Professionals Reveal Their Biggest Career Regrets

New data from the job board CV-Library has found that 75.7% of Brits would start an entire new career if they had the chance, with 44.5% admitting that they’ve made a career move in the past that they’ve regretted...

The survey, which explored the views of 1,200 UK workers, found that those aged between 35 and 44 were the most likely to want to start a new career, followed by 45-54 year olds (79.7%) and interestingly, 18-24 year olds (79.2%).

When asked what their top five career regrets were, respondents cited the following:

1. Moving to a company that I didn’t end up liking (45.8%)

2. Not quitting my previous job sooner (29.4%)

3. Not going for a promotion when I should have (27.1%)

4. Starting out in my chosen career later in life (26.7%)

5. Leaving a company that I actually really liked (22.5%)

Furthermore, the study found that 48.8% of respondents wish that they could start their own business, with those aged under 18 being the most likely to agree with this statement (62.5%). In addition, UK workers also stated that they wish they could: go back to college or university (38%), get a promotion (36.4%) and leave their job altogether (34.1%).

Nearly half of those surveyed stated that there were other regrets that they’d had throughout their career, including: moving to a different industry they didn’t like (13.5%), embarrassing themselves in front of their boss or colleagues and going for a role they disliked because it paid more (7.6%).