You can still quit and delay your start date. You can also request to go on unpaid time off. You don't need to disclose that your time off will be spent on interview prep :).
Of course! I just meant don't quit out of spite ever. It's always better to keep plodding along at your current job (income, health insurance, etc) until you find an alternative.
Whatever spike of adrenaline/endorphins you get in that moment will not be worth it in the long run.
Thats been seriously untrue for myself. I found myself in a job that was a complete joke while also pounding me with off the wall expectations changing at every turn. How could you possibly plod through an environment like that while maintaining the energy to take on the second job of finding a job. I wouldn't say I quit out of spite, I quit out of severe disillusionment, so perhaps your advice is not qualified to apply in that case. But the general advice to quit a job when you have an offer in hand may be good for most but bad for some in particular circumstances. I would say don't dig yourself deeper into whatever hole you may find yourself, if that means you gotta stick out a job because you have no other runway well then do that. But taking time off from working for the economy doesn't mean its a net loss for yourself in the long run, it can free up resources to pursue more lucrative options, especially true when the knowledge worker is unyoked from all the cognitive demands of their day job.
I don't think your situation is "spite", if you are stuck in a toxic environment that is doing more damage to you than the good (pay/insurance) then by all means quit. It's the "I'll show them!", "They can't handle this without me", twist of the knife that some people build up in their heads that I'm arguing against. In your case I'm guessing you didn't quit the same day you thought about quitting? It took a few days/weeks? I'm just trying to advise against acting hastily or in anger. Think it through and make sure you know the consequences before you do something that "feels good"/righteous.
Nicely articulated, I had quite the same experience as well.
People under-estimate the energy and effort to find a good second job and so actually best to take the time to get it right instead of jumping from one bad job to another just because of being afraid to quit while there is no job offer yet.
Also, logically thinking, every new graduate who is fresh out of school is just equipped with skills but is able to find a job so it should be even easier for someone who has already even further developed their skills to be able to find a second job even if they've already resigned from their previous job.
It seems like some people just think that they need some leverage of having an existing job in order to find a second job but in reality that doesn't make sense since skills are what is more important.
All bets are off if you have even minimal "fuck you" money, of course.
Most people don't, though. They can't go long without a job, and having a gap on their résumé is scary (for good reason—if you need a job, anything that might make getting the next one a little harder isn't good).
As a candidate just another question to worry about, even if it doesn't actually come up, and at best the result of it coming up is neutral, not positive for you. The more you need the job, the more stressful that sort of thing is.
Assuming you don't want some time out in between jobs of course.