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CAUTION, CAREER RISKS YOU MUST NOT AVOID

Sometimes people can be so worried about not taking risks that they take the wrong ones, but to learn, grow and advance in your career, you’re going to have to take some risks. You just need to be sure they’re the right ones, learning to take carefully measured risks on purpose and being OK with failure allows you to learn and grow. As you plan your next career move, consider these other risks you should never take.

Risk rejection: flout conformity

While no one wants to be disliked, criticized or rejected, only when you risk all of those can you add the unique value you have to bring and set yourself apart from the masses. When all you do is conform, then all you have to offer is conformity. As Margaret Thatcher once said, “You can’t lead from the crowd.” When all you do is try to fit in, you negate the difference our difference makes. So own what makes you unique, forge your own path, express your own opinion and make a stand for what’s true for you.

Risk disapproval: promote yourself

Too often, a misguided sense of humility keeps us from letting people who can help us advance know who we are, what we’ve done and what we want to do in the future. There’s a distinct difference between promoting yourself to stroke an insecure ego and sharing your value so that those who can help you add more of it know who you are and what you’re capable of doing. In today’s competitive workplace, unless you are willing to toot your own horn from time to time, you run the risk of being left behind as the opportunities you thought would be laid at your humble feet are given to the horn blowers around you. So get over yourself, put caution to the wind… toot toot!

Risk ignorance: challenge assumptions 

Being willing to ‘Learn, unlearn and relearn’ is crucial to adapting and seizing opportunity in today’s accelerated world and continually evolving workplace. Only when you have the courage say “I don’t know” and risk appearing ignorant, can you find more creative approaches, and create new and better maps that will allow you to navigate forward more efficiently and tackle your challenges more innovatively.

Risk imperfect decisions:  be decisive despite uncertainty

Sure, making a decision, despite the ambiguity and uncertainty opens the possibility of messing up or making a mistake. In an age where we have so much information available to us, waiting until you have all the information you want (and have analyzed it fully) can prove costly and inhibiting. But in a world where change is happening fast and the windows of opportunity are limited, choosing to do nothing can exact a far steeper toll on your career, your business, and your life

 

    

 

                                                                                         “Nothing Is Riskier than not Taking Risks” -lohiConsult

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A NEW MINDSET OR A NEW JOB???

Unhappiness at work is a common problem. Unhappiness makes us less productive, less healthy and miserable in general.  All of us have felt unhappy at one point or another at our jobs and a surprising number of us are chronically unhappy in our current positions.  When you feel dissatisfied and unhappy at work, it can be tempting to start looking for a new job, send in your resignation and dash for the exit as rapidly as possible.

When you realize why you’re unhappy, you can start taking meaningful action to improve your circumstances, but before you say goodbye, I need you to think: is it possible that you don’t need a new job, but instead a new mindset?  Let us consider these important factors before you make that call or write the resignation mail, especially if you don’t have another offer right away.

Pay: You feel like you’re working harder than you’re getting paid for. When you suspect there is a dissonance between the amount of effort you’re putting in and the amount of reward you’re receiving, it’s natural to feel like your job is a waste of time or that you’d be happier elsewhere.

Flexibility: The less flexible your job is, the unhappier you’ll become.  You can’t take off early to pick your child up for school, you can’t go for your lunch dates and you can’t turn down any assignments that fall outside your range of expertise.

Future: You’re okay with your position today, but there isn’t much room for advancement. Raise requests are almost always turned down, and there’s no room for promotions.

Stability: You might worry about being laid off or fired, or you might worry that the entire company is going under or perhaps you noticed behaviors, patterns, and decisions that lead you to believe your job is unstable.

Demands: You’re expected to do too much in too little time on your job, so you’re tired of the high-pressure environment because you never get to focus on the quality work you’d like to be doing or create a healthy work-life balance.

Other people/colleagues:  The social aspect of work makes a big impact, yes you don’t like the people you work with, or you simply aren’t working with enough people that you admire, get along with, or respect.

What to do if you are unhappy

First, recognize that there’s a difference between acute unhappiness (moments/sudden of unhappiness) and chronic unhappiness (ongoing/reoccurring unhappiness).  Be honest with yourself and try to look at the circumstances objectively. Are you truly unhappy in your work, or are you just having a bad week? If

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Secrets To Hide From Your Boss!

Even if He or she is super friendly and feels like one of the ‘boys’ or ‘girls’, or even feels like an amazing friend, guess what?  He/She is still your boss, which means that you should treat them as one. From the most minor of things to the most serious, there are everyday life issues that bosses just don’t need to know about.  Not implying that all bosses are bad people, but common sense tells you that being completely open and honest with your boss, in most cases, is just a flat out bad idea. Some things to hide from your boss are:

Greener grass/more money syndrome

Every boss knows that their employees want better jobs, they probably do too.  Everyone wants a better job than they have. Yes, nobody wants to stay in a dead end job and even people with great jobs are always looking for better jobs. Who doesn’t want a new position that pays more, has more power and/or prestige or more perks? You don’t want to be passed over for a promotion that could be what you’re looking for, just because the boss thinks you are looking to advance with another company.  It’s a secret better kept inside though because it could very easily be used against you.

You crack under pressure

You need to keep that information to yourself and learn to deal with it like the grown-up that you supposedly are.  While some people are more hesitant when it comes  to taking on stressful and time bound projects, others are super proficient at working under pressure.  If the former describes you, guess what?  Your boss doesn’t want to know that you hide in the bathroom and cry when they ask you to speak to a client or put you in charge of a hugely important project. So devise a method that works for you and go for it.

You are in Debt

The last thing you want is for your boss to think you are not capable.  Thanks to the car you bought and that beautiful apartment you really could not afford but went out of your way to get all the same.  So, the children’s school fees are long due, so your wife’s car just decided to pack up and….. ummmm the list is unending, so you are in debt.  The last person that should hear anything about it is your boss.  He/She is just going to stop respecting you and start thinking that you don’t know what you’re doing at the office.

They are not FUNNY

A happy boss is a more pleasant boss to work for right?  Many of us have laughed at a joke told by a boss that wasn’t even remotely close to being funny. They like to think they are lightening the mood in the office when they are actually doing quite the opposite. They think they are funny, so what harm can it do to let them think so?  The best thing for you to do is just take it as that, a mood lightener, and give it a hearty chuckle before completely forgetting about it moments later.

Everyone wants to be seen in a good light in the eyes or their boss!!!!