Hello 2013, Welcome Change!

The beginning of a new year give us time to wind down the celebrations and reflect on activities of the year that has just passed.

Personally for me, the 33 days between Thanksgiving and New Year’s drive me into holiday overdrive.  Even more than revving up for holiday cheer, I am happy when all the cheering is done.  I welcome the newness of the New Year and the exciting expectations of the unknown, which brings the desire to do “it” all over again and even better this time around.

Read more: Hello 2013, Welcome Change!

Give Stretch to Your Career!

CONGRATULATIONS!

You’ve aced the interviews and started your new job! You absolutely love it! You’re absorbing new responsibilities, new names and faces faster than you can blink.  It’s all blurry.

By the way, how are you handling the bombardment of new information?  You’ve probably figured out on your own on how to do things better.  But don’t be too quick – Remember to engage direction from your managers and team.

Be a quick start and hit the ground running, but don’t be an upstart.  You’re not interviewing anymore.  You had already proved your worth when THEY offered you the job.  Be observant and listen closely.  Learn THEIR culture.  Be your genuine self because [hopefully] it is what got you the job in the first place.  Learn all you can from whoever is coaching you.

Don’t insult the work of a predecessor--even if they left under unfavorable circumstances.  And, if your predecessor was well-liked and missed, don’t “Dis” them. Rather, let your own performance shine through by getting up to speed on what needs to get done.

You can give stretch to your career, by looking where your predecessor has done a less than average job.  Go there and do better and do it without upstaging anyone. But do it above and beyond what’s expected of you.  Then back off and let your performance shine for itself.

Remember to be consistently excellent in every task you tackle. Come to work on time and be enthusiastic about your work. Sooner than you think, you’ll be recognized as worthy of being hired.

Sooner than you think, you’ll be looking back at your sterling performance and felling as if you have always belonged.

Inspiringly yours,
CWW Career-Wise Ways...!

Challenge Yourself, Don't Be a Shadow

We all like to be known as something. There are words and descriptions that tell people who we are before they ever get to know us. Phrases like, “She’s so friendly”, or “He’s a computer whiz” and “They’re the nicest couple”. It’s funny, but when we hear these comments, we know exactly who these individuals are.

I’ve always been leery of nametags and nicknames, particularly in a work environment.  I always want to be known as someone who delivers the right service on time and ahead of schedule.  But, I’m not sure I want the office slacker to think of me that way.  And no, I don’t want the local mooch hitting me up for a loan on payday.

You can see where I’m going with this.  What I’m talking about is letting yourself be known by your positive qualities while keeping your reputation safe from mis-interpretation.  We all like to think of ourselves as genuine, but are we?  All the time?

We are not responsible for how other people think.  But we can educate them and while we may never change their minds, we can choose to win the battles where the odds are in our favor – especially when it concerns our work reputation.

I keep thinking of the circumstances when a new person is hired, coworkers and higher-ups are watching to see if he or she could do the job as well as so-and-so.  And of course so-and-so has moved on and the newcomer can’t even fathom who or what he or she is up against.

That's why one of CWW Favorite Tips is, #7 – “Challenge yourself instead of envying the performance of others”, and #11 – “Don’t be a shadow in someone else’s Star-Power”.

You may have to reinvent the position you’ve just been hired for and yourself along with it.

Wishing Your CWW Career-Wise Ways...!

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Coping Strategies for Keeping Your Sanity……After Losing Your Job

The affect on the psyche after a job loss is deep.  Coping strategies are necessary mechanisms that everyone can benefit from.  Anyone who has ever experienced the loss of a job can tell you that the process to overcome the emotional issues while dealing with the scars are phenomenal.  Most of us don’t recognize how distinct are the stages we go through because they are so numbed to the experience.  Most of us don’t realize how deeply connected we are to our jobs until we don’t have them anymore.

I remember a close friend who had saved to buy a brand new car.  It had everything—a moon roof, power windows, a superior stereo system, and because it was parked on the street just outside her front door, the best theft-proof technology available at that time.  My friend was so in tune to protecting her car from harm that she thought she had covered all her bases.  Except, one morning when she went to the front window to admire her car, it wasn’t there.  Fearing the worst, she ran through the house calling her husband, thinking he may have moved it.  When she found him, he confirmed her fears. Her car had been stolen by a even smarter thief than she had imagined.   She sat and cried and cried.  As much as she had taken the right steps to protect herself and her car, she could not protect it from being stolen and she could not protect herself from being the victim of a crime.

Read more: Coping Strategies for Keeping Your Sanity……After Losing Your Job