I may have reached a career dead end.
I have had a pretty comfortable job for the last 6+ years. Work life balance has been good, hours were flexible, office attendance rules were lax, and I always had enough time to take care of personal commitments. It was very easy to take leaves, and weekend working was almost non-existent.
#Everything changed once we got a new CEO.
WFH/Hybrid rules have been slowly tightened over the past 2 years. Mandatory 3 days every week. Benefits are being systematically reduced. Leave policy is getting more restrictive.
My team even got a new boss, and he is a hard-ass who believes in daily office attendance, pushes long working hours, and even expects us to work on the weekends.
I'm no longer motivated to work like this, and want to look elsewhere for opportunities. However, it's going to be EXTREMELY difficult to find another job with the kind of flexibility I've gotten accustomed to.
BOTTOM-LINE: I'm not really an ambitious guy, work-life balance is ABSOLUTE top priority for me. I just want a job to pay the bills (which keep rising, but at 30LPA CTC, it's fairly manageable).
But in the current environment, I'm truly afraid there's no room for the kind of career I'm looking for. I really don't think I can get back to the usual grind. Long commutes and mandatory office attendance are deal-breakers; Mumbai local trains have destroyed ny spirit.
What I really need is advice. This was my first job, so I've never done the job-hunt thing. How should I go about it? What should I look for?