It is like the fun dried out. My last year of working in corporate seemed less and less fun. Part of it was me. My motivation. My passion. It was shifting. And an even greater part of it was the direction that corporate life is moving. Moving towards killing the fun. With all the Shared Service Centres. The supportive IT systems of our work processes. Efficiencies. The structure of bureaucracy. The significant reduction of the expectation to employees to think for themselves. To be aware, awake and alert. The reduced freedom to contribute with talent.
I used to love process improvements, the idea of synergies in shared service centres. My perspective was that of the company. Cost savings. Standardization for easy succession planning. Because for most of my career, I worked in positions as either external consultant or in jobs with tasks including internal consulting/advisor.
And the truth is, that it is a whole lot more fun to be the consultant, who designs a new structure, than to be the employee who has to live with it.
The fact is that with the structure of our financial markets, companies feel forced to think like this. It is expected in the stock market. Cost cuts. Cost management. Restructuring. Reducing. And because of this even foundation and family owned companies have to go this way. To be competitive. Maybe it is time to change this, and in the meantime it is many peoples reality.
And I truly feel sorry for the many leaders who end up with very talented people, left with jobs where it is difficult to develop them. Most leaders I know want their people to develop. To help their teams become all they can be. And still within the boundaries of some corporation, this can be an increasingly daunting task. So the leadership element of the leaders' jobs are also shrinking.
So what can we do, if we are stuck in one of these types of jobs. The type of jobs that are shrinking. That are robbing you from the opportunity to develop new skills, for the need to be alert and really use your mind.
The first step is to become aware of your situation. Understand it. The second is to analyse the situation. The consequences of staying in the job you are in.
What are you becoming in this job? Short term. Longer term.
What are you learning? How are you developing?
What is happing to your motivation. To you self worth? The longer you stay.
What is happening to your "market value"? If you are not developing, not learning.
Reflect for a bit. Now to your option, if you are stuck. Accept it, change it, or walk away. The responsibility for living the live you want is yours. Your alone. You can change your life. You can make yourself happy.
Don't want to rock your boat? Completely understandable. Just be aware of the consequences you have to accept. Consider if we can get this stimuli - awareness, motivation, mind exercise - in our spare time as hobbies and with family. Yes! We can. The only issue is that it requires a lot more effort, and time. And conscious planning. Accepting such a situation can be difficult. And if you can truly do it, you can live happily with your job.
In big organization, it can be difficult, and still not impossible, to change it. Maybe by adding interesting projects to your position. Projects where you can keep developing. Or you may be able to shift to a position, where there is still a need for awareness, and where pro-activeness is required. Negotiate some time off for training and education to keep developing your competences. You may still have to compromise a little on how you spend your time. But if you can change it, it might be a less risky option for making improvements.
Last one is difficult for many. Walking away. Where to go? What to do? How to avoid falling into a similar trap? Analysis paralysis is an easy trap to fall into here. If you do, get help. From a friend, a mentor, a coach. Or just jump and see where you fall or if you can fly...
And remember. Not making a decision...is also a decision. To stay.
And for the new generation, entering the job market, the millennials. You are right to question if a traditional career path is right. Keep you minds and options open. There are other paths to follow than those of past generations. I have the pleasure to spend most of my time in Bali. In addition to being a beautiful tropical island, it is also a hub for location independent workers and entrepreneurs. Co-working spaces and start up weekends! Oh, and this life is not only for millennials! It is for everybody who can open their minds to the opportunity.
Please share your own reflections below!
(originally posted on LinkedIn 2016, by Charlotte Cato)
