Just a Series of Choices
Steve's a pretty regular guy ? wife, 4 kids in their blended family, 12+ years of engineering experience, a degree, mortgage, car payments, some debt? and feeling depressed because he waited to look till the end. Last time he transitioned was 5 years ago for more money and he liked some of the people and it was simple?this time he's heard some in his professional association have been looking for almost a year...and they weren't lightweights. No wonder he's sweating. Steve's wife can't figure out why he's so moody and angry?she doesn't understand that Steve has feelings of rejection from a company he had been loyal to for 5 years. He had poured heart and soul into his projects. Even though he didn't always agree with his manager's direction, on a project he shepherded, he had been recognized for achievement. Gosh, only 2 years in and already a rising "star". In hindsight, Steve saw he had subtly butted heads on how the team was treated by management and that he made suggestions that "his bosses' way" was backward. Things began to slip. It was more real when he didn't get a merit raise. He didn't fathom the basic tenet that consistent values with the management are fundamental to longevity. You see, Steve made an "easy" choice to compromise his work ethics and principles because he thought he was on the upside of lots of growth (money). Choice #1 ? Choose based on values ? not only on personalities in the organization. Now that his desk was cleared out, a few weeks to wind down was in order before he could mount the energy to start looking. After all, he deserved a break, didn't he? It gave him time to think over what went wrong?to concentrate, to brood over the calamity that landed on him because others hadn't done their jobs. It simply wasn't fair?Jesse, their 6 year old, couldn't understand why "daddy just sits in the den and won't play with me anymore?" Choice #2 ? You have power to choose your reaction to difficulty. It was business, not personal, and even if it was personal, so what, get some support, get some direction, get some help to tackle this bump in the road and get on with life. Steve's wife finally pushed him to get his resume posted online?this is easy! What he didn't know was the internet is only about 4% of the market and that less than 10% of the companies who have posted have ever hired someone from the internet. He has complacently fallen into a deadly trap believing quantity will always yield quality positions! Choice #3 ? Choosing to get a career by coincidence will seldom (read seldom as never) yield a role with expansive growth potential and long term satisfaction. It is not easy; it takes expertise, competitive edges of timing, better exposure and more powerful communications about capacity to win a position of your choice. Eventually, Steve let a recruiter encourage him to "get his foot in the door" in a company a few states over. It was his only "egg in his nest" and a few steps back to where he had been 8-9 years earlier?and he'd have to leave Sundays and come back home Fridays since relocation wasn't even offered. But what choice does he have ? it's been 11 months since he was let go and savings have dwindled and he's tired of being a stay-at-home dad. Choice #4 ? Choosing to take a job will only spiral down his career, his confidence, his perceived capability and his cash. Being talked into ? that is recruited/sold ? a cookie-cutter position versus taking a position that has been engineered around him. There should be no question. Well, Steve has gotten accustomed to the commute and his efficiency apartment and really looks forward to seeing his kids next weekend. The job is just that ? he's surviving, but there's no challenge?same-o every day. That recruiter called back to say he's got another job like this on the East Coast ? Steve hung up on him this time?about all the energy he could muster. Been feeling really exhausted. Choice #5 ? Choosing to ignore his body cues of exhaustion only leads Steve to depression and powerlessness and feeling trapped again. Choosing to have proper rest, diet, exercise and balance of life invigorates. Steve's 17 month anniversary is coming up ? he's looking a little haggard from the
day-to-day grind. It's Friday, about 2 and Steve's boss wants him to come to the conference room?and the HR person is there? Choice #6 ? Steve can choose to run this cycle again?or choose to purposefully utilize his full potential by proactively marketing himself. It's Steve's choice?it's his career?it's his life? Then, again, maybe it's not Steve; maybe it's you??? Bruce Benskin is a Regional Manager in Cincinnati for R.L. Stevens & Associates Inc. (http://www.interviewing.com), a career marketing firm and organization celebrating over 24 years of providing strategic marketing solutions for its clients' career transitioning needs.
Related News
|
 |
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
The Perfect Resume
The perfect resume offers Logical Proofs:
Facts
Quantifiable data
Logical conclusions
Achievement and success statements
Relevant professional goals/accomplishments
Limits the use of jargon
Maximizes use of occupation/industry-specific key words
Your capabilities and skills
Clear, specific, measurable, and quantifiable words and phrases
Sells you based on your achievements to date
Fact or Opinion?
"You ain't going nowhere, son. You ought to go back to drivin' a truck." What if Elvis believed this Grand Ole Opry manager's critique after his l954 performance? Or the Beatles listened in 1962 when Decca Recording Company responded, "We don't like their sound. Groups of guitars are on the way out."
Showing Appreciation to Workplace Un-Sung Heroes
Millions of Un-Sung Heroes are born every minute! They are found everywhere-on street corners, in our homes, offices, and communities-wherever there are people in need of rescue. These special people, whose positive actions and initiatives are performed to benefit others, are not famous or in the news for what they are doing; but their efforts affect, enrich and touch countless lives.
5 Simple Rules for A Great Job Interview
Many years ago, when I was a young job-searching greenhorn, I ventured to New York City to take a bite out of the big apple of opportunity.
How To Find Writing Work
Are you looking for new writing work? It can be a challenge to build a career in any area, but it is often even harder to do so when you are in a smaller town. Sure, there may be a huge market for talented freelancers in your area, but let's face it, it is not New York where you can find countless job vacancies in your field of freelance writing. When you are looking for freelance writing work, it is important to look outside the box as well as trying the tried and true employment options.
Wanted: A Diva for the Job of a Lifetime!
"When I was a child, I always thought the world was mine, A stomping ground for me, full of opportunities. I always had this attitude that I was going to go out into the world and do all the things I wanted to do." ?Madonna
Writing Resumes
Use a resume as a foot in the door
Online Business: The Underground Railroad for Corporate Escapees
Millions of people everyday spend eight hours or more in a small padded cubicle. The curious thing about it is they choose to do that. They willingly sacrifice a quality of life because they believe it is the only way to support their families. That may have been true 10 years ago but it isn't any longer.
Considering a Career Change?
Are you thinking about a career change? Many people do this because of specific problems or difficulties. Others want to make such a change because of some growing, generalized dissatisfaction. A career change is becoming more common. A few decades ago this kind of change was considered inappropriate. People were thought to be "job-hoppers" when they moved from job to job. People with this behavior were thought to be unstable and without loyalty. But now, changing your job or changing your career is generally considered to be a normal way to advance in work.
Personal Contacts: The Key to Successful Networking
When the word "networking" is used, we tend to think of upwardly mobile college graduates with a bursting day timer in hand chatting up the competition at business meetings, conventions, or workshops. The average blue/pink/white collar worker disconnects, feeling that they could never be that pushy, don't know enough people to even start the attempt, and that the method only works in competitive business environments.
The Secrets to Interview Success
Many well qualified and extremely able candidates fail at job interviews simply because they are unaware of the conventions of the job interview and the expectations of the interviewer.
Personal Grooming: 8 Top Reasons Why You Can?t Take It For Granted In Your Career
Most people when they landed "the dream job" after an interview or even got "the deal" of the lifetime in their businesses, sadly to say tend to slack on their grooming habits and it even goes to the point that they are wearing their pajamas going to the office. It seems that's very extreme but it happens.
Speak Up: Your Job Is At Stake!
How good are you at standing up for yourself?
Bullseye Interviewing
An interview is much like a blind date. You have sweaty palms, heart palpitations, shaky nerves and a preconceived notion of what could happen. The perfect scenario unfolds in your mind, where you are calm, cool and collected, dressed smartly, totally in control, enthusiastically meeting the other person's gaze and brimming with confidence. However, that idea has begun to unravel, because as of right now, you are LATE, because you got lost, forgot your resume, wore a shirt that is making you sweat and have pulled a muscle breaking in new shoes. As you are being led to the boardroom, you're informed that your possible Superiors will be sitting in. Panic sets in with the realization that this blind date is over before it even begun.
Corporate World: Jungle Or Paradise?
The road to the top is not easy, it is bumpy and dirty. Along the way, we meet interesting creatures. There are seasons in life when we will be at crossroads and choose a path based on what is important in our life. Either way may lead us to our goal, but the means to get there is different. While we have control over the choices we make, we don't have control over the consequences. The cost of our actions are governed by natural and spiritual laws that were set in place a long time ago.
A Peek at Nursing as a Career
We need more people to choose nursing as a career. There is a national shortage, so the career choice would guarantee future employment fresh out of school.
Resumes That Rock (16 Expert Tips)
It's never too early to update your resume, even if you're not searching for a new job. Why? Updating your resume is a valuable reminder to yourself of your practical value to employers.
Old Hiring Foxes vs. The Hedgehogs
You are about to compete for the best people again. The recovery is happening. Labor statistics indicate over 280,000 new jobs were created in the U.S. last May. Is your company's hiring process a competitive weapon-or a ball and chain? If you're not sure, here are some places to look:
How to Become a Successful Freelance Translator
After completing their translation training programmes at higher professional education or university level, many students can't wait to set up as a freelance translator. However, gaining a foothold as a freelancer in a very competitive translation market may turn out to be a pretty complicated business. Translation agencies are not usually keen on contracting inexperienced translators, business clients are difficult to find without commercial tools, and the tax authorities won't just accept anyone as a self-employed person. So what do you need to do to set up shop as a successful freelance translator?
Get In The Game With a Stellar Resume
During the job hunter's market of the 1990's, employers were settling for less than qualified candidates because the candidate pool was so small. Job hunters were able to name their price and employers were meeting their demands.
|
