I work at a pharmaceutical production company. I started as a casual from a labour hire company, doing maintenance and such, when the company was quite new and starting to grow out of research and into production. A few months of working a week here, two weeks there, they offered me a full time job in the clean rooms working with the product at all production level stages. In February of last year I got a promotion to team lead. My boss had been impressed with my work ethic, my willingness to stay back a bit, and often asking if there was anything else I cod help with on my way out. The job involves running the rooms, managing people, doing the mountains of documentation and recording that comes with dealing with medicinal products. It came with a pay rise too, which was nice. For a while it was good.
Not sure how common it is but I have periods of time where I'm driven and motivated, followed by slumps of what feels somewhat like professional depression – I get more sloppy, less enthusiastic, and so on – of a few weeks to months each. Since being promoted, the slumps have started affecting me more personally. Between the extra responsibilities (which I have come to realise are absolutely not my forte) and the regularity of having to stay back 30-90 minutes, four or five times a week, I've had enough. I was talking it through with my partner and she supported my decision to ask to go back to being just a team member. I don't necessarily hold a grudge against the company, it's just that the effort it takes for me to do the job properly, when it's very against my nature, is too much for me. I figured I'd be better off asking than waiting and being forced.
After organising it and signing a new contract (starting after Easter), I'm actually looking forward to just doing the work, and have a newfound energy and happiness that I haven't had for the last year.
If there's a message in this Saturday evening rambling, it's that you can just say that enough is enough. I didn't know if the role was for me, but I gave it a shot. It turned out not to be for me. If I'd known then what it'd be like, I can't say for sure what I'd have done. I do now have insight into myself that I wouldn't have had otherwise, as well as the confidence to ask for something like this.