We have all been in a job we hate, where Sunday dread starts nice and early. Monday it is almost impossible to wake up and our stress levels increase as we struggle towards our desk. You feel stuck, your happiness nosedives. You spend way too much time googling looking for an answer: I don’t like my job but I can’t quit I don’t like my job what should I do How to be happy in a job you don’t like I don’t like my job but I need the money How to stop being annoyed at work What would you say if I told you about 5 easy ways to be happier in your job while you search for your dream job? Me 10 years ago… 10 years ago, I was working at an IT recruitment agency. I was there for almost 4 years and honestly I knew from my first week that it wasn’t the right fit for me. It wasn’t the agency by any means, the training I got there gave a strong foundation from which I have built my career on, it was just the nature of the job. What helped me get through was great friends and a great team. But as happens in that world turnover is high and in the fall of 2008 my closest work friend moved to England and my sales partner got a new job. It devastated me. But I didn’t think I could leave. It was just around the time of the stock market bottoming out and I was afraid to leave and become the last person in and first person out in another company. So I felt that I had to stay. And I was miserable. And instead of my usual find the silver lining type of personality I wallowed in my misery. I ate my emotions, I wasted time and had the worst performance of my career. In March 2009 I was laid off (ironic huh?) and honestly it was the best thing that ever happened to me. I have this clear memory of going for a walk after my last day of work with my husband and for the first time in a long time being gleeful and truly excited about my future. Now, 10 years wiser I realize that I was very lucky to be laid off because the mindset I was in would have kept me chained to that job. I don’t think anyone would have hired me as I was in such a negative space. And it didn’t have to be that way. I look back and wish that I could speak to that Sara and help her love the job she hated so much. Not as a way to keep her there but as a way to help her move forward. Are you Happy? I know now that I wasn't alone – at least 50% of employees are unhappy with their job with 20% matching my disengagement that I experienced. That is 2 million Canadians and 30 million Americans. WOW. That is staggering. The scary thing too is that in North America so much of our self-worth is tied to our career. So as your happiness declines so does your feeling of worth. Selling yourself is already hard enough as it is, never mind when you don’t actually believe you have anything to offer. That’s the thing. By wallowing in your misery, letting it get you down and isolating yourself from the world you are in fact holding yourself back from moving forward to a job you do love. Is the goal to stay in this job I HATE? I don’t want you to think that I’m trying to force you to stay in a job you hate. As a career coach providing career advice, I would not be doing my job right if I was! In fact my goal is for you to leave your job as soon as possible (I even have a free video course to help). But I know that running away from something doesn’t always lead to decisions that are right for you and your future. Running away muddles your motivations. So while you may be leaving the job you hate, it is very common you are going into a job you won't last at, meaning you'll be back looking for a job within a year. It is better to get to a place within your current job where you don’t feel so rushed to leave. You can be careful and picky about your next career move ensuring that it is one that will bring you that career happiness. I also know from experience that a lot of people can get so negative or jaded or so down on themselves that they just never get another offer or even interview. If you are playing the blame game, that comes across to potential employers. If you think you aren’t worthwhile, that comes across too. And those are attitudes that a Hiring Manager NEVER wants to hire! So how do you do this? 1. Take Back Control Stop looking to others to make you happy in your job. They may be struggling just like you. Grab a piece of paper, time for a list. What do you hate most about your job. Come up with your top 3. Let’s break it down from there – what can YOU do about it. Say the administrative aspect of the job is frustrating and annoying and there just never seems to be time to get it done, but you are always so stressed about it because it is hanging over your head! Why yes, I’m speaking from personal experience! You could schedule a meeting with yourself, blocking off the time and NOT rescheduling it, honouring it instead. So when the stressful voice starts talking you can tell yourself – well I have a time already scheduled so I know it will get done. When it comes time to do it, put in your headphones and put on some good music. Or pour yourself a good cup of coffee or tea. Make it an enjoyable chunk of time. For your top 3, are there any ways in which you can control the outcome or the feelings surrounding them. You not only control your destiny, but you control your happiness. 2. Change it up This is a “job hack”, can you make your job resemble a job you want? Write another list of 10 things you want in your ideal career (this can come from your Interests, Motivations and Skills). Is there anything on that list that can be incorporated into your current job, especially if they may help with one of the 3 things you hate? For me, one of the things I hated most about my agency recruitment job was the nature of the industry. It tends to be very dog eat dog. I like a team oriented and collaborative environment. And shockingly I was able to create one. I sought out Client Managers (those working with clients) to partner up on searches creating a team for those transactions. That led to the partners creating small teams around that model. My best year (happiness and performance wise) was when I was paired up with my sales partner and a team of recruiters. It also helped that I was always very open and communicative about my desire to work as a part of a team which the partners were supportive of. That is key though. Communication. Once you identify a few things that you can do in your job now to make it work for you, you probably need to talk to your manager! Ask them for more responsibility or exposure to a certain area of the business. You need to advocate for yourself. 3. Get Friendly Part of my issue during those “darkest days” was that I was isolating myself. I would hide in my cubicle, I worked 7:30-4 which meant I was in the office for 1-1.5 hours by myself and then I would go out for lunch by myself. I would avoid talking to the friends that I did have left. Or when we did talk it descend into a bitchfest. Not constructive. Not healthy. Reach out to your colleagues on a personal and professional level. Ask them about themselves. Ask about their goals. Think on it, what could you do to help them succeed? Act on it, it will make you feel better, worthwhile and needed. It is okay to vent, you need to get those negative emotions out. It is okay to let them vent, you need to be supportive to build a good relationship. BUT, don’t let it slip into complaining for the sake of complaining. If you put all of your energy into hating your job, how will you have the energy to try and love it! If you see that happening, redirect the conversation. The point of these relationships is to provide you support on this journey to love this job you hate! 4. Be Thankful Time for another list. A list about what you love, or at least like, about your job, your team/boss, and your company. If you are in a bad place, it could be just a list of 3 things. Then every day make a point to add to the list. Ruminate on it. Every time the going gets tough take that list out to remind yourself. Read the list slowly, send out a “Thank You” as you read each item. Gratitude is transformative. It leads to more positive emotions, less stress and the big one – more happiness with our jobs. Let it start transforming you. 5. Smile
If all else fails, get up, dress up and show up. And never give up. You will have hard days where this all seems impossible but slowly those days will either become easier to handle or not happen has often. Am I annoying you right now? The last thing you want to hear when you are knee deep in dissatisfaction is to "smile" but I'm going to say it anyways. Why? Research shows that the act of smiling can "trick" your brain into thinking you are happy. So why not? If you put a smile on your face and fake loving your job, eventually it will just slowly start to happen – at least enough to make the last bit of time there an enjoyable experience. I want to help you take those steps out of this job that you hate! Starting Monday January 21st, my free 5 day video challenge on how to Find Your Way to Career Happiness starts. I can't wait to help you find a job you actually love.
1 Comment
You probably first heard about Informational Interviews as a student as it is touted as a great way to get jobs. Then you forgot about them, or thought that they don’t apply to you anymore. They are great for students, in fact my first job out of university came from an informational interview. But I never turned my back on them and since then, I have still gotten jobs for myself (even for friends), gotten leads and valuable information by never being afraid to ask to talk with someone. Honestly, for me, it has one of the most powerful tools in my career, and not just for networking. The informational interview has been magical for me in the way that it has changed my life. So to help you see how powerful they can be, I wanted to share with you my story so that maybe you will feel a little more confident and sure of yourself when embarking on your own informational interviews.
Last May, shortly after my grandfather passed away, I woke up in the middle of the night and couldn’t get back to sleep. A common occurrence back then as I was stressed and not loving my job that was only made worse by my grief. That night a thought suddenly struck me. I wanted to be a Career Coach but I wanted to keep working from home. I had thought that I couldn't have both but I had never even looked into see if this was even possible! So why don’t I just take a look. The next morning I googled virtual career coach and a bunch of articles and job postings for RiseSmart popped up. They are an organization that assists individuals after being laid off. Their career coaches are almost 100% virtual. Needless to say I was intrigued and excited! Using LinkedIn, I found one of their Transition Coaches in Toronto and immediately sent a connection request stating my interest in learning more. She accepted and she told me all about the role. The roles are part time and allows individuals to continue exploring other job opportunities including as she does, freelance Career Coaching (I thought to myself, “what they exist?”). Plus she referred me to her team lead for me to speak with. Last June, the team lead and I spoke. She is based in New York and manages the small but growing coaching team in Canada. We spoke for about 30-60 minutes and it ended with her giving me some advice (maybe explore getting my Certified Professional Resume Writer) and some timelines (they had nothing now, hopefully in 2018 and for us to chat again in the fall). Honestly, I was a little disappointed at first as I wanted a job there RIGHT THIS SECOND! Then I remembered my chat with the Toronto Coach, maybe I could freelance career coach too. I began to reach out to other people in the industry who didn’t work for an organization but for themselves to arrange informational interviews and coffee chats. I found out so much great information – business tips, clients tips, etc. All that information gave me the confidence to make the leap and open up my own business. All summer I worked on designing my own website, developing content for it and making connections with the Burlington Public Library and the HRPA – Halton chapter leading to my official launch in September 2018. At that point I had a 3-5 year plan (but if I was really honest with myself, an ideal 1 year plan) to move completely away from recruiting and be able to help people as a Career Coach full-time. Fast forward to this past May. A job opened up at RiseSmart in Toronto. Immediately an interview was set up with the Talent Acquisition Specialist, the second interview with the team lead was bypassed as she and I already talked(!) and then a final interview with Canada’s General Manager. A few days later I got the call with the offer. Two weeks from the job opening to the offer. I got the offer on April 24th just a few weeks shy of the date I sent out that initial LinkedIn connection request. Allowing me to, way ahead of my scheduled plan, to say goodbye to recruitment and devote 100% of my time to Career Coaching. I have been with RiseSmart for 6 weeks now and it has been amazing. I went through their intensive training program (accredited by the International Coach Federation (ICF)) and have been working 10-15 hours a week which leaves me plenty of time to continue to build my own career coaching business and maintain a semblance of work/life balance! All because I wasn’t afraid to reach out. My life changed that night and every day I wake up so grateful for this opportunity. I feel so fulfilled being able to help people navigate career transition, reinvention and the job search. I want to help you too. Let’s set up a time to have a FREE Discover Your Career strategy call – we’ll talk about where you are now, where you want to go and some ways to get you there. If it makes sense, we’ll talk about how we can work together in a professional coaching relationship. If not, I provide some free resources, tips and an action plan to get you started on your own. What do you want to do? Reach out to others doing just that and talk to them. You never know, those calls may change your life. Do you feel like a chicken with its head cut off most days. Well I did too. Until I was introduced to time management and productivity books. Now I read them all the time to find new hacks to get more done in a day. Here are 4 books that really helped me out. I don’t know about you, but there just never seems to be enough hours in a day. I just want to do ALL THE THINGS and quite frankly the idea of compromising or giving something up just doesn’t jive with my goal oriented and over achiever type of personality. I want to cook everything from scratch, work out daily, mediate daily, spend meaningful time with my kids PLUS build a business that involves marketing on social media, writing weekly articles and newsletters, help out clients through career coaching and resume writing and more. Never mind the fact that I also have a part time job Career Transitioning, have to deal with all the admin associated with running a business and want some semblance of a social life! I know that it is impossible to do all of that all the time, but I want to at least try my hardest to become my most efficient self so that I can tick off a ton of boxes every day. As an information gatherer and a reader, it comes as no surprise that I have probably read every Time Management and Productivity book on the market. So my time management is a hodge podge of all of these ideas that I’ve learnt but my system is one that also changes all the time depending on the week and my life at that moment. Here are four books that really made an impact on my life, ones that I feel have allowed me to get more things done in a day. 1. The Four Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss This is the very first book I read about productivity about 10 years ago when I was laid off from my agency recruiting job. Back then I wrote most of the ideas off as I didn’t think it really applied to me. But there were a few things I did implement and took to heart. I loved his concept of the “New Rich” how your total take home salary isn’t how you should define your worth. In order to be a New Rich person, you need to create a life you WANT. This really resonated with me at the time as I was in the process of interviewing for a job I really wanted (Corporate Recruiter), only 5 minutes away from my house. But it was going to be a big pay cut. This book sparked a great conversation with husband in terms of what we value most. Money wasn’t at the top of the list, not even close. We also did the calculation and the hourly rate really wasn’t that different when you took into account the hours and money saved from not commuting and extra time at the office. So when the offer did come through it was an easy yes, and saying goodbye to the stress and the commute more than made up for the loss of some money. Some specific time management tools of his I have implemented over the years are figuring how much time it really takes to complete a task and sticking to it, finding a way to eliminate meetings (or a way to join in remotely), and outsourcing/delegating the tasks you are able to. When I am at my most productive, I’m following some of his ideas – don’t arrive at your desk without a plan or else you will just dawdle away the day in your inbox and being busy is a form of laziness (similar to a Gretchen Rubin thought that you can procrastinate with work). In my opinion for 99% of the population the concept of a 4 hour workweek is laughable. But I would still recommend this book to all of you as it gives great insights on how to save you some time. Especially if you work somewhere traditional where they want you at your desk, this book talks about how to convince your boss to let you work from home on Fridays, now who wouldn’t want that! 2. The 7 Habits of Highly Successful People by Stephen R Covey This was the second book on time management that I read, since it is listed on pretty much all productivity and time management must read lists! This book showed me that my career, just like my life, was completely within my control. You can’t just sit back and wait for your dream career to land in your lap – you have to BE PROACTIVE (Habit #1), and you need to remember to place what you value most above all others so you need to PUT FIRST THINGS FIRST (Habit #3). There are 4 other habits, but for me and my career these are the two that have been most useful to getting me to where I am today. His quadrant is also such a key for time management and learning how to prioritize your daily, weekly and monthly tasks. By examining the need for this task and the deadline allows us to plan out how our schedule should look. If you are a reader, then definitely pick this one up. If not, then googling it and reading an article or two will suffice and everyone and their mother has written about it, for good reason! 3. Get you Sh*t Together by Sarah Knight I love the no-nonsense style of this writer, and honestly as someone who doesn’t like being confined by the corporate world, I could relate to her story of giving it all up to pursue her dreams. Plus, her approach is right up my alley with her three steps – Strategize (plan of action to achieve a goal), Focus (break it down and schedule it) and Commit (set yourself up for success). She leans into negative thinking as a way to propel you to take action which works especially well for those who don’t have a clear direction of where they want to go or what they want to do, they just know that they want to leave or put an end to what they are doing. Sarah wants you to be very specific with your goals in terms of time management. For example, say you are struggling to keep atop of your current workload. Take a look at the core of what YOU CAN CONTROL. Are you spending too much time on social media? Then perhaps the solution is to limit your time online. And then focus on your impulse, do you feel the twitch and call of social media? Confront that impulse head on to put a stop to it! One of my most used time management tips came from this book and that is the concept of a “MUST DO LIST”. Sarah recommends that you have a large running master to do list and that every day you prioritize that list based on urgency and importance (similar to above!) and then move that to your MUST DO List. That is your focus for the day, nothing else! I highly recommend this book, it is a fun read with some great tips and a little bit of inspiration for anyone wanting a career change. 4. Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod This is one of the most recent productivity books I have read. I loved it – the idea of SAVERS (Silence, Affirmation, Visualization, Exercise, Reading, and Scribing) is something I fully believe in. But it has been one of the most difficult to put into place. I have bits and pieces throughout my day. I meditate every night before I go to bed (96 days straight right now), I read every day and I exercise/move most days. I want to do the rest, and I agree with the author that the mornings that I get up early and get all of that accomplished are the days that I am most productive as it sets a great tone for the day. My problem (or excuse) is my kids. I have a 6.5 yo and a 5 yo who wake up at 6am and quite frankly I don’t want to get up any earlier. And even if, on the odd day, they are sleeping, when I try to sneak downstairs it ends up waking them up. Plus, first thing in the morning they just want to be near me, typically they want to snuggle in bed (there are only a few more years of that and I want to soak those cuddles up!) and then be in the same room as me so it is hard to focus. But I believe so much in this. I believe that setting your intentions and your goals will not only increase your productivity but also increase the likelihood of you being a success. So I literally just researched a shorter version (since the book recommends about 90 minutes) and came across the 6 minute Miracle Morning by Hal. I’m going to tweak it to 8 minutes and only focus on the pieces I don’t do every day: Silence: 2 minute gratitude meditation (in addition to my nightly meditation) Affirmation: 2 minutes affirmations Visulaization: 2 minutes visualization Exercise: during the day Reading: during the day Scribing: 2 minute scribing – my gratitude, my daily goals and plan. Anyone willing to join me? Tomorrow, I’ll let you know how it went! The amazing thing about Happiness Books and these Productivity books is that they introduce to us concepts that we may never have thought about. But more importantly, they tell us the story of how to make the changes and how those changes can have a lasting impact on our lives. So if you are stuck in a job you hate and don’t know what to do, they can help you figure out what you want and how to make the time in a day to get there. If even that is overwhelming, how about a 30 minute phone call – we can chat for free, let’s strategize where you are, where you want to go and how to get there. |
AuthorSara Curto helps people find a career they love by teaching them a new way to job search. The Secrets to finding a job you loveClick HERE to watch
Archives
January 2024
Categories
All
|