Four million people quit their jobs in July 2021, the year of the ‘great resignation.’ Of the 4 million, how many are unhappy with their jobs, their employers and their lives? Why you need to know the difference between the great resignation and the great escape from work.
The Difference
In the context of this article, resigning is a productive, self-serving process wherein you seek self-improvement. It is an action one takes out of self-respect and a desire to evolve. A healthy resignation comes about from a coherent, calm mentality that looks forward to a deliberate future.
Escaping, however, comes from a desperate, urgent or resentful energy. It is driven by an urge to ‘get away,’ a desire to seek something better. The energy behind escaping feels more like a forcing function rather than a thoughtful, intentional plan.
Note that I am not advocating one method over another. Only you can decide what is best for your particular job situation. Without a doubt, I experienced many a great escape from work during my engineering profession. It led me to maneuvering my way through a job scavenger hunt (not fun!).
It is helpful to know which scenario applies to you for the following reason.
The Escape Cycle
More than likely, if you escape in search of something better, as opposed to a healthy resignation, you will set yourself up for another escape.
The reason is because you avoid the difficulties, the road bumps and the difficult people, thus,taking that same lack-of-skillset with you. By avoiding the situation in a great escape from work, you may feel instant relief and comfort. In the process, you close opportunities to grow and prepare yourself for future difficulties.
Running away may seem like the obvious choice, or the only choice. Yet, in doing so, you run away from yourself. Escaping a situation, in general, will not turn into a long-term solution. But hear me loud and clear: some of you may need that short-term solution now! I get it, I’ve been there!
If you choose to make a great escape from work, proceed with caution. Because next time you will be forced to decide: do I escape once more and start the cycle over … or do I do the necessary work on myself?
Again, I emphasize that one scenario is not necessarily better or worse than the other. If you feel the need to escape, recognize that it is a short-term fix.
Resigning or Escaping?
The table below offers examples of an escape mentality vs a resignation mentality. I hope it helps you understand the underlying reasons for your desire to seek other employment.
ResignMentality
EscapeMentality
“My potential in this job has been maxed out”
“I want a better career”
“My values do not align with my employer’s values”
“My employer is terrible or unreasonable”
“I gained crucial knowledge and met fabulous people in this job”
“This job is not my passion”
“The things I’ve learned about myself and about life are priceless”
“I deserve promotions or more compensation”
“Despite management imperfections, I do my best”
“Management is incompetent”
“I’m familiar enough with this world that I know what I’d be leaving behind”
“I don’t relate to these people or to this environment”
“My performance here is truly good enough for me”
“They don’t appreciate my work”
The great escape from work is a temporary solution. If you run from something once, you will generally continue to run until the cycle is stopped.
If you enjoy this content, I invite you to follow me on LinkedIn and ask me about free strategy sessions for your career!
What if it were possible to secure your professional future? To know that your career, with all its twists and turns, can withstand hardships and economic downfalls? This article will help you understand what it takes to insure your career security and avoid drifting along.
Don’t Do This
First, do not rely on external situations or other people for career security. For example, don’t count on that future job offer which may seem so obvious in the moment. Don’t count on that buddy to get your foot in the door. The reason is because outside circumstances and external people are very good at disappointing us. If possible, avoid any emotional dependence on things external to you (emotional needs, by the way, are best fulfilled by YOU).
Second, do not search for ‘stable’ or ‘secure’ jobs, companies or industries thinking you’ll be in ‘good’ shape. Nothing is guaranteed and nothing is stable (unless you appointed Supreme Court Justice or a tenured professor – those are quite stable). Again, if you are emotionally dependent on what you think is a stable or secure external, be prepared for disappointment at any time.
Third, do not blend your job identity with your self-identity (see Post #35). This is a dangerous and toxic combination. You are not your job. Your job is not you. Think of your job as a tool you use in life. It is a fluid, flexible, unpredictable resource that will help you attain your next endeavor. You are a living being with beliefs and energy; a career is simply a learning experience.
The Secret Ingredient
Plain and simple, your self-worth is the catalyst for your results, experiences and career security. That’s what it comes down to: self-worth. The degree to which you are confident, happy and fulfilled is proportional to your level of self-worth. Allow me to explain with a simple example.
Person A and Person B both work as designers with Company X. One day, they are unexpectedly laid off. Both must gather their personal belongings and be escorted out the building in front of everyone.
Person A is devastated. Person A has never thought about their skills, talents, offerings, or branding. In addition, Person A always knew deep down it was a possibility they could be laid off. However, it was a scenario too painful to consider. It was too uncomfortable to be proactive and anticipate undesirable future events.
Therefore, Person A must scramble in a desperate attempt to find a new job ASAP while dreading the interview process … not a fun thing to do from a feeling of panic and low self-confidence!
Upgrade Yourself
Person B, however, has taken a much more proactive approach to their career journey. They regularly work on their wellbeing, admit personal strengths/weaknesses and recently completed an online professional development course, “Overcoming Career Constraints – What College Doesn’t Teach You.”
Person B understand that it’s not necessary to freak out or act in desperation. Person B knows they possess skills and talents other companies need and they are not afraid to speak highly of themselves. They have increased self-confidence and calmly understand the layoff was nothing personal … and they look forward to coherently finding the next open door!
Moreover, Person B has insured their future due to their willingness for self-exploration. They can confidently apply for jobs, interview, fail if necessary and continue the process with a drama-free mindset. They will not be discouraged by rejections, failures or mistakes. Person B also knows, thanks to my online course “Overcoming Career Constraints,” that employment is not required in order to fulfill career purpose.
In conclusion, the same situation produced a completely different experience for each individual due to their mindset around self-worth.
Do you want to know more about insuring your future? ALL are welcome to attend Class 1 for FREE on Sept. 15: Why You Are Held Back. Register now on my Events Page!
If you enjoy this content, I invite you to follow me on LinkedIn and ask me about free strategy sessions for your career!
People talk at work. The boss is unreasonable. Your customer complained about you. What do you do? If you are lacking self-confidence, it can haunt your professional life in myriad ways. Here are three pivotal reasons you should work on building it.
Blending Self and Job Identity
This is an insidious combination of two separate items that people tend to not recognize.
To blend the self with the job identity implies your job is part of your being. It means your existence is reliant upon your duties, job title or employer. When this occurs, life is grand if the job is going well. However, it also means that when the job goes south for whatever reasons, so does your life.
There are two problems when we blend work with our self-identities. First, you are relying on externals, almost completely out of your control, to feel confident. When we rely on external situations to make us feel good or confident, we set ourselves up for disappointment.
The second problem is that you tend to forget that careers are only one slice of life’s massive pie. People who depend on careers for their wellbeing are likely to forget there are significant, more important things to life.
Think of your job (and your career) as a tool. It is simply a tool that changes over time, morphs into something you may or may have anticipated, and acts as a springboard to your next job.
Jobs and employers are not the end all be all, as much as they may seem. If you suspect you are blending self and job identities, answer the question, “In what ways am I lacking self-confidence?”
Job identity is not self-identity!
Failure and Leadership
You are a leader. It does not matter if you started your first job today or if you’ve been at it for years. Despite your role on the organizational chart, you are a leader and I will tell you why.
First, others depend on you. Your colleagues and your management depend on your results and productivity. You are filling an important void the company needs to thrive so it can serve its customers. Therefore, your employer is heavily dependent upon your good judgment, which leads to reason No. 2.
Second, you are not just a leader in the workplace. You are the CEO over your own life. And do you know what CEOs do? They:
take charge
make decisions even when it is terrifying
are future focused and do not dwell on the past
view mistakes as information, not failure
try, fail, get up, try, and fail again until they figure things out
do not need a checklist, instructions, or directions; they eagerly learn as they go
Defeating obstacles and challenges helps you remove barriers that block you from knowing how exceptional you are. If everything were easy, you would remain stagnant.
Learn to lead yourself before you attempt to lead others!
People-Pleasing
Do you work extra hard or extra-long to keep others off your back? Do you say “okay” when you really mean “no?” People-pleasing can take many shapes and forms in the workplace; this is a sure sign you’re lacking self-confidence.
It is tempting to overwork or create perfectionistic tendencies when the pressure is on. After all, what will others think if you don’t do a great job? But here is the people-pleasing dilemma: you either satisfy others, or you satisfy yourself. Which is more important?
A people-pleaser would rather make others happy over making themselves happy. The root of people-pleasing is fear: “I might be the next to go; I need this job; I have to do everything they tell me to do; it’s too hard to find another job right now, etc.”
It’s not difficult to imagine how a people-pleasing mindset can enable toxicity. Confident people know how to choose themselves and their wellbeing over others (yes, including the boss). The person with high self-confidence realizes their employer needs them more than they need the employer. Confident employees know how to set boundaries and gracefully say “no.” Perhaps most importantly, the highly self-confident person is not beholden to their employer!
People-pleasers choose to not please the single, most important person alive: themselves!
Are you lacking self-confidence and ready to do something about it? Visit my Events Page to register FREE for Class 1 of my upcoming fall course starting Sept. 15, which teaches confidence and life skills for a healthy, sustainable career!
If you enjoy this content, I invite you to follow me on LinkedIn and ask me about free strategy sessions for your career!
What would you give to resolve those lingering work constraints that stifle your productivity … or your growth? Anything from management to politics can contribute to career constraints. Here are three common issues I hear about in various flavors.
Career Stagnation
You look around to see people your age with similar experience who are higher up in the food chain. Perhaps you’ve tried moving up (or around) only to find yourself stuck for too long. You can’t seem to gain momentum. And in fact, you may not even know what momentum looks like for you. This type of career constraint is all about stagnation.
Your intellect can also suffer from stagnation. If you’re bored, unchallenged, or getting dumber over time, it’s not just you! This is an all-too common phenomena in the professional workplace. It is quite possible you’ve lost more knowledge than you care to admit.
Nobody is exempt from career stagnation. It can follow you from job to job, industry to industry, or even into the classroom where the whole idea is to gain knowledge.
A critical reason professionals are feeling stuck is due to …
Career Dependence
Do you wish you could just say NO at times? Or confront the customer who complains behind your back? Or tell your boss why they are wrong?
Low self-confidence is the single, most common issue that brings people anxiety and discontentment in the workplace. And low self-confidence may lead to an unhealthy and self0limiting dependence on your employer. I have come to this conclusion based on two observations: my own experiences as a former engineer, and my own experiences as a coach.
Self-confidence is not to be confused with arrogance. Arrogance requires comparison to others; self-confidence does not. Arrogant thoughts may include, “I am better, I am smarter, I make more money than….” Whereas self-confidence is belief in yourself despite what others do or say.
I share my favorite definition of self confidence with you: the willingness to feel any emotion.
The person with low self-confidence is much more likely to be employer-dependent, overworked, and overwhelmed. It is as if the employer exudes power or control over your life. And it doesn’t have to be that way!
Career Purpose & Fulfillment
“This is not what I went to school for … they give me work that isn’t fulfilling … I need a better job.”
Do these career constraints sound familiar? It might be tempting to believe that since you worked so hard in school and checked all the boxes, a nice reward awaits you. What we most likely didn’t learn in the classroom (I know I didn’t!) is that after checking all the boxes, things don’t always turn out as planned.
The problem is that we look to solve for purpose and fulfillment in the workplace. As odd as it may sound, employers are not required or obligated to fulfill the emotional needs of its employees. If you know of a company that does so, please let me know!
The reason this is a problem is because people look for solutions where they don’t exist (like looking for apples in the dairy section). After many futile attempts, people may become depressed, despondent, resentful or worse.
If you suffer from some or all of these issues, I am offering a fall course to help you defeat them: Overcoming Career Constraints – What College Doesn’t Teach You
Visit my Events Page to register FREE for Class 1 starting Sept. 15!
Many of you have not dealt with or investigated the art and science of life coaching. Therefore, I will clear the air and explain the concept of how I help people as an engineering life coach.
What is a Life Coach?
At its most fundamental level, a life coach is guide that helps a person upgrade their life. Just as a swimming coach helps a swimmer improve their swimming techniques, a life coach helps a person improve living techniques.
Sounds simple, right? Well, you might be wondering, “what the heck does that look like, and why would I need that?”
Again, to keep things simple, the coaching process involves a lot of thought dissection. You start to unravel deeply held beliefs and convictions. Then, I guide you to change any beliefs and convictions that don’t serve a positive purpose in your life. (Quick example of a belief I’ve helped someone change: “I have to do everything my boss tell me to do.”)
What is an Engineering Life Coach?
As an engineering life coach specifically, I work with engineers and other STEM professionals who crave change or improvement. They practice higher levels of life management for optimal living. Everyone acquires results that are unique to their own issues.
For example, you might need guidance with a major life decision, whereas your colleague may need help with self-confidence in the workplace. After my guidance, your specific result translates to your making a solid and coherent decision. The colleague next to you, after my guidance, will have learned how to conquer fears, increase self-worth, and maximize their potential.
As an engineering life coach, professionals come to me for reasons such as, “I don’t know if I want to stay in engineering” or “I am not appreciated at work,” or “management doesn’t know how to manage.” The list of issues goes on (See Post #48).
What Does Coaching Look Like?
This is a two-part answer. But let me start by spelling out what my style of coaching does NOT look like.
It does not mean I:
provide advice
act as a mentor
take your side
act as a friend
advise you based on my own experiences
practice spiritual awakening
Part of my process involves your answering tough questions to get to the root. As an unbiased facilitator, I allow you the space to honestly answer without judgment. In doing so, I pose questions you wouldn’t normally think to ask yourself.
In other words, I offer helpful perspectives that would never dawn on you.
The second part of my process includes teaching concepts, lessons, and theories that you can apply in the short term and take with you forever.
Like magic, you discover answers to your own issues. This self-discovery process would not be possible without an trained facilitator like me as an engineering life coach. I have been taught a system to help you transform your life for the better.
Do you want to know more?Contact mefor free coaching sessions!
Management communicates something one day, only to turn around and backtrack. Rumor mills thrive among your colleagues as there is no transparency in the workplace. How do you be loyal and productive, let alone sleep at night, when you feel left in the dark?
Playing Games
First, there could be a number of reasons there is a lack of transparency in the workplace on the part of management. It could be a power play, or it could be a way to delay bad news. Or perhaps they believe you don’t need to know what’s going on behind the scenes. Might it affect your performance? And let’s face it, this is their choice to make.
On a different note, management could appear to be secretive because they truly don’t know what to say. It’s possible they are also left in the dark when it comes to upper management. Maybe they’re not being told the truth, either, so they’d rather save you the heartache of their own speculations. In this case, no news is good news.
The brutal truth is that management is not obligated to be 100% open about workplace decisions. While it would be great to know what’s up and coming as an employee, employers get to decide what transparency in the workplace looks like.
This is point No. 1: The reality is that employers get to dictate how knowledge flows and when, if at all.
Your Safety Net
Now this leaves you scared out of your wits, right? How are you supposed to focus on your day-to-day not knowing if the terrible rumors are true … not knowing if you’ll have a job from one day to the next?
And here is my response: always and forever implement career emergency plans.More than one.
Life is less stressful and much more bearable when you know you have a Plan A ,B, and C as backups. What are your current action plans if things go south?
And I’m afraid to state thus, but in my experience, the majority of employees don’t create career backup plans. They have no safety net when times get desperate. They falsely assume the job is secure … until it’s not and they’re forced to react. Don’t let that be you!
While counterintuitive, it is best to focus on your next position when you like exactly where you are. I explain why in my video Influencing Your Job Search Outcome.
Point No. 2: Prepare ahead of time, especially when things are going great.
Start with This
Guess why things will turn out simply fine should your job change or suddenly go away? Because of the most powerful tool you own – your brain.
Whether you realize, your brain always has your back. It got you this far today. And it’s going to continue to work for you, so I suggest you get very cozy with it!
You can start now by outlining major areas in your employability vault. This vault contains a giant cache of your skills, abilities, personality traits and anything that makes you valuable. Brainstorm your heart out by thinking of every which way you can fill it up.
This is an excellent and practical exercise to maintain throughout your career, especially when there is little transparency in the workplace. Always strive to add new skills. Think of this vault as the biggest asset you have to show to a potential employer. When they realize all the valuables you have to offer, they will think “I can’t afford to NOT hire this person!”
Point No. 3: Give yourself credit where credit is due and fill your employability vault with personal and professional assets.
While your employability vault will not solve the lack of transparency in the workplace, it will arm you with ammunition to forge ahead with your multiple backup plans.
“My employer doesn’t value me” you declare! If you’re tired of being undervalued at work, this blog offers 3 key points to consider when contemplating a solution.
First: Don’t Overwork
Many have been in this precarious situation: we work hard, produce results, and expect additional monies or accolades. Come to find out, your performance review was not what you had in mind (amazing how you and management can’t see eye to eye). You believed a significant salary increase was coming your way. You believe “my employer doesn’t value me” after receiving a good old ‘nice job, we appreciate your hard work.’
The first key point to note is that you might be tempted. You may feel the urgency to work ‘harder’, do ‘better’, and bend over backwards hoping to earn that next significant raise. It might seem logical to expend extra work effort.
I’d encourage you to be aware of this mindset and stop yourself if you notice these behaviors. The truth is, your employer can always find a reason to submit an average performance review, deny you monies or worse. I’ve seen too people fall for the mind trap, “If I prove my skills and worker harder, they should reward me.”
As logical as it might sound, life doesn’t work that way.
So please avoid overworking or over impressing – you may find yourself on the path to burnout.
Second: Answer This
It’s awful to think “my employer doesn’t value me.” But prior to making a drastic move, consider the bigger picture.
The bigger picture includes a holistic view of your employment. Consider business strategy, management, colleagues, trainings or other opportunities your employer may offer. Also consider your salary, your vacation, years of service, etc. If you have not done so, assess whether current work benefits outweigh the downsides.
Another way to think of it is to decide whether it’s worth accepting the bad with the good
Before you decide it’s time to run away, answer this fundamental question, “How will I deal with this same issue in the future?”
Switching jobs, employers, or industries is a short-term solution that never guarantees against feeling undervalued
Third: Stay and Accept or Walk in Peace
Should you decide to stay, then do yourself a favor. Accept the terms, conditions and caveats. In other words, accept the bad with the good and be the best employee despite all the bad.
Should you decide it is time to go elsewhere, leave in peace. Do not burn bridges, do not leave projects or people hanging. And walk out as if you might someday be back … because as horrible as the place may seem, you never know! Returning to an old employer is a common phenomenon I observed in the workplace, so be aware.
The third key point here is that changing the circumstance will not solve your problem. You may move on to find the next job is worse. What do you do, then? In short, before changing the circumstance, dissect the way you perceive your situation.
Tip: One way to prepare yourself for chaos or uncertainty is to understand that your mental state follows you to each job. If you feel “my employer doesn’t value me” today, you will find reason to feel undervalued in the future. There are only so many times you can walk. Instead, I recommend you step up for yourself.
Investing in your mentality to deal with uncertainty and build resilience is a long-term solution. All of us can use some mental strength and conditioning. While it takes effort, it is the solution to an uncertain world outside of our control.
I invite you to follow me on LinkedIn and subscribe to my Youtube channel for additional coaching insights!
Whether novice, veteran or somewhere in between, listed here are 5 critical workplace lessons for optimal career health and professional success.
No. 1 Employers Don’t Guarantee Happiness
One of the most impactful workplace lessons for you to know is that employers don’t ‘make’ people happy. Employer roles do not include cultivating nor sustaining your happiness..
The role of your employer is to provide work instructions so you can fulfill part of their business objectives. You produce output and they compensate. It’s a mutually beneficial agreement to create a working partnership.
At no point in time, at least not that I’ve ever heard, do employers promise happiness. To further this point, they are not responsible for your development, your growth or your professional status. Once you sign on the dotted line, you agree to fulfill your employee role; they agree to pay based on their own standards and criteria.
Hence, it is a grave mistake for anyone to assume or expect an employer keep them happy. As I’ve exclaimed before, “it’s not your job’s job to make you happy.”You will only set yourself to be disappointed!
No. 2 Rely on Yourself, Not Your Employer
Referring to Lesson No. 1, your employer’s role is to compensate you for your output, subject to their definition of compensation.
They unfortunately have no obligation to inform you of upcoming RIFs, transformations or new business objectives. Therefore, it is great habit for you to rely on YOU in case work goes south. If, for whatever reason, you find yourself out of a job, a reliance on yourself will provide a healthy, practical activity that is completely within your control.
Therefore, be more proactive in your career journey. I recommend Blog #33 about your Employability Vault. This article spells out a strategy and steps to help you get started with proactive preparations as a fallback plan.
I have seen too many devastated faces at work. You never know what is going on behind the scenes. The Employability Vault is your go-to mental workout, whether work is going great or not going at all.
Lesson No. 3 Behaviors Project Self-Worth
This perhaps may be one of the best workplace lessons for your self-confidence. The lesson is that other people, in general, say and act in manners that reflect the way they feel about themselves.
This is important for two reasons. First, when others point fingers, talk smack, or berate colleagues, they are exposing their insecurities. An individual who is disappointed or unhappy deep down will project this negativity onto others through their interactions. Similarly, a person who is highly confident and appreciative of who they are will treat others accordingly.
Secondly, this applies to you, too! How you feel about yourself is an indication of the most important relationship you will ever have – the relationship with YOU.
Therefore, what others think about you is really not about you. It is more about their own personal experiences, successes, failures… and what they believe about themselves. What others think of you is directly related to their own sense of self-worth. Hurt people hurt other people.
The lesson here is to not take disagreements or nasty comments about you so seriously. At the same time, if you find yourself judging someone, redirect that judgment inward to assess your own insecurity.
Lesson No. 4 There is No ‘Right’ Career Path
“What is my right career path?” is a question that plagues many professionals at all experience levels. And the reason it plagues is because this question is a self-limiting, negative question to ask.
“What is the right path” implies there is one right and several wrong answers. We live in a culture that teaches us decisions are generally ‘right or wrong,’ ‘good or bad.’ Therefore, this awful question produces unreasonable pressure for you to choose the right one.
What if there were no such thing as a ‘wrong’ career path? Picture this – you sell the house, move the family out of state, start over at a new company only to find out you hate it. Most people might claim, “that was the wrong career move.” But I beg to differ!
Can you be open to the idea that there is much value in all experiences? What I mean is, you lived through a process that did not produce the outcome you had hoped for. During this time, you experienced things, people and places you had never before known. You tried a new job, new employer, and new culture. Is it helpful and self-serving for you to know that it wasn’t a good fit?
Yes, absolutely, without a doubt it was a learning experience. Just because the job or employer wasn’t a good fit doesn’t mean it was wasted energy. It is just as important to know what you don’t like as it is to know what you do!
Lesson No. 5 Dream Jobs are Created, Not Found
This may be the most enlightening of the workplace lessons mentioned here. I never knew that a dream job was something I needed to create. It was never ‘out there’ to be found, as if part of some scavenger hunt. No wonder I could never find it!?
So, stop searching for your dream job. Stop meticulously analyzing job descriptions out of vigilant fear that they may not fit your ‘dream job’ criteria. And stop beating yourself up because you want more out of your professional life.
Instead, realize that if you want external greatness, you must generate internal greatness first.
I am going to include a phenomenal quote by musical genius Quincy Jones:
“Love, trust and respect.
Your music can never be more or less than you are as a human being. That’s the bottom line.
So you work on being a good human being first, even before a good musician.”
The lesson learned here is that if you want great, be great. Your job can only ever be as great as you are.
Which of the 5 lessons are holding you back? Let me know in the Contact Page!
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Why does it seem like your performance review wasn’t even about your performance? Have you left ‘the room’ thinking, “It’s so unfair … I deserve more … they don’t even know all the things I do … etc.”
Because I care about your health and wellness, I am going to save you some heartache here. I’ve been there done that, and it is no way to live!
What to Do?
First, let them have it.
Let them have their way with the antiquated process they refer to as a performance review. What I mean is, allow them full ownership and detach yourself from the outcomes (See Post #35). If your emotions are dictated by this nebulous process that utilizes the input of others, you will (almost always) find disappointment in the end.
Emotional wellness should not be dictated by external things outside your control.
One trick to help with detachment: think of your performance review as a credit report. Other people, who you don’t choose, who know little about you, get to hold you accountable. These people judge you against constraints without your consent. Then, they rank you based on said constraints, resulting in a punishment/reward system. You virtually have zero control over the process, rules or decision-making.
You’re left with the output, which may or may not be representative of your behaviors.
The performance review is part of a process that fulfills an organization’s goals. It caters to their own guidelines, business objectives, and even offers legal protection. According to bizfluent, “Federal and state laws regulate employee performance reviews.”
Let the employer own their performance review, their processes and the stakeholders. Of course, if you disagree with written remarks then you must pick and choose which battles to fight. But in general, release the whole process from your mind and let them have it so you can make space for more productive matters.
What NOT to Do
I highly advise against radical attempts to improve next year’s review.
Do not work extra ‘hard’ or go above and beyond simply for the sake of achieving a ‘better’ review. Your health and wellness are priceless, and aiming to improve the next review can deplete you. It can insidiously drain your energy while sucking the life out of you, creating resentment toward the employer.
And be aware – you’re fooling yourself if you believe, “I’ll just work harder, I’ll stay longer, I’ll jump when they snap their fingers and do all things necessary…” At the end of the day, at the end of the year, you will be judged by others.
Therefore, apply your energies where you have the most control: your own development.
What Matters Most
For a moment, forget about the colleagues, the boss and the customers. Instead of wondering, “What do they think, how can I please them, what will they say, etc.,” I invite you to redirect these questions.
What do YOU think about your performance? What would YOU tell someone about yourself, your work ethic, and your accomplishments? This practice, my friends, is both a difficult yet extremely rewarding aspect of self-development.
Here’s the thing. Management may choose to dismiss your successes and accomplishments. But at the end of the day, you know your performance level. You understand something that no one else possibly can – your own efforts. That’s what matters most: holding yourself accountable to you.
Why does that matter the most?
Accountability is a self-reflective habit that over time will start to create something amazing in your life: sustainable happiness. Accountability includes redirecting your energies away from the forced performance review and instead applying them toward:
Tackling your day-to-day obstacles with the provided resources
Being like the bigger adult in the room
Deliberately choosing productive responses in light of circumstances
Focusing energies inward allows you to recognize, cultivate, and apply self-development to your job and to your life … unlike a biased performance review, which vanishes into the digital world of bureaucratic formalities.
Let me know how unfair your mandatory performance review was and how it affected you!
I invite you to follow me on LinkedIn and subscribe to my Youtube channel for additional coaching insights!
Whether you are a freshie learning your first role or a long-term manager, these basic leadership lessons are essential to your soft skill portfolio.
“Why should I care about leadership lessons, I’m just an employee,” you might ask. You should care because leadership is rooted in the self and you are the leader of your life. You need not become a manager to apply your leadership skills each day!
Lesson No. 1 Be the Leader You Wish You Had
You can sit around and ruminate; you can complain to colleagues or you can take action. But here’s the thing, bosses are human. Management is human. And it’s true they may not consider all things and all people all the time.
Can some leaders handle pressure better than others? Yes, of course. And you know in your mind what your boss should be doing differently. You might allow their faults to get to you. And let’s face it, sometimes bosses can be outright belligerent (see Post #44)
However, you get to choose how you respond to this stimulus. If your leadership lacks in one (or some) areas, then ask yourself how you can fill in the gaps. What it is they should be doing differently? If it’s within your boundaries, go out and do these things yourself within the confines of your job scope.
For instance, if it burns you up that leadership doesn’t respond to emails, always respond to yours. If it pains you to see leaders treating people poorly, make it a point to treat others with respect. If you wish leaders would take more initiative, initiate yourself to get the job done to the best of your abilities.
Lesson No. 2 Great Leaders Empower Critical Thinking
The roles of leadership are always up for debate. Some leaders like to give orders, instructions and directives. Others like to shame, criticize or blame. Some people claim great leaders are persuasive, assertive and outspoken… the debate rages on.
While opinions differ, especially from organization to organization, I believe leadership lesson number 2 is a gold mine:
Great leaders allow open dialogue that enables employees to self-reflect, critically think and problem-solve on their own. This is a mental, continuous improvement process that employees can take wherever they go.
A great leader’s contribution to the workplace? Leaving behind employees who apply this empowering mental technique on their own, with or without leadership.
Lesson No. 3 Don’t Lead Others Until You Can Lead Yourself
“Why are there so many bad leaders? How do incompetent people get promoted to positions they do not deserve? Why doesn’t management do something about XY&Z?” These are common questions (and complaints) I often hear.
This might just be one of the most powerful leadership lessons one can learn. Bosses, management, and leaders project their sense of self onto others via their management style. I’ll take this statement one step further. The way people treat you is an indication of the way they feel about who they are.
Leadership is not about having all the answers. It is not about covering up mistakes or fudging numbers. Leadership is not about having to please people. And it is definitely not about serving oneself.
Leadership lesson 3 is about uplifting your employees and colleagues. Not an easy thing to do – this requires a leader to be whole with him/herself. It requires emotional maturity, self-accountability, the willingness to embrace fear and too many other skills to list.
Leadership is about extracting internal resources to upgrade external people around you.
Do you struggle to understand how you fit into your organization? Let me know what’s holding you back from leading yourself and the price you pay!
I invite you to follow me on LinkedInand subscribe to my Youtube channel for additional coaching insights!
Why is it the boss likes to laser in on your shortcomings and ignore your accomplishments? Your performance is above average, you’ve made a few silly mistakes in the past, and everyone has a major screw up. Despite the situation, project or your output, you tell yourself “my boss doesn’t like me.”
And it drives you mad because you don’t know how to fix it.
The Boss Function
Let us start by diving into some fundamentals of the boss role. This is not an all-inclusive list, but it serves as a useful reminder especially if you are a boss:
One, your boss exists to help equip you with the tools and resources necessary to perform your job. They guide you to help yourself resolve issues should you not have all those tools and resources. (By the way, many people do not have all required necessities to do their jobs, it is not just you).
Two, a boss acts as a compass to point you in the right direction. They are not there to solve your problems. Rather, bosses create a healthy, unobstructed environment for you to try, fail, innovate, and blossom through a consistent feedback loop.
Three, your boss must answer to their boss. If your boss wants to perform properly, it requires you to perform properly. Thus, your boss evaluates your performance to determine if you’ve met your goals. (Ideally, this process would look like an objective performance review).
As an aside, a performance review can be quite the emotional roller coaster ride. Unfortunately, I’ve heard and seen many people walk out of their reviews feeling defenseless, like they were ambushed. Nothing should ever be a surprise to the employee during their performance review. That is the power of a feedback loop: the employee is consistently made aware of expectations, strengths and ‘areas of improvement.’
Whether your boss performs the functions listed above, whether your boss is present or absent, is good or bad, etc. is not the point. The point is that a partnership exists between you and your boss. The two of you share a common goal: perform your best so the company can thrive.
“But, my boss doesn’t like me,” you exclaim. Now, where does that leave you?
It Helps to Know
1. By telling yourself “my boss doesn’t like me,” and by believing this statement at face value, you make the situation personal.
It is as if you are telling yourself, “the boss does not like my being, my presence or my humanness. I am not good enough because I am not liked. Since the boss doesn’t like me, perhaps I am unworthy of fair treatment. Maybe I should not be in this job and I should change myself. I want to be liked and accepted because I want to continue working here.” The self-narrative can spin out of control if you do not keep yourself grounded.
A critical detail here: anytime you believe “they don’t like me,” it implies a personal attack against your being and your existence.
Critical Point #1: Is your situation truly a personal attack, or is the boss attempting to criticize your output? These two scenarios are vastly different beasts. Let’s address the more severe of the two: My boss doesn’t like me for who I am.
2. Worst case scenario, your boss does make the situation personal, and they do not like you as a person.
It gets personal when management is critical of the things that make you uniquely you. Personal is when they use your personality or characteristics against you. For example, this might look like “you aren’t smart enough; you are too emotional; your spouse is annoying; the college you attended is insignificant, etc.”
If a boss makes the situation personal, they are faulty in two regards:
They fail to provide an environment that promotes self-reflection in the name of self-improvement
They are teaching you how miserable they feel about themselves
Critical Point #2: If someone doesn’t ‘like’ who you are, the translation is that they don’t like themselves when in your presence. On the contrary, people who appreciate and like themselves lift others up and facilitate self-improvement. They will not berate or criticize.
To Stay or Go?
Your employment isn’t about the boss being good or bad; it’s not about whether they like you. Your employment is about holding up your end of the bargain; it is not a personal relationship.
If you perform to the best of your abilities, learn from mistakes, and take initiative, there is nothing more a boss can ask of you. In fact, there is nothing more you can ask of yourself. While it is your responsibility to learn, grow and contribute to company goals, do not think you have to change yourself or your values … especially NOT for a boss.
If you believe “my boss doesn’t like me for who I am”, then it is possible they are taking their insecurities out on you. While this is their own internal problem to address, they unfortunately have some power to make employment more complex. Leaving this scenario for alternate employment can be tempting and sometimes justified. However, leaving the scenario may only serve as a temporary band aid offering short-term relief (which some people need in extreme cases!).
The reason leaving this scenario is not the best solution: you will always and forever deal with insecure people in your surroundings.
Leaving is the easy, temporary answer. Strengthening your mindset to deal with difficult, external situations is a much more sustainable, long-term solution (and applies to all areas of life). Ask me how!
I invite you to follow me on LinkedIn and subscribe to my Youtube channelfor additional coaching insights!
Do you look back on the days when your naive energy shot you out of bed in the mornings? Or dwell on the nights when you were too excited to sleep in anticipation of going to work?
If you no longer identify with these scenarios, or dread the thought of waking up to work, you might be burnt out, stressed out or you may lost your career passion.
Crystal Clear
There used to be a time your plans were strategically laid out to create a sustainable and fulfilling career for yourself. As you know, plans don’t always work out. But you also know this is okay, because you are resourceful enough to land on your feet. The point is that your career passion, once fueled by dreams and motivation, has dissolved into a pile of ashes you’d rather bury.
What happened – are you just unlucky, did you make a wrong choice or earn the wrong degree?
No, no and no.
What we know right now is that you are on a journey. This journey will involve nasty bumps, potholes and roadblocks along the way. Losing your career passion is a common roadblock. You’re stuck, unhappy, and you want a way out, yet fail to see one.
The Gap
Once upon a time, you had a vision. This vision involved a superb education with fulfilling employment that offered meaningful ways to accomplish great things. That was your plan, your career passion.
However, reality has offered a different plan. For you, reality might include quelling administrative fires, accomplishing monotonous busywork, and satisfying management at all costs. Or, your reality might involve painting numbers, consistently looking over your shoulder, or spending endless hours on the phone with your foreign IT department.
There is a clear gap between your passion and your job duties. So, how do you resolve this gap? You resolve it by learning how to reconcile “the way things should be” (passions) with “the way things are” (reality). Not an easy thing to do!
But what might this look like?
Work Purpose
First, consider the true purpose of work (contrary to popular belief, it is not money, titles or benefits):
Service: contribution toward something greater than you as an individual. Because as a collective, people make profound impacts as opposed to working solo. The next time you’re frustrated or wishing for more, think in terms of service: ask yourself how you can help others, how you can contribute, and how you can make those around you better.
Development: evolve your skills, enhance your character, and progress your brain. The way to do this is by defeating obstacles, challenges, and road bumps. One way to defeat obstacles, challenges and road bumps is to go to work. How can you rise above the difficult coworkers or incompetent management and perform your best despite their intentions? And this, my friends, requires a lot. It requires you to be a mature emotional adult.
Legacy: manipulate your strengths, maximize your output, and be a proactive change agent. This includes unraveling your authenticity, applying your strengths and seeking improvements. Always leave a position and leave a company in better shape than you found it.
No Guarantee
Now that you understand your purpose for work, here is an exercise to help you start the process of reconciling the way things “should be” with the way things “are.”
1. Get clear on your reality.
In other words, learn to separate out your subjective narrative about work from the true facts. The facts are: you have a job, a boss, colleagues, customers and assigned duties. Other than this, all opinions and self-talk are subjective stories you tell yourself (i.e., “this isn’t what I expected, I’m in the wrong job, etc.”).
2. Get clear on your passions. List them on paper and describe what they should look like in your life.
3. Match numbers 1 & 2 as much as possible.
How can you find opportunities at work to apply your strengths in a way that satisfies some of your passions? How can you become more curious and explorative as opposed to just being diligent?
4. Look outside of your employment to fulfill the passions that employment can’t.
Your career, created by your employer and in your employer’s interest, exists because you are qualified to accomplish the tasks at hand. Tasks that were created specifically in conjunction with other people’s tasks to reach organizational goals. There is no guarantee that affords your passions to be fulfilled on the job. The employment exchange is that you provide value in return for compensation under the employer’s terms and conditions. That’s it.
Therefore, fulfilling a career passion is your own responsibility and you must take ownership. That usually means a proactive pursuit outside the workplace.
You don’t have to suffer in silence. In fact, you don’t have to suffer at all. Check out my course, Overcoming Career Constraints, to help you become the person who can reconcile “the way things should be” (passions) with “the way things are” (reality).
Do you work in a passionless career? Send me a note and let me know how it affects your wellbeing!
I invite you to follow me on LinkedIn and subscribe to my Youtube channel for additional coaching insights!
You can always find a reason to leave your current job, right? However, you consistently agonize over career indecision because, there exists an odd comfort about staying right where you are.
The Dilemma
To leave or not? If so, is it worth the jump – and how will you know?
These stifling questions are all too common for the professional who longs for something greater (See Post #10). If you’re not careful, you can agonize over career indecision indefinitely. And the agony can consume you. I’d like to offer the possibility that you don’t have to agonize and live in fear of making the wrong decision.
In general, there seem to be two reasons why people agonize over career indecision:
Situation 1: Too many options. Your career choices are numerous, attractive and you suffer from FOMO (fear of missing out). Each decision could be right and each could be wrong. It pains you to think about choosing only one, because you want to do them all!
The sky is your limit, and you feel suppressed by having to make one lonely choice of many desirable options. While people may tell you it’s a good problem to have, you still agonize over career indecision.
Situation 2: Too much risk. You cannot decide if the potential rewards of leaving will outweigh the risks. You have gained enough professional experience to know that the risks could be high. You may have to ‘prove yourself’ all over again, or ‘start over’ from the very bottom of the ladder.
On the other hand, it seems easier and convenient to stay right where you are. Why pack up and move to another location if the job isn’t worth it? But, you’re not happy where you are. You agonize over career indecision because you might make the wrong choice.
Right vs Wrong
Despite your reasons for career indecision, the good news is that the path towards a solution looks the same. Here are three critical points to keep in mind as you contemplate your future:
Point 1) Assess your reasons for working in the first place. If you are heavily focused on the benefits (salary, retirement, perks, etc.) then you will forever be chasing that wild goose. Rather, the purpose of work is threefold:
Service: Contribution toward something greater than you as an individual. Because as a collective, people make profound impacts as opposed to working solo. The next time you’re frustrated or wishing for more, think in terms of service: ask yourself how you can help others, how you can contribute, and how you can make those around you better.
Development: Evolve your skills, enhance your character, and progress your brain. The way to do this is by defeating obstacles, challenges, and road bumps. One way to defeat obstacles, challenges and road bumps is to go to work. How can you rise above the difficult coworkers or incompetent management and perform your best despite their intentions? And this, my friends, requires a lot. It requires you to be a mature emotional adult.
Legacy: Manipulate your authenticity, maximize your output, and make an impact. Another purpose of going to work is for you to unapologetically discover your authenticity and apply your strengths. Always leave a position and leave a company in better shape than you found it.
The great news about Point 1 is that you don’t have to rely on an employer to fulfill the purposes above. In fact, I recommend you pursue creative projects that will enable your brain activity to flourish, both in and outside of the workplace.
Point 2) What if your decisions are neither right nor wrong? Given point 1, you can make the ‘worst’ decision and still have much to gain. No matter the decision and the outcomes, you are still in a position of learning. And that’s what life is about. You may not know what it is you want until you actually commit to a decision. So, stop lollygagging, commit to a decision, and remember it is all about the learning process.
Which leads us to Point 3…
Point 3) The decision itself is much less important than who you become while executing! Hey, as long as you are learning, growing and challenging yourself in new ways, then you are doing the right things (whether employed or not). Comfort equals stagnation.
I leave you with one of my favorite quotes I heard by a dear friend and fellow life coach Bridget Sampson: “Always be new at something.”
I invite you to follow me on LinkedIn and subscribe to my Youtube channel for additional coaching insights!
In Part I, we explored various definitions of and reasons why bullying happens at work. In Part II, you are presented with options along with reminders tips if you are being bullied at work.
Bullied At Work: Your Options
Here are some options you can consider if you are bullied at work. There is no one-solution fits all. Clearly, your decision to deal with bullying depends on your physical and mental health, as well as your level of self-confidence.
While you cannot control another person’s behaviors, you can control the manner in which you respond. Here are some considerations as you decide how to move forward:
Challenge your bully – it may be uncomfortable, especially if you like to avoid conflict, but it is a chance to let the bully know you are on to him (or her). It is also a chance, given you are alone in a conference room, to ask them what they hope to accomplish by bullying you. Make them articulate the answer.
Documentation – it can be tricky to gather hard evidence if you are bullied at work. On the surface, emails and verbal comments may seem innocuous to outsiders. My suggestions if you want to start a paper trail: 1) summarize each individual meeting, conversation or interaction with the perpetrator, 2) send these summaries to all who were present, 3) request any objections to your summary be emailed back to you, 4) repeat until everyone has concurred. This could be timely but worthy if you are trying to gather evidence.
Direct management – do you trust your immediate manager enough to voice your concerns? If so, voice them cautiously. From the manager’s perspective, you may come across as whiney or entitled. The last thing a manager wants is to diffuse a personality conflict among employees. Therefore, your direct management may do what it takes to make this go away; be prepared to not like the response.
Indirect management – do you dare go above your immediate manager and voice your concerns to upper management? If your direct supervision is part of the problem … then, perhaps the answer is yes. Again, do so cautiously. Chances are that upper management does not want to hear about personality problems with subordinates. In their minds, they don’t get paid to perform conflict resolution. Prepare yourself for undesirable outcomes.
Colleagues, friends, family – perhaps venting is okay once or twice, but put yourself in their shoes. When you consistently vent that you are bullied at work, yet you do not help the issue, you will turn people off. They will stop listening or avoid you. Take precaution if opening up to colleagues! You never know who they rub elbows with when you are not around, and your complaints could backfire.
Bring a business case to HR – if you think HR is the route for you, listen up. Document and calculate dollars lost due to the bullying. For example, how much time are you not working during the day due to the bullying? How much time is the bully not working due to the bullying? Tally your sick days and doctor visits. Which projects or assignments have been late due to your distress? Chances are, walking into an HR office with a list of complaints won’t get their attention. However, providing a list of estimated dollars lost makes for a stronger case.
*As an aside, I happen to think it is ludicrous for any HR office to turn a blind eye to bullying complaints. It is tragic if they show no empathy for your human feelings; dollars lost should be a trivial matter.
Legal counsel – if this is the route for you, then prepare to pay. You will pay with your time and your money. I caution you to not get attached to a positive outcome. Lawyers are not magicians. Sometimes, all the money in the world cannot buy the outcome you’d like.
Therapy – per psychologytoday.com, the definition of therapy is: Psychotherapy, also called talk therapy or usually just “therapy,” is a form of treatment aimed at relieving emotional distress and mental health problems. Provided by any of a variety of trained professionals—psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, or licensed counselors—it involves examining and gaining insight into life choices and difficulties faced by individuals, couples, or families.
Quit – and hope your next work environment is friendly.
Life Coach – what I teach as a life coach is a critical meta skill that can be applied to any area of your life. It is the skill of recognizing and reframing your thoughts/beliefs to a manageable state for a healthy, coherent life. In other words, I teach you the art of adapting your brain’s beliefs to life circumstances, which liberates you from futile attempts to seek out the ‘right’ situations.
Career Purpose
We go to work because it provides a living: salary, benefits, retirement, promotions, etc. However, if these are the end goals of your career, you may be missing the whole point. While these features are wonderful, they are merely byproducts, or results, of your career. They are not the purpose of your work.
The purpose of your career is:
Service: contribution toward something greater than you as an individual … for the sake of serving
Development: evolve your skills and progress your character by defeating obstacles and challenges
Legacy: manipulate your authentic skills to impact a job/company and leave it in a better position than when you started
Having stated this, everyone’s challenge is to fulfill this career purpose despite circumstances, despite negativity, despite bullies.
There is something magical about showing up, serving, performing your best, and rising above the attacks. But, this requires stamina, courage and high self-confidence.
If you are bullied at work and it’s overwhelming and you fear for your well being, take action to stop the bleeding. Careers are fluid and unpredictable, your health is priceless.
I invite you to follow me on LinkedIn and subscribe to my Youtube channel for additional coaching insights!
According to the Workplace Bullying Institute, more than 60 million working people in the United States are affected by bullying.
About 70 percent of bullies are male, and about 30 percent are female. Both male and female bullies are more likely to target women. Sixty-one percent of bullying comes from bosses or supervisors. Thirty-three percent comes from co-workers (see healthline.com article).
Bullying is different from harassment, because harassment implies an offense that occurred against a protected class of people. There are no laws against workplace bullying in the United States.
Bullying Defined
Workplace bullying can be tricky to define, as it spans many overt and indescribable activities. It is also subjective, which makes bullying more difficult to prove.
According to healthline.com, workplace bullying shows itself in different ways:
Verbal – This could include mockery, humiliation, jokes, gossip, or other spoken abuse.
Intimidating – This might include threats, social exclusion in the workplace, spying, or other invasions of privacy.
Related to work performance – Examples include wrongful blame, work sabotage or interference, or stealing or taking credit for ideas.
Retaliatory – In some cases, talking about the bullying can lead to accusations of lying, further exclusion, refused promotions, or other retaliation.
Institutional – Institutional bullying happens when a workplace accepts, allows, and even encourages bullying to take place. This bullying might include unrealistic production goals, forced overtime, or singling out those who can’t keep up.
Follow-up examples include:
targeted practical jokes
being purposely misled about work duties, like incorrect deadlines or unclear directions
continued denial of requests for time off without an appropriate or valid reason
threats, humiliation, and other verbal abuse
excessive performance monitoring
overly harsh or unjust criticism
My favorite workplace bullying definition is quoted in this monster.com article: “Workplace bullying is psychological violence.”
How do Bullies Get Away With It?
Per this article from themuse.com, bullies are often high performers. They might be a top salesperson who brings in huge deals worth millions. Whatever it is, they’re bringing value to the company, which means the company has an incentive to keep them onboard (and happy).
Some bullies also work to ingratiate themselves to their superiors (and perhaps their peers, too). Doing so as they abuse one or more of the folks they oversee or work with. Put all that together, and instead of being held accountable for their bullying behavior, they might be getting rewarded with praise, raises, or promotions. And you might be all the more intimidated by the prospect of casting a shadow on such a star.
The reality is that most bullying situations (77% according to WBI’s survey) end in the target leaving their job, whether because they got fed up and quit or they ended up getting fired.
What bullies have in common, whether on the playground or in the workplace, is insecurity. All forms of bullying originate from internal insecurities. When bullies refuse to accept or fix their insecurities, they are driven to overcompensate by treating others terribly.
Because, after all, if you look bad at work, it makes those around you look good.
Workplace bullying is real, it’s prevalent (whether COVID or not), and it can have deleterious effects on the target. Part II explores what your options may look like if you are the unfair target of workplace bullying.
Of course you are searching for your dream job! That’s what we do in our culture. You grew up in a world that rewards you with a dream job in exchange for that rigorous college degree. Almost as if you are entitled.
Off to the Races
To your dismay, that dream job has been elusive during your 5-, 10-, or 20-year career. Where the heck is it, you wonder, and how do I find it? You’ve realized that job hopping only lasts so long. Unfortunately, you’ve also realized that you cannot assess a job until you live it.
You are meticulous about picking apart job descriptions. And you are an expert at eliminating jobs that don’t sound perfect. You ask great questions in your interviews. Informational interviews are standard practice. Of course, you always insist on meeting your new prospective boss before accepting a new job.
You’re doing all the right things. Yet, here you are, begrudgingly searching for your dream job. The perfect one that offers reasonable challenges, superb benefits, and a stellar team with true leadership. Whatever your definition, you’re not finding it. And it is a maddening race you cannot win.
Professional Scavenger Hunt
The myriad counselors, advisors, teachers, and professors have tried their best to guide you. It is not their fault that, after all this time, you are still searching for your dream job. Nor is it your fault. You can only act based on the information at hand.
The missing piece is that you attract what you are, not what you want. If you want great, be great.
If you are unsettled, if you are wishy-washy, if you are uncertain, that is the kind of job (and career) you will attract. Accepting a job with hope, wishful thinking, or high expectations is a surefire way to set yourself up for disappointment. For example, if you resentfully go to work, your work and your output will be resentful. If you force yourself to go to work, your work and your output will be forced.
However, the flip side is also true. If you are proud, confident, or happy before you accept your new job, then the job will follow accordingly. The point is that dream jobs are not something to be found, as if they are part of a professional scavenger hunt. Dream jobs don’t hang around awaiting the perfect person to whisk them away akin to a fairy tale ending.
Dream jobs are created. They are created by people who are great within themselves. Great cannot be found out there in the external world; it is something you foster within your being. The secret to a dream job is to nurture this great relationship with yourself first. Alas, paving the way for you to create your dream job.
Dream jobs are created by you, they are not out there to be found.
I invite you to follow me on LinkedIn and subscribe to my Youtube channel for additional coaching insights!
As you grapple with thoughts such as, “I’m not sure what I should do next”, or “I want a new job,” you may have considered hiring a career coach or a life coach. I will explain the main differences between my work as a life coach vs career coaching so you can decide which is best for your situation.
What is Life Coaching?
My function as an engineering life coach is to help professionals conduct a root cause analysis on their lives. I coach engineers through tough issues whether in the form of layoffs, career dissatisfaction, burnout, or simply feeling lost. Let’s dive into the two types of coaching so you can decide which is best for your situation.
The Life Coaching process is strategic and cognitive. It is applicable to you if you tell yourself:
I don’t know if I should go back to school, get a new job, get another cert, or start my own biz
I wish I weren’t so stressed all the time
I don’t have enough time for everything
I’m overwhelmed
As a life coach, I help you get to the root of your issues and problems so you can 1) understand their origin, 2) reframe your situation to a manageable state, 3) decide how to cognitively resolve your problems.
What is Career Coaching?
The Career Coaching process is tactical and operational. It is applicable to you if you tell yourself
I want to move to ABC location and find a job there
I want XYZ job title with a specific pool of companies
I would like help with my interviewing/negotiating skills
I’d like someone to hold me accountable in my job search
I’m quite sure I know which jobs I will pursue next
I’ve dominated my current position and therefore I’m ready to leave
I need someone to help me with my resume
I’d like someone to tell me what I need to do to secure a job
I want help with strengths-finders test results
A career coach is more appropriate for you if your goal is to be matched to your desired job, industry, or company.
The below is a comparison of the main differences between each type of coach.
A Career Coach Offers Tactical Steps Towards the Search for a Job
A Life Coach Offers Strategic Steps Towards the Search for Yourself
Refine your resume
Refine your mentality
External job search
Internal self-discovery
Connect with industry
Connect with yourself
Plan your next career move
Plan your next life move
Negotiation and interview skills
Self-Confidence and emotional intelligence skills
Acts as accountability partner
Teaches self-accountability
Offers advice, suggestions, tips
Does not offer advice; leads you to discover answers for yourself
Matches you to an external (dream) job
Helps you create an internal dream life
Life Coach vs Career Coach
Last, I will state that as a life coach, the skills I teach are meta – they are applicable to any area of your life. Essentially, you learn the meta skill of emotional problem-solving and self-awareness, despite prevailing circumstances.
There certainly can be some overlap between life coach vs career coach. This blog explains the high level differences between the two. If you are interested in free life coaching to help with unresolved issues in your life, send me a note. Let’s chat!
I invite you to follow me on LinkedIn and subscribe to my Youtube channel for additional coaching insights!
There comes a time when you must admit you cannot figure something out – yes you! Will you persist and continue to try on your own, will you give up or will you ask for help? It’s a basic premise, but I encourage you to open yourself up to being coached by others.
You Decide: are you Coachable?
Are you coachable and why does it matter? I’ve seen unnecessary competition between colleagues in the office or on the shop floor. People who resist others’ suggestions or advice may feel threatened or inadequate. If you are willing to listen, to receive suggestions and to be wrong, then you are coachable.
I challenge you to think about recent struggles and your willingness to face personal deficiencies. This vulnerable willingness allows you to accept the fact that others have knowledge you don’t. A coachable person is comfortable leaning on others and hearing multiple perspectives. As a result, coachable people gain wisdom and further their own knowledge base.
A Snapshot of Coaching
If you are open to being coached, here is a small taste of what it looks like. First, talk less and listen more. Second, own your mistakes and errors. It happens to everybody, but when you shy away or point fingers, you exacerbate your problem and appear foolish. It is not difficult to state that you messed up, you made a mistake and that it won’t happen again. Last, self-awareness plays a key role in your ability to be coached (see Post #03).
Self-awareness is the ability to be cognitively present in the moment and recognize your interpretations of the world around you. It is a skill that enables you to acknowledge and deliberately choose your thoughts and reactions.
In conclusion, your ability to be coached by others will help propel your professional and personal well-being. Are you comfortable admitting you don’t have all the answers – are you coachable?
I invite you to follow me on LinkedIn and subscribe to my Youtube channel for additional coaching insights!
Do you embrace information without question, OR do you tend to think independently? I will talk about the differences and you can determine how these apply to your life.
Living a Programmed Life
Imagine the last time you openly challenged a theory, a boss or a customer. Our society, at times, does not advocate that you challenge status quo. You tend to conform to the norm when you don’t ask questions or perform your own investigations. When this happens, you are believing information as is or perhaps you don’t have time to verify. You probably like to be efficient, and right or wrong, it’s efficient to believe what you are told. It’s not efficient to question information that many embrace without the blink of an eye.
For example, have you ever questioned processes, policies or feedback at work? How about your faith or religious beliefs? Or marriage and the idea of rearing kids? And what about your financial dealings, such as 401ks, IRAs and other investments?
The point here is that you have full control over your personal actions and beliefs. How often do you make decisions based on your own interpretation of knowledge? You run the risk of living by default when consistently conforming to ideas, customs and norms without question.
Think for Yourself
In contrast, an independent thinker tends to make deliberate, conscious decisions. And an independent thinker acknowledge their reasons for making such choices. If you think on your own behalf, you tend to question ideas, practices and status quo. This is not an easy practice because others generally don’t like to be challenged.
And I am not suggesting you question everything and everyone in your life (see Post #12). Rather, I challenge you to thoughtfully ponder ideas, principles and the lifestyle you live by. Have these been chosen for you or by you?
In conclusion, we fall between the two extremes of accepting all information at face value vs questioning status quo. Where do you stand?
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No matter the job title, you will always be compelled to influence. Whether entry-level or executive professional, your power to influence comes down to the same thing. This knowledge is critical over the course of your career. The power to influence will no doubt be one of the most practical tools in your professional toolkit.
Does Influence Apply to You?
First, why is influence so important? On a high level, you obviously want your employees to act in a manner such that they accomplish their goals. Perhaps you’re in mid management, and you don’t have so much authority. As a mid-level manager, you request cooperation and many favors, thus, you deal with dynamic, shifting parts. When you own the power to influence, you avoid the hassles of begging and pleading, and you convey enthusiastic motivation.
As a junior or newer employee, your ability to influence is especially critical. The responsibility to learn your job rests on your shoulders (see Post #02). Learning your job requires cooperation from your colleagues. Therefore, your rate of success somewhat depends on the ability to influence others in your favor.
Your Power
Next, how do you influence others, what does it take? It starts with an emotional assessment of yourself, my friends, and it requires work! You work to improve ALL the internal attributes that you can control within. Then, you lead by example when engaging with others. What I mean is: you must like yourself first before you expect others to like you; you must respect yourself first before you expect others to respect you.
Would you like others to listen to you – then, follow your own lead. Do you hope others will show positive attitudes – then, be positive. Would it be fantastic if your employees were efficiently and enthusiastically productive? Then YOU, as their leader, must first show you are efficiently and enthusiastically productive. Love yourself first and foremost. When you can learn the skills of self-love and self-respect, the power to influence falls into place.
Others will treat you based on the way they see you treating yourself. Teach others how you should be treated.
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Some of us push perfectionism to the limit. We admire the way every object in the house has its assigned function and designated space. We don’t mind scrutinizing (or admiring) our work 10 times over just to be extra sure there are no mistakes. Others, however, are not-so-proud perfectionists. You may be familiar with triple and quadruple-checking our own work, and doing so from an uncomfortable feeling of fear. “What if something is incorrect or out of line?” you hauntingly wonder.
The Root Cause
Perfectionistic tendencies may look different for every person. However, the common denominator for perfectionists boils down to one thing: self-worth. Self-worth, or lack thereof, comes from fear – i.e., “What will they think of me … what if I’m wrong … is my work good enough, etc.” Fear is rooted in self-doubt and insecurity.
The more insecure you are with your existence, the more you want to prevent mistakes or answer for wrongdoings. As mentioned, the root cause of your perfectionism comes from a lack of self-worth. Your answers to these questions are indicative of your own self-worth: what do you think of you, how do you view your worth as a human?
Strive for Less than Perfect
The best way to mitigate perfectionism is to increase your self-worth. Imagine a world in which you are willing to embrace all feelings, positive and negative. Picture how your life would be different if you were comfortable with living an unapologetic, authentic life (see Post #18).
No lying, no masking your feelings and no shaming yourself for being less than perfect. This is a self-confidence skill that is available to you. It is a skill you can work toward building over time, similar to hiring a person trainer at the gym.
Perfectionism stems from fear; fear stems from self-doubt and insecurity; self-doubt and insecurity come from your self-worth. When your self-confidence is sky high, my friends, then you have your own back no matter what. When your self-security is drastically improved, can you see how the need for perfectionism dwindles?
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Who is your mentor? If your answer is, “I don’t know”, or “this is a silly question” or “I don’t need a mentor,” this post is for you. Mentors are part of your support network, and everybody needs support. They serve a special function in your life despite your age, capabilities or experiences.
Mentors are Critical
Perhaps you have experienced multiple employers, holding various titles in many environments. Congratulations for having broadened your professional portfolio. Perhaps you are retiring tomorrow. Or, maybe you are reading this and it’s your first week on the job. Despite your vast array of experiences, or lack thereof, a trusted mentor is essential to your professional or personal wellbeing.
Mentors can offer differing views and alternate perspectives. They may not necessarily be smarter, wiser, or better educated. That’s okay, a mentor doesn’t have to have surpassed your accomplishments. The reason mentors are important is because they will offer questions and pose solutions under the purview of their own life experiences.
Open your Eyes
Your main decision-making tool is undoubtedly the own view of the world as you’ve experienced it. When allowing mentors to share their views, opinions, their successes and failures, you vicariously become educated through their lenses. Why does this matter? It matters because you are narrowly restricted to knowledge based on your limited experiences. Engaging with a mentor is like traveling to new places; your eyes will be open to possibilities you couldn’t have dreamt about (see Post #18).
So, who is your mentor and how are you going to find them? Whether you retire tomorrow or in 40 years, a mentor can help you stay grounded, motivated and open-minded. Open your eyes to others’ experiences and gain priceless knowledge!
The more you learn, the more you realize that which you don’t know.
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Why do you do what you do, i.e., are you fulfilling your why? I dare you to write down your answers. Do your answers feel good? Perhaps they bring about genuine sadness … or a sense of longing for something more. Maybe your answers are superficial enough that you don’t recognize the person who wrote them.
The Negative Build Up
If fulfilling your why is compatible to, “This is my passion … it is fulfilling … there’s nothing else I’d rather be doing…”, congratulations, you’ve made it!
However, if your answers are less than thrilling or flat-out depressing, then let’s take action (see Post # 05). Because if you don’t process the negative emotions of feeling stuck, bitter, confused, etc., then you may continue to ignore. When you continue to ignore, the negativity builds and eventually combusts in one form or another.
Reclaim your WHY
Perhaps you can acknowledge you are suppressing your feelings and sweeping them under the rug. Now what? I will offer that you don’t have to change your job (or your circumstances) in order to be happy. This may be a new concept to you. But the source of your unhappiness or negative feelings is not due to your job, your boss or any external entity.
Rather, your ways of thinking, i.e. your beliefs, are causing you to feel negative emotions. It’s tempting to blame your career or an external entity, but the root cause of most problems derives from your belief systems. Blaming external causes for your feelings depletes your wellbeing because it makes you feel powerless.
A significant life coaching lesson to my clients is that the sources of our pain are not other people, our jobs or external circumstances. The source of our emotional pain is due to the way we choose to label the world around us. How do you choose labels, and how do those labels influence your why?
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You look forward to your next training, professional conference or job title. Your future is bright and your possibilities seem endless. Your career could take multiple turns for the better. Correct? Or … not so much? Perhaps your boat is sinking and at this point you’re just hoping to remain above water.
Responsibility
What is true about your future? Two important points to keep in mind and these can be gamechangers. First and shockingly, your future does not depend on your employer (see Post #13). It does not depend on your colleagues, your boss, your recruiter or your friends.
A common self-destructive habit too many professionals believe is that they have little control over their futures. As if others are somehow responsible for the way your future unfolds. Your future is bright thanks to the explanation provided below.
Accountability
Also shocking to some of you is that you are 100% responsible for creating your own future. This is a job for you and you only. Every action today will affect you tomorrow – it is your decision to make a move in this moment. You are sole owner over your credentials, mentality, professional development, etc.
Your future is bright because you are CEO over your own life. Take ownership over your brain and hold yourself accountable to your future creation, just as a CEO holds its professionals accountable to their judgments.
How are your actions today going to affect your world tomorrow, next month or next year? What actions do you take next for your future growth and evolvement?
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You find yourself less than satisfied at work. But your boss wouldn’t trade you for the world. Despite your stellar performance, you’re not loving the work. There’s a lingering thought that won’t go away: “This work matters to my boss, but it doesn’t matter to me.”
Your Agreement
I challenge you to think about the purpose of your job – of any job. Is it to fulfill your intellectual desires, to promote your professional development, to produce results in exchange for benefits? Let’s suppose the purpose of your job is to complete X, Y and Z. In return, you receive a paycheck. Is that not the deal you made with your employer when you accepted the offer?
If you find yourself less than satisfied at work despite your boss’ praises, the solution does not start with finding a new job; it starts from within. I guarantee if you were to brainstorm ways to become more creative, more resourceful, more engaging, and most importantly – more giving, you would start a personal and professional transformation.
Your WHY
If you are less than satisfied at work, first, try to think from an alternate perspective. Imagine providing a service out of your desire to serve. “How can I serve my customers/colleagues today, how can I go above and beyond, how can I meet someone new today, how can I engage with the person who avoids me, where are gaps I can fill, how can I help the new person, what can I learn today that will allow me to contribute more…?”
Secondly, investigate your WHY…why do you choose to currently exist in your job (see Post #12)? If you perform a mental deep dive, you will find your WHY is proportional to your satisfaction. To gain more fulfillment and/or happiness, you must first understand your WHY. Then, you can work towards accomplishing it.
In conclusion, if you are less than satisfied at work, help yourself by redirecting your focus. Mentally perform from an attitude of serving, and investigate a powerful WHY that resonates with you. It is a start towards permanent job satisfaction.
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How many times throughout the week do you find yourself repeating thoughts similar to, “My duties at work are boring … I feel like I’m getting dumber … I don’t feel challenged enough.” Are you more capable?
Your Employer’s Agenda
There is a common misconception we tend to believe in our society: your employer is supposed to meet your professional needs. I hate to disappoint, but it is not your job’s job to keep you educated, challenged, or excited. It is also not your job’s job, by the way, to make you happy (see Post #13).
I will take this one step further and state that what your employer cares about is your contribution to the company. They don’t necessarily care about your training or about furthering your education; employer stances vary. It is quite possible they may initiate your professional development, which is fantastic – but don’t count on it.
Your Duty
Now that I’ve burst your bubble and shocked your system, I want to share something that nobody ever told me. Since we have established your employer is not responsible for your own professional fulfillment, this means the task lies in your hands. No one and nothing else in the world can be responsible for your happiness, your development or your fulfillment except for you.
Are you more capable? If yes, then take responsibility over your boredom. Find ways to challenge yourself, even if that means new endeavors outside working hours. The worst thing you can do is sit back and await the next challenging or fulfilling job to fall in your lap. The responsibility is yours and you can start today.
This may not be the kind of advice you were hoping to hear. But I promise you, the sooner you take full responsibility for your own development, the sooner you can fulfill that personal void. You owe it to yourself.
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