Before You Jump Ship, Try This

Does your job leave you frustrated and exhausted? So much so that you find yourself walking out the door at the end of the day, never wanting to walk back in?

Do you have imaginary confrontations in your mind’s eye that end with you slamming out of your boss’s office declaring, “I quit”? Alternatively, have you recently lost your passion for what you do?

Sometimes, a career change is necessary to preserve a healthy work-life balance. Often, however, a change in your current position is all that is needed to rediscover joy in what you do. So, if you find yourself at your limit and ready to abandon ship, before you do, consider trying these strategies:

#1 TAKE A STEP BACK

Proximity can skew perspective, and moving forward can often start with a step back. Are you taking life - or work - too seriously? Take a moment to revisit your values. Are you living these out? What about your strengths? Seek new opportunities to develop them. There is so much more to life than current troubles at work. Give yourself a moment to process, and make sure it has not gotten bigger than life.

#2 TALK TO YOUR BOSS OR HR

Suffering in silence is not a virtue. Let your boss or HR manager know what you are facing. They may be able to suggest or approve some changes that would make all the difference for you. Do you need more resources or personnel to get the job done well? Is a change in policy required to improve workflow? Maybe getting out of the office or a work-from-home day would increase productivity and morale for you or your team. These are all conversations best held with your boss or appropriate party. Schedule a meeting today!

#3 CONSIDER WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON

Have you experienced an addition or loss in the family? How is your health? What is the state of your important relationships? Have you moved recently or run into financial troubles? There are times when frustrations at work have little to do with work itself and more to do with a culmination of life’s pressures. Take some time to assess the difference. It could be that a little intentional self-care could unravel a majority of your work troubles.

#4 REORGANIZE YOUR WEEK

Stuck in a rut? Try something different! Do you typically answer emails in the morning and make calls in the afternoon? Shake it up! You may find that conversation comes easier for you in the morning (results may vary, depending on the strength of your coffee). This is just one example of the little changes you can make that may have a significant impact. Routine can be an incredible asset, but lack of variety can also get stale. What’s one adjustment to the schedule you could make this week?

#5 USE YOUR PTO

Could burn-out be clouding your judgment? Before making a big career decision, take a break to get perspective. Sadly, Americans as a whole tend to leave vacation days on the table. This leads to some issues such as low performance, fewer promotions and raises, and worst of all, the unavoidable stress. On the upside, something as simple as a vacation can affect the opposite with higher morale, greater production, personal fulfillment and improved health.

#6 RE-ENGAGE YOUR HOBBY

What’s your hobby? When is the last time you enjoyed it? If you do not like your answer to either of those questions, this may be a chance to reprioritize your life to include a hobby. Merriam-Webster defines a hobby as “a pursuit outside one's regular occupation engaged in especially for relaxation.” The value of hobbies include improved quality of life, health benefits, and wait for it—increased productivity and satisfaction at work.

#7 HIRE A COACH

An athlete at the top of his game and a world-class musician have two things in common: a moment when they wanted to give up and…a coach. Is success eluding you? Feel like quitting your job? It may be time to hire a career coach. A coach can help facilitate the fresh perspective, encouragement, and confidence you need to move from drudgery to delight in your work.

WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT?

As Earl Nightingale says, “We are at our very best, and we are happiest, when we are fully engaged in work we enjoy on the journey toward the goal we have established for ourselves. It gives meaning to our time off and comfort to our sleep. It makes everything else in life so wonderful, so worthwhile.”

Take a moment to picture your current attitude towards your work, colleagues, direct reports, and supervisor. Are you happy and fully engaged? Now picture how you would like your approach to be. What’s the difference? What’s one thing that you can do in the next 24 hours to move toward your preferred attitude?

Then, as Nike trademarked, “Just Do It.”

Get Your Project Greenlighted

So you have a bright idea that would benefit your company, but how do you convince the executives to give you the go ahead? It can seem daunting, but following these six steps could get you the green light.

1.    Visualize Your Success

To some, this may look like a new age meditation practice but consider for a moment how often we naturally imagine failure without even giving it a second thought. We imagine the entire conference room laughing at us and tell ourselves that our ideas will never work. These thoughts make us feel timid and incompetent. When we visualize our greatest fears, we sabotage our success.

However, what if we visualized our victory? What if we imagined a round of applause and a standing ovation? We would spur in ourselves a confidence that oozes into our presentation. In a study done by TD Bank, they found advancement was higher for those who have a firm vision of their success and keep their eyes on it through their endeavors, especially those who collected and displayed images that represented the fulfillment of their goals.

2.    Know Your Audience

Have you ever tried to persuade a two-year-old to pick up their toys? It probably consisted of fun music, games, or a treat. If you tried the same tactic on a teen, they would roll their eyes and call you insane. That is because the toddler views the music, games, and jelly beans as a beneficial side effect. The teen, however, will never in his/her life, consider such silliness as useful to his/her world.

In the same way, you must take into account to whom you are presenting your project idea. Are they collaborating co-workers or elite executives? Share holders or senior management? How will your project benefit them? Will it increase productivity, revenue, or profit margins? Will it decrease expenses or labor? Make sure you spend a considerable amount of time focusing on the “why” during your presentation. Ultimately, they will want to know what’s in it for them.

3.    Be Compelling

It is not enough to only mention the advantages of your project as if it were an afterthought. You have got to present it with compelling evidence and numbers. Chart out the profit increase or the labor decrease. Let them see with their own eyes and process with their minds the benefits of adopting your project.

Use questions that intrigue, like “Did you know that improving the NPS score of your products or services by 5 points can lead to 150% more revenue? Given that, this project will pay for itself in a matter of 6 months.” Be ready to share your assumptions that lead to this claim or research you have investigated that shows this to be true.

4.    Use Your Strengths

Let’s face it. There’s just some things that you are good at and some things you are not. Find your strengths, using a strength survey such as StrengthsFinder 2.0, and capitalize on them. Perhaps your top strength is strategic thinking. Use these your natural super powers to plan and plot your entire presentation sequentially. If your strength results label you a learner, then do what you do best. Sit your rump down and research. Think ahead to the questions your audience may ask and find those answers, so you are prepared with a quick and accurate reply. Whatever your top strengths, use them to your advantage and watch your confidence grow.

5.    Follow Up

Once you have presented your project and addressed all spoken concerns, walk away with your head held high, because you capitalized on your natural assets to deliver a confident presentation catered to your audience. Allow them the appropriate amount of time to consider it. If you do not hear anything within that time, do not shrug it off and decide that they hated it. Contact the member of the group who is responsible for reporting a decision to you and ask for an update.

6.    Keep At It

If the answer comes back as a “no,” do not take it personally. Find out why the project was denied and reevaluate. What can you do to change your idea or evolve your growth? If the project is important to you, start over and make the necessary modifications. Then go back at it. Present your better project with greater confidence and more organization than before.

While this formula does not guarantee you a green light, it will produce a higher success rate, and you will feel great in the process. For further ideas on how to unleash your natural strengths and build a significant and meaningful career, schedule your 30-minute call today.