A few years ago I quit a six-figure job. When I told my boss, he looked at me a little incredulously and asked, "Are you sure you want to do this?" I wanted to leave for several good reasons, primarily that I hadn't been happy for a while. My job had evolved and no longer played to my strengths. Though I was able to do what was required of the job, the energy "out" far outweighed the...
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What great opportunities are you overlooking?
Sometimes you can want something so badly that you begin to hyperfocus on it to the point that you literally cannot see when the goal is within your grasp. In her excellent book, You are a Badass, Jen Sincero shares an example that illustrates this perfectly:
“There’s a great Hindu story about a lady who wanted to meet the god Krishna. So she went into the forest, closed her eyes,...
More work, same pay? Start with STOP
It started with an odd breakfast meeting my boss asked me to take with the head of sales for another division in our company. I wasn’t told the reason for the meeting but it seemed suspiciously like a job interview. And sure enough, shortly after the breakfast my boss asked me to take on responsibility for leading that division’s marketing team in addition to my current role leading...
Career Curb-Appeal: Job Search Lessons from HGTV
I’ll be the first to admit it, I’m a sucker for HGTV. I love settling in for marathons of House Hunters, Property Brothers, Fixer Upper and scores of other house-related shows. There’s something strangely appealing about watching people search for their dream home in Malibu or renovate their mid-century modern in Kansas City.
I won’t call it a guilty pleasure,...
More work, no raise? Strategies to come out ahead
Last week I wrote about how important it is to manage your stress level when you’re asked to take on significantly more responsibility for the same pay. Maintaining your energy is the first priority when you’re faced with this situation, closely followed by keeping your perspective.
It's always disappointing when you're asked to do more for the same (or even less). I'll share some...
Is Career Nostalgia Holding You Back?
It was the summer I got up-close to Joe Biden, future President, and the US Senator representing my home state of Delaware. It was 1984, and I worked as a waitress at Desmond’s, a restaurant in a beach town near where I grew up and that summer I also served our other Senator, Bill Roth, of the Roth IRA.
For a college student, it was a dream summer job. I had my days off to lounge on...
This is the year you get what you REALLY want
This article is about how you can get what you want out of your life and career in 2021. It doesn't matter if you've tried before and failed before. This year is THE year if you follow these simple steps.
What is it that you want? A promotion? A better office? More money? More free time? A new boss? A job in Paris? Whatever it is, you can have it if you choose to take a few actions first.
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What's Career Santa bringing you this year?
When I was a little kid I got so excited when Christmas was coming. I would lay in the middle of the living room floor flipping through every page of the Sears catalog circling all the things that I wanted and then I’d faithfully transcribe each item into a letter to Santa. Some years, my parents would take me to the mall to visit Santa and I'd whisper in his ear the one big thing I...
You've got great ideas -- stop editing yourself!
I was a freshly minted MBA sitting in a meeting at my new employer. The issue at hand is now hazy in my memory but what stood out to me was that everyone in the room seemed very puzzled by how to approach the situation being discussed.
I had an idea but clearly it wasn’t worth mentioning because it was so obvious. I reasoned it had occurred to, and been rejected by, all of the esteemed...
Lessons learned from a bad boss
Shelly* was a screamer. Through the wall I could hear her side of the phone call — at a very high decibel, she was berating the dry cleaner for allegedly losing the pants to her suit. Shelly's unhappiness was exceedingly evident to everyone in our tight-knit marketing department as her shouts echoed down the hallway.
This was not an atypical outburst brought on by vendor negligence --...
