Category Archives: Career Advice

Adjusting your mirrors.

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Rearview mirror by Massimiliano Calamelli

“I have to adjust my rear view mirror when I leave the office at the end of the day.  When I drive to work, I’m upright and full of energy, but when I leave, I’m so tired, it’s like I’m a few inches shorter.”

A woman I worked with years ago told me this and I remember it because, at the time, I had the opposite experience.  I arrived at work slouched in the driver’s seat, dreading the day ahead of me.  But I left with a spring in my step, standing tall and looking forward to 15 hours of freedom before I had to return.

My coworker was seemingly content and quite successful, while I hated my job and was ready to move on.  But when I consider how our work was impacting our bodies, I think both scenarios are equally grim.

Even if you love your job, should you be so drained at the end of the day that your whole bearing is affected?  Sure, hard work can be satisfying.  Leaving tired isn’t necessarily a bad thing.  If the work is good, you leave tired but fulfilled.  Or tired but energized.

But just plain tired?  That tells me something is out of whack.

What do you think?

Can we judge our job satisfaction by our posture at the end of the day?

 

(Photo by Massimiliano Calamelli via Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons)

 

The right place at the right time: a lesson from Mad Men

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Apt Bld Elevator Up by terrykimura

“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”

Spoiler Alert!  If you missed Sunday’s episode of Mad Men, stop reading now.

If you’re a fan of the show, then you know that Mad Men masterfully conveys the complexity of office life.  And that amid all the cocktails and indiscretions, there are real business lessons to be had.  One recurring irony of the show that I particularly love is that, despite our best laid plans, our careers rarely play out the way we expect them to.

Take, for example, Don Draper’s former secretary Dawn.  She is unfairly dismissed by her new boss, but after a string of seemingly random events – a funeral, a lost purse, a bad phone connection, an unidentified bouquet of roses – she finds herself promoted to Head of Personnel.

Although a somewhat extreme example, I’ve found that this is the way change often happens in the real world.  Unexpected situations arise and they’re dealt with on the fly.

So should we take from this that our professional advancement is completely at the whim of politics or chance?  Hardly.  Dawn may have been in the right place at the right time, but she was promoted because she had proven herself smart, capable and tough.

The takeaway:

  • Always do more than is expected of you.
  • Step up to new challenges and responsibilities.
  • Demonstrate your character and integrity.
  • Share your personality in a genuine but professional way.

Do these things, and at some point, you’ll likely find yourself in the right place at the right time.

 

(Photo by terrykimura via Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons)

 

My love/hate relationship with travel blogs.

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The Road - AZ by irishwildcat

Let me start by saying that the original title for this post was

“Does the world really need another travel blogger?”

But that just begs the question

“Does the world really need another management blogger?”

And let’s just say that’s a can of worms we can probably leave unopened for now.

But seriously…the reason I changed the title is because I truly enjoy travel blogs.  I love to travel and I love reading about other people’s unique and interesting travel experiences.

But here’s the thing: there’s a particular tone to some of these blogs that just rubs me the wrong way.  It’s the assumption that we all secretly wish we could quit our boring desk jobs and with just a bit of gumption, we too could live out the universal dream of world travel.  And if we’re not willing to pack it all in and hike across Slovenia or some such, then we must be soulless automatons who are dying a slow death at the hands of our corporate overlords.

Okay, perhaps that’s a bit dramatic (and no offense meant to the Slovenian hiking community).  I do realize I’m making a sweeping generalization, and I admit that my visceral reaction may stem from the fact that I have felt like a soulless automaton at points in my professional life.  But I resent the implication that the only solution to an unsatisfying career is to abandon it.

Work can totally suck.  I get that.  And the idea of a dramatic career reinvention can be tantalizing, and perhaps for you, an entire life overhaul is the best solution.  If that’s what you need to do and you feel compelled to blog about it, please do.  I look forward to reading about your adventures.

But if that doesn’t really feel like the solution for you, it doesn’t mean you have to be resigned to career stagnation.  There are so many ways we can improve our situations incrementally – by acting purposefully, by building on the assets we already have and by finding ways to intersect with our work in new ways.

Many of the reasons we are drawn to travel – freedom, adventure, meeting new people, challenging our personal limits – reflect basic human needs.  And if we think in terms of those needs, we may find the root cause of our dissatisfaction at work.

We need autonomy.   We need purpose.   We need to grow and be challenged. 

I believe just about any job can meet those needs, if we approach it in the right way.  And if it can’t, we can use it as a platform for the next job, or the one after that.

I guess that’s the basic belief that informs my work on this blog: There is a whole world of opportunity for a rich and fulfilling career between the extremes of dead-eyed desk jockey and carefree adventurer.

So please forgive the rant and let’s go make it happen.

 

(Photo by irishwildcat via Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons)

What are you good at?

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Compass by Vero Villa

I’ve been feeling a bit wobbly lately.  Lacking a clear direction.  Not pointed toward my True North.

When I was teaching and students came to me struggling with direction – choosing a major or drafting their resume – I would recommend that they start with the most basic questions:

What are you good at?       What are you bad at?

Simply stepping back and answering those two things can help you cut through the mental clutter and see things more clearly.

So here’s me following my own advice:

I am good at…

Managing people.  Building teams, evaluating performance, helping people grow.

Presenting information.  Sorting data, seeing connections, making it all look pretty.

I am bad at…

Networking.  All the awkward discomfort of mingling at a cocktail party without the alcohol.  Thank you, no.

Technology.  I’m proficient enough to do what I need to do but don’t care enough to really understand it.  I am certain my son will surpass me technologically by the age of 4.

Navigation.  I have no sense of direction.  I can (and will) get lost at the mall.  This doesn’t have a strong career implication but is something you should know in case we’re ever in a survival situation together.

 

How about you?  What are you good and bad at?

 

(Photo by Vero Villa via Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons)

The key to landing your dream job.

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Key 4 - Brenda Starr

We all want to find our dream job.  The job that makes us feel energized and excited.  The job that helps us live our best life – financially, physically and intellectually.  But how do we get that job?  By following our passion?  Maybe.  By being a master networker?  That helps.  But I believe it comes down to something much more fundamental: having options.

Having options means you can explore different positions and different industries. You can apply your skills in new and creative ways until you find the job that truly fits.  When you have options, you have the freedom to control your career.

So, how do you make sure you have options?  By creating equity.  And by equity, I mean having more career assets than career liabilities.  Here’s what it looks like:

Job skills are an asset.  When you have more skills than you need to meet the requirements of your current job you have equity.  You can then take those excess skills and apply them to new challenges.  And then to a new position.  Then a new career.  As your job equity grows, so do your options.

  • Update your resume frequently.  Identify areas where you are weak, then focus your attention on building those skills.
  • Volunteer for projects that build new skills, even if it means extra work.
  • Utilize educational opportunities, via in-house training or through your company’s educational reimbursement program.
  • Take on team leadership.  Skills in managing people are highly marketable and can be applied across disciplines.

Money is an asset.  When you have more money than you need to meet your basic needs you have equity.  By living within (or well below) your means, you build a financial cushion that keeps you from being trapped in your current situation.  You have the freedom to take a pay cut in order to explore a new field.  Or to relocate for that once-in-a-lifetime position.  As your financial equity grows, so do your options.

  • Create a realistic budget and stick to it.
  • Keep at least 6 months living expenses in your savings account.
  • Avoid consumer debt.  Fight the temptation to use your credit card for things you don’t need.
  • Explore the myriad of budgeting and financial planning resources available online.

 

How about you?  How have you created equity in your career?

 

(Photo by Brenda Clarke via Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons)

How to fight job burn-out.

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up in smoke

I have two friends who are struggling in their professional lives.  One loves his job.  One hates her job.  But both are feeling much the same: overwhelmed and burned-out.  They can’t seem to get on top of everything they need to do and they’re starting to feel that work is controlling their lives.  Perhaps you’re familiar with this feeling?

Here’s the advice I pulled together for both of my friends:

Keep work in its place.  Are you on your laptop right up until the time you go to bed?  Do you use your iPhone to check email before you get out of bed in the morning?  Stop that. Now.  I know, you need to do some work at home.  Most people do.  But give yourself some time to wind-down and turn off your work brain before climbing into bed.  It will help you sleep better and be more relaxed.  And yes, I know that occasionally you catch an issue before it escalates by checking email first thing in the morning.  But I’m willing to bet that most days everything can, and will, wait until you get to the office.  Buy an alarm clock so you can leave your phone outside your bedroom.  And buy a watch so you won’t be tempted to check-in every time you check the time.

Make lists.  Having a targeted task list is key to feeling in control of your work load.  Most productivity advice recommends keeping your list short- say 5 or 6 of the most important things you need to accomplish.  Adam Wik from Road to Epic lays out a brilliant strategy for beating apprehension and indecision (the twin demons of procrastination).  Read his post, then start taking time at the end of the day to prep your to-do list for the following day.  Then spend another 5 minutes listing the things you are grateful for.  Okay, I just heard you groan.  I know, I know.  But trust me, whether you love or hate your job, noting the many good things in your life will make work problems seem smaller and more manageable.  And, although it doesn’t always seem like it, time passes swiftly, my friends.  Keeping a gratitude journal will help you mark that passing and remember who you were at this point in time.

Practice mindfulness.  Being overwhelmed at work can make you feel out of control in all the other areas of your life as well.  Take time to center yourself and reclaim your sense of calm.  If a daily guided meditation isn’t your thing, maybe it’s a walk through the woods or listening to Coltrane in the dark.  But as Britt Reints beautifully points out, “the world spins no matter what we do”.  All we can truly control is how we respond to it.  And everything works better when we respond from a place of calm.

How about you?  What advice would you give to a friend struggling with job burn-out?

(Photo by Robert Bieber via Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons)

The fast-track from entry-level to management in 5 (sort of) easy steps.

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5 steps

Many moons ago, I started my career in business by taking a temp job at a tech company.  I had a degree in Anthropology and a limited background in museum administration.  I needed a job and, although it wasn’t exciting, this basic admin gig paid pretty well.  After a few months as a temp, I was hired on as an AR Specialist, and when I left the company 5 years later, I was an MBA leading a successful team.

Here’s what I learned in those 5 years:

Get good at your core tasks – fast.
Assuming you’re smart and willing to work (and I truly assume that most people are), this isn’t hard to do.  Basic efficiency goes a long way.  Show you can work quickly and effectively, then ask for more challenging tasks.  It helps if you can make a visible impact in some way, even if it seems super basic.  When I took the temp job, my office was in the file room, where mountains of paper was left unfiled, causing everyone to spend way too much time finding what they needed.  I’m a fast worker and I quickly tackled the problem, taking a very visible roadblock out of the my team’s way.  And I was quickly given more interesting things to do.

Join a cross-functional project team.
This introduces you to other areas of the organization and lets you get to know people on other teams.  Representing your area on a project makes you the default subject matter expert.  To use myself as an example again, when the Marketing team or the IT team needed something from AR, they came to me because they knew me from a project.  It’s actually startling how fast you can become the go-to person and subsequently, how rapidly your visibility within the organization increases.

Be a dependable problem-solver.
This is really a component of all the other points but I think it’s worth reiterating.  Being the go-to person on your team means being willing to help everyone.  Be a team player, be accountable and always follow-thru.  You’ll quickly become known as someone who gets things done.

Take a management position, even if you think you’re not ready.
Subject matter experts, who are known company-wide as dependable players, get promoted to team leaders.  Now, from an organizational standpoint, I don’t think this is a great idea.  Being good at what you do doesn’t mean you’ll make a great leader.  Particularly without proper training and mentoring.  But it happens, and as an individual, it’s worth capitalizing on.  Once you’re in the role, do your homework, figure out best practices and help your team achieve.  And help them both as a group and as individuals.  You’ll look extra great if your team members are fast-tracking their careers too.

Continue your education.
I’m often asked if I recommend pursuing an MBA.  My response is always “it depends”.  Should you jump into grad school right after college?  Maybe.  Should you go to grad school if your company is paying for it?  Absolutely.  I got my MBA while working full-time, which was exhausting, but I also had a ton of fun with a bunch of people going through the same thing.  And more importantly, I got more value out of both work and school because I was able to apply what I was learning every day.

The next question is always whether an MBA opens doors.  Again, “it depends”.  It probably won’t get you a job but it might get you an interview.  And if you’re looking to move up at your current company, and you’ve done everything I’ve outlined above, it’s priceless.  You’re already visible across the organization, you’re proving yourself as a leader and you’re working your butt off to get an advanced degree?  People will notice.

 

How about you? I’d love to hear your experiences on the path to management.

 

(Photo by Chris Wightman via Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons)

 

How do you survive a job you hate?

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Out of Office by Everjean

Being stuck in a job you hate is draining – mentally, physically and emotionally.

You’re unmotivated, unproductive and unhappy. 

How do you get through it?  Here are three tips that have helped me in the past.

And as I wrote this, I started thinking about the flipside of the question:  How do we as managers make sure our employees aren’t stuck in jobs they hate?  Interestingly, the same advice applies in both cases.

Fight negative self-talk

There’s a voice inside your head that narrates as you go about your day, and sometimes it says the same negative thing so often that you don’t even realize it has become your mantra:

“Ugh, I hate this place.”      “I’m trapped.”      “This sucks.”

This inner curmudgeon is hard to ignore and only serves to make you feel even worse about your situation.  But if you can become conscious of your own self-talk, you can stop the voice before it starts.  When you hear your inner dialogue start to take a downward turn, pull up some positive phrases to counteract the negative voice.

“I feel good today.”       “I can do this.”

It won’t change the realities of your job but it will help you feel better as you do it.

The flipside…

As a manager, you obviously can’t change an employee’s inner voice.  But you can insure that your workplace culture doesn’t promote complaining and negative cross-talk.  Keep lines of communication open between you and your staff by creating a space for genuine feedback in your team meetings and one-one discussions.  Encourage your staff to bring their negative opinions into the open so you can actually deal with the underlying issues.  And don’t forget to make sure you’re curbing your own inner critic as well.

Focus on growth

It’s tempting to check out of a job you hate… zoning, surfing the web, napping in your car.  While it seems like focusing on anything other than your job will cheer you up, the reality is that we need to be challenged to be happy.  Simply “doing your time” will make the days even longer and yourself even more unhappy.  So use the time you’re stuck in a bad job to grow your professional skills.  Take on a new project, rework a process or try a new technique.  Challenge yourself to learn something new every day.  The days will go faster and you’ll be beefing up those weak points in your resume to boot.

The flipside…

As a manager, this one is pretty straight forward.  Make sure your team has challenging work and the opportunity to try new tasks.  Cross-training is a great way to keep your employees learning new things while also making your team stronger.  It’s important to encourage your staff to explore projects that are of personal interest as well.  Tune in to your team’s individual career goals and focus on helping them grow.

Tackle big projects in small doses

As much as you hate your current job, you probably need to find a new one before you can move on.  Even if jobs are plentiful and you’re a hiring manager’s dream, job hunting sucks.  When you’re drained and demoralized from 8 hours on the job, the last thing you want to do is spend your free time writing cover letters.  But if you want to find a better job, you’ve got to tackle the process.  If this seems daunting, work in small doses.  Commit to working on the job hunt for 15 minutes every night.  It won’t seem so overwhelming and you’ll be able to get a surprisingly large amount accomplished in a week.

The flipside…

As a manager, make sure you’re paying attention to your team’s workload and let them know they can come to you when they’re feeling overwhelmed.  Coach them on how to approach large tasks and help them find smaller side projects that they enjoy.  This will give them something to focus on when they’re feeling burnt out on their main project.

 

How about you?  How have you gotten through a job you didn’t like?

 

(Photo by Everjean via Flickr, licensed under Creative Commons)