When should you continue to be part of a team, and when should you strike out on your own?
At what point do you start to question whether your individual efforts for the benefit of a team are not worth the benefit to you, personally?
When should you take a gimlet-eyed view of your output vs input and ask, “What’s in it for me?”
Confidence in your own talents and abilities is critical.
When you’re less confident in your abilities, you’ll do anything for a team because you figure it’s not possible to make it on your own. It’s learning time.
As you gain confidence, it’s normal to begin (even almost unconsciously) measuring the value of what you’re providing and comparing it to the value of what your team brings to you.
I am at that point.
I’m not sure that I like being here.
I’m thinking about it.
I’m grateful for mentors and friends like Liz and Becky and events like SOBCon, so I don’t have to think alone.
It’s time to consider stepping out when you realize that you’re no longer the student.
Not that it’s written in stone but maybe it’s time to let yourself evolve and move forward.
For me, I realized it in some ways at work when I realized that my programmer vision is nothing to be shy or self-deprecating about. I’m at least everyone’s equal in one way or another. That’s when I realized I was peaking at my job. It was time to consider moving forward. Earlier I thought I was ready and wondered why it didn’t happen, but now I realize I wasn’t confident enough to push for it seriously. I’m there now.
You are there now.