things. And if you believe that, then that's actually what it is. Actually I've just never believed it. Someone told me some years ago, they said, 'I remember you were, you're a struggling actor.' I'm like, 'I don't.'"
"I wasn't attached to a struggle. I was attached to living..."
He continued:
"Even when I was bartending and hustling and not having opportunities or anything, I never believed that I was struggling because I wasn't attached to a struggle. I was attached to living and creating and being curious."
Colman’s philosophy of attaching to living instead of struggle has blossomed into an enduring career. He first made his mark on stage in acclaimed Broadway productions before transitioning to the screen, where his star began to rise in the 2010s following his role as Victor Strand in Fear The Walking Dead. From there, his presence only grew, landing memorable supporting roles in If Beale Street Could Talk, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and the hit series Euphoria.
In more recent years, Colman has stepped fully into the spotlight with standout leading performances in Rustin and Sing Sing, both of which earned him widespread critical acclaim and Academy Award nominations for Best Actor.
With all that said, Colman's advice is no doubt powerful, especially for those who are chasing their dreams, building something from the ground up, or have question marks about what's next in their careers. Words shape our realities, and how we speak about our journeys even in passing matters.
Words Create Our Reality & Colman Is Living Proof
"I tell young people that. To remember the words that you say about yourself and your career are true. So, I choose to make it full of light and love and it's interesting and every day I'm going to learn something new even if it looks like I don't have what I want but it's important to be in the moment... you really build on the moments moment to moment.
"And you're looking back at your career as I've been in it for what 33 years and you're like, 'Wow, that's what I've been doing.' And I've stayed strong to that so I think that is truly my advice."
Let this be your sign to give your path a reframe. When the path you're on feels uncertain, the journey is still unfolding. Like Colman said: "I wasn't attached to a struggle. I was attached to living."
That's a Black king right there.
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