Do you dislike the work itself or the setting you do it in?
Record specific situations and separate the task, collaboration, timing and your reaction. Look for repeated patterns before deciding whether to investigate different work or the same work in another environment.
Describe an event before labeling a career
Disliking marketing might combine writing copy, receiving last-minute revisions and attending too many meetings. Choose three recent events and describe what you did, interruptions and clarity of instructions. Three is a convenient starting point, not a diagnostic threshold. Omit colleagues' names and confidential client details.
Look for a counterexample
Perhaps a clearly defined presentation engaged you, while a similar assignment with changing objectives frustrated you. That suggests a process question worth investigating. If a core task feels unappealing under several conditions, explore different content as well. Ask practitioners how the same task is organized elsewhere, rather than treating one employer's practices as an entire industry's rules.
A worksheet you can use
Event / core task / timing and collaboration / reaction / counterexample / question to investigate. Describe the event before scoring the whole job.
Should I discuss it with my manager first?
You can first identify a process issue you can explain clearly, then decide whether the relationship and setting support raising it. You need not share your private notes.
Evidence and scope
This is not a mental-health assessment or a sufficient basis for resigning. A single entry may reflect temporary circumstances.
Ibarra discusses career exploration through experiments. WKND exercises are editorial, not author-endorsed. Herminia Ibarra — How to Stay Stuck in the Wrong Career
Sources and further reading
This collection in Chinese and English · Life possibilities library