HR Thoughts

When I got in the Pilot yesterday, the outdoor temperature gauge in my car read 12 degrees in my garage. As I exited the garage and headed towards work at 5:15 am, I watched the outdoor temperature drop to 9 degrees, 3 degrees, - 3 degrees (is that someone out walking?!), -7 degrees, and finally settling in at -12 as I noticed another crazy Minnesotan out taking a walk.

So, why am I up and driving to work at 5:15 am on a dark -12 degree morning? Well, I had a short term purpose to get some time sensitive case paperwork out and read over 2 days (!) of unread messages. So beyond the short-term purpose, did I have a long-term purpose? I must have on because I am ok with what I am doing. 

So, what is my long-term purpose you ask? You can ask it, I did. I have one, I just need a little bit of help framing and articulating it. And to do so, I am turning to the Career Encourager. The Career Encourager has some thoughts on purpose here and here that are well worth reviewing and considering. I hope you do, I know I will.

In case you are wondering, it was a balmy 23 degrees this morning.

If someone were to approach you at work and say, "How are you doing? I am worried about you." What would your reply be? That question was asked of me a few months ago. My reply? "You should be. I am worried about myself too."  Today,  however, I feel differently. How did I get from there to here? How can you?

Stop, breathe and remember you have options. It is when we feel like we do not have any options that things seem at their worst. To feel that we have no other options so we simply must endure is a very powerless and defeating position to be in. Stop that right now.

Talk with family, friends, and trusted  colleagues. And listen.

Get in touch with what’s important to you. And do not let that go. Do not compromise, explain away, or put this aside for even just a moment. Let this be what you measure options and opportunities against. Define your legacy and choose to live it.

Reconnect, network and get in the game. Call past colleagues, attend meetings of local HR or community organizations, get a LinkedIn account, do whatever it takes. Connect with others outside of your immediate workplace. Do it. It is good for your ego.

Consider it all. Consider all options that come your way. Quitting may be an option and remember that quitting is not the same as failing

Consider it some more. You have an opportunity, they want you. Yes, it absolutely does feel good to be wanted. You consider making a move. Before you do, step away from the ego building attention and the red carpet treatment and ask yourself if this opportunity is going to take you one step closer to what’s important to you. Ask yourself, "Is it time for a change?" but more importantly, is it time for this change?

Make a decision for you. This is about you and not about anyone else. Does the opportunity appeal to you? Does it move you one step closer to what is important to you? Yes? Pursue it. No? Withdraw. There is a distinction between moving towards something and running away from something. In a comment to a recent post, a reader asked, "Finally made that big decision you've talked about, i.e. leaving?"   My answer? I am choosing to stay put for now. I am willing to make a move if it is the right move but I have not come across that yet. 

In closing, enjoy the journey. There in lies the value.

It has been on my coffee table for a few weeks and I just started reading Career Distinction. True to form, I scanned through the entire book to see what was in store for me and I printed out the workbook. I am at the beginning and defining my vision and purpose. As I jot ideas down I find that I jump between ones that sound really cool, ones that I think I should have and then ones that actually resonate with me. Resonate is where I need to be, just need to work through the other areas to quiet the noise.

Why do this? The way I see it, I could go in any number of career directions from where I stand now. I am security minded, often go for the sure bet, and don't stretch too far beyond my comfort zone. Discontent? No, not necessarily. I am not in a bad place at all, actually, I am in a very good place. More like an inquiry. I am curious to see where I could go which can be very different from where I would take myself. 

Yes, I see a Caribou Coffee afternoon in my future . . . .

Rowan Manahan has started a new writing project called the Definitive Guide to Clearing Job-Hunt Hurdles and I am happy to be a part of it.

I have been involved in the job hunt process as a person hunting for a job and as a person hunting for qualified applicants. As a job hunter, I have taken the process from beginning to end, from making the oh so important and often tough decision to seek a new position, through resume building, identifying opportunities, applying, interviewing, accepting offers and living with my decisions. As a candidate hunter, I  managed the process from beginning to end, from identifying necessary qualifications for the job to be filled, reviewing resumes, qualifying, screening, interviewing, determing fit, selecting candidates and living with my decisions.

Sometimes my decisions stood the test of time, and other times they did not. How do you, as a job hunter, ensure (the best that you can in such an unsure world) that your decisions during the job hunt will stand the test of time? Time is relative here as the test of time could be 2-3 years for an employee right out of school, looking to gain as many different experiences as possible or time could be 10 years for an employee looking for stability as they grow their family for plan for early retirement.

You are competent in your occupation, you have skills and experiences to offer and there are jobs for the taking. It is an employee's market. Where do you begin? At the beginning, of course, with you. What is most important to you? What are your non-negotiables?

• Is it hours of work, scheduling flexibility or guaranteed hours? Is is cutting edge technology and innovation or the tried and true? Collaborative work teams or set reporting structures? 
• Is the ideal organization profit or non-profit? Public or private? Large or small? Do you prefer manufacturing over retail? Local or global? What business cycle do you prefer: start-up, growth, stability, or decline?
• What type of people do you prefer to work with?  What do you do exceptionally well? What skills do you want to develop? Is it more important to refine your skills or develop new?
• Do you want to do the same in a different setting, do what you do from a different perspective or change what you do completely?
• Is the salary and benefits package competitive? Does the package include what you need? How about what you want? Is salary the determining factor?
• How far do you want to travel to work? Are you willing to relocate?
• What is the company's mission? Do you believe in it? Do you need to?

The employee-employer relationship is just that, a relationship, and each party brings something to the table. So, they have what you want, but do you have what they want? You do? Well, tell them! Tell them and show them why you are the very best fit for the job. Why you and not others? Now is the time to differentiate yourself from all others.

What happens when it all comes together? You see both a personal and professioanl fit, blow them away in the interview and you live (work) happily ever after. Or at least until it is time to hunt with heart again.

"Quitting is not the same as failing."

If anything, this one quote from Seth Godin was worth the little price of his little book, The Dip, A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When To Stick).

If quitting is not failing, what is it then? Well, quitting a task, a job or a relationship is a "conscious decision you make based on the choices that are available to you." It is ok to say no, it is ok to choose to stop working towards something you started, it is ok to well, quit; but not without some focus and conscious consideration. Why is this important? You can't be the best in everything so identify the things you can excel at and quit the rest. "Quitting is not the same as failing."

This perspective is important, and very timely, to me. I was on the verge of really wanting to quit my job and my profession, and really struggled because I felt like I would be failing if I did. Ultimately, I did not quit and instead committed to myself to making changes. Things simply can't stay as they are - for me or for the organization. So, what to do? I needed more information. Information sought and found it in this tiny little book. In 76 pages, Seth labels and defines exactly where I am right now - I am in a dip.  Ok, just go with this one for a moment and ask, as I did, just what is a dip?

Because I could not say it any better than Seth himself, here goes, "almost everything in life worth doing is controlled by the Dip . . .the Dip is the long slog between starting and mastery . . .the Dip is the long stretch between beginner's luck and real accomplishment." Well, check out the picture. This is the Dip.

There are eight dip curves or "places where organizations and individuals are most likely to give up." Be prepared, you will face one or more in some venture, in some task or in some relationship at some point in your life.

I am here and I want to be there.

Where is here? I am in a very stable organization, supported by my staff, peers and leadership, I am making measurable (albeit seemingly slow) progress, I respect many of my top leaders, the values of the organization are not in conflict with my own and most of the time I really do enjoy what I do. I am in a 7-5, punch the clock, be at your desk to be contributing type of position, I am connected at the hip to almost every single action that occurs in my department, I am drained at the end of the day and more so, the work is no longer challenging to me. 

Where is there? I am out of the day to day details, I am able to consult, advise, share ideas, set direction, I am valued for what I do not where or for how many hours per day I do it. I am energized by the work. I am able to take my daughter to summer camps, during the day, and have energy to play when my work is done. I work with consummate professionals, many women and I create.

So, what will it take for me to get out of the dip and move from here to there? Nothing less than 1) changing my assumptions about work and how it has to be done and 2) refining my skills. That is my goal and to stick with it, I will determine what it is I must quit in terms of tasks or relationships.   

On a final note, it is important to share Seth's point about quitting before you start or deciding in advance when to quit. So at the risk of reproducing his entire book in this post (it was a short one!) here it goes, "if quitting is going to be a strategic decision that enables you to make smart choices in the marketplace, then you should outline your quitting strategy before the discomfort sets in."  A BATNA (best alternative to negotiated agreement) came to mind for me as this is determined before you enter into a negotiation. Very similar.

So, what about you? In what areas are you facing adversity or questioning your direction? Is this an area where you can be the best? Are you in a dip? More importantly, are you going to quit or are you going to stick?

But it sure can make a difference.

That is why I am engaging my right brain (or is it my left brain?!) this week in reviewing and proposing adjustments to our RN salary tables. Evaluating data, developing the best, worst and intermediate scenarios, and generally just getting the numbers right. If anyone ever tells you compensation is a black and white, void of interpretation and innuendo kind of a field - don't believe them. Actually it provides a great combination of right and left brain stuff with the numbers and the personal "how much do you value me" questions to keep me engaged. My thoughts? We need competitive wages to get in the game. Once there, we can take the salary question out of the equation so we can either resolve recruitment difficulties because it really was all about the salary, or enable us to get past the salary question to address any other underlying issues.

That is why I am at work today instead of lounging on a raft, floating down the Mississippi. You only need $40,000 to be happy and I bet that I could be happy on that, but I don't have to be, so I am not going to go there right now. My family would probably do fine with me bringing home less, but there are things we want to do and places we want to go and guess what, they take money and I want to do them.

That is why my six-year old gets an allowance each week. Half goes into pig bank for savings and the other into the dog bank (the one she made herself) for spending. Funny thing though, after only a few weeks, all of it has gone to the pig and the little candy aisle type items she just has to have "or else she'll die" don't seem that necessary when she has to spend her allowance on them. She is saving for a really big something - "a pink car."

That is why my husband and I are working with an absolutely awesome financial advisor, saving for the future and planning for the kid's education. We will retire about the time she graduates and it will be time to continue our travels and live in comfort. Because we are "older" we will have enough saved take care of ourselves so our daughter does not have to. Even though she says we will live in the nursing home together now, I am sure she will have other plans when the time comes :)

There is always more money to be had but the sacrifices and risks are not what I am willing to take at this point in my life and there will never be anything worth more to me than my family. The kid sent me flowers yesterday with a handwritten card - absolutely priceless. On that note, a whole week of vacation starts right now!

So, what have you accomplished that you are not taking credit for? What do you do well that you are taking for granted? What horns can you toot that you are not even aware of? Think about it. They are out there - realize them. Realize them with a little help from your friends, colleagues, coaches etc. What horns can you toot that you do not?

I had a realization last week. My realization came during a presentation by Michael Watkins, co-author of The First 90 Days in Government, Critical Success Strategies For New Public Managers At All Levels.  Michael was one of the great presenters at the HBR seminar I participated in during the SHRM Conference and the bearer of another golden nugget. The topic was successfully transitioning a move from the private to public sector. Core leadership traits and managerial skills necessary for success hold true, but the rule book in the public sector can be very different from that in the private sector. The games are played differently. Not understanding or acknowledging that differences exist is where many leadership transitions falter.

Transitions, by their very nature, are marked by change, growth and challenge, be it  public to private, private to public, global to local, retail to manufacturing, communications to health care, college student to employee, between organizations, within organizations etc. Successful transitions are not about taking what you know and laying it on top of where you are going and expecting it to work. Successful transitions are not about taking what you know and leaving it at the door. Successful transitions are about taking what you know, learning what you don't and applying both to fit the situations at hand. Transitioning successfully is a skill to take credit for. It is another bullet on your resume, another point of discussion, another selling point for your cover letter; it is a golden nugget.

As someone for whom tooting my own horn does not come easily (but, I am getting better), this was a discovery. I have had many transitions throughout my career and today, transitions are very prevalent throughout the workforce with braided careers. Many of the lessons learned as I moved from college student to Army officer, from logistics to HR, military to publicly held company, from publicly held to family owned, from manufacturing to health care, from private to public, and not to forget from the East Coast to Midwest have been in the transition itself. I developed great skills in the course of my transitions, however, I did not discuss them from that perspective or within that context. Now, I will. The workplace today is marked by continual, constant change. What better skill to have, to demonstrate, and to articulate than being able to adapt to change and to do it successfully time and time again?

So,what have you done that you are not taking credit for? What do you do well that you are taking for granted? What things do you do that you tell yourself - anyone can do that? Look again, can anyone really?! Who can you ask about what they see you do every day that inspires, encourages or amazes them? What transitions have you made?

Find your horn and toot it!

You may have wondered, as I did in a previous post,  "am I tired of my job, or just tired?"  So you took a nap, had a long, restful night sleep, had a nice weekend off, did a little soul searching and guess what, you are still tired. What is this all about? Maybe, just maybe it is your job. Let's play with this a while, I will.

All things considered, I have been thinking about my job lately.  What things considered? The lack of time to do anything beyond the day to day, the attention the day to day details demand and more directly, the fact that I have very little energy left for myself or my family. I threw out the idea of me taking the summer off and going back at it in the fall. My husband's response, "how about me?" Ahh, the over stressed, over committed family of today. Needless to say, although we  both continue to work , there was value in opening the way for a committed approach to family focus.

I found value at the SHRM Annual Conference here in Vegas this week. I participated in the course "HR Issues in the Public Sector: Meeting Critical Challenges" sponsored by Harvard Business Review Publishing. Believe it or not, I considered withdrawing from the course and conference a few weeks ago when I felt overwhelmed by work demands coupled with recent business travels. The monetary cost of doing so on such short notice was too high so off I went to Vegas, begrudgingly.

Needless to say, I was very impressed by the conference - it was superbly organized, the attention to detail was second to none, the service and the presentations first class. There were many "golden nuggets" thrown my way during the conference (worthy of a post of their own) but there was one in particular, thrown to me at about 5:00 p.m. today, that I now believe was the reason I was here. This nugget was presented by Robert M. Galford, Center for Executive Development, and co-author of Your Leadership Legacy in his presentation, "Legacy and the Public Sector Leader."

The nugget was presented in the context of strategic and personal questions to ask yourself in consciously planning your legacy. Without further ado, here they are:

• Is it fundamentally possible to make the impact that I hope to?
• Are the challenges/requirements to accomplish this at my present job or in my present role insurmountable or achievable
• Is this how I want to continue my career?
• Is there something next, something greater, or more exhilarating, or perhaps less or "differently" frustrating?

Where am I now? My current role is not the role in which I want to continue my career. I am seeking something greater and more exhilarating. There are aspects of my role that I enjoy and get value from and there are distinct contributions I make to the organization.  Personally, the totality of my role and contributions are not what I want for myself. It is time for a change.

Asking myself the questions above, yes, it is fundamentally possible to make the impact I hope to and no, the challenges in my present role and within the organization are not insurmountable. There is one main reason why people leave organizations and for me, this is the very reason why I will stay: my supervisor. 

Now is the time to take HR to the next level and I can bring it there. I have to bring it there. Is it where the organization wants it to go? I don't know. What do I know? I am confident that when I bring the ideas to the table, they will be listened to. Unlike the odds at the casino, this is one thing that you can take to the bank and I can't ask for any more than that.

So, you are wondering if it may be time for a change.

Have you been presented with a new career opportunity or once in a lifetime chance to travel? Had a bad day, feeling underutilized, unappreciated? Tired? Challenge replaced by the routine? Looking to provide more focus on a different aspect of your life? Dementors getting you down? Need more money? Curiosity got your attention? 

Wondering if it may be time for a change and want some help? There are many, many great resources, tools, and perspectives available from face to face coaches, books, blogs, education resources, career and interest inventories. Each provides something different yet they all have one thing in common. They all come back to one thing - you.

In the quiet of your own mind, you have to face you and there simply is no way around it. Believe me, if there was, I would have found it by now! The answer to the question, "now what?" is there for those with the courage to not only seek it but to listen to what they hear. The grass is always greener on the other side yet "you," the constant, will remain. You are what this question is all about. You the parent, the spouse, the friend, the colleague, the neighbor, the person.

Facing yourself, what gives you energy? What draws your energy away? What is important to you? What are you trying to achieve? What do you need to do to get there? What do you need to give up? What do you need to change? Envision what it would be like if you were there . . .what does it feel like? Something you want? 

What do you think? Ready for a change?

When asked, "how are you today," do you respond, "tired, very tired?"

As a wife, friend, mother of a thriving 6 year old, HR Manager, PTO Officer, gymnastics, swimming and guitar lesson observer and supporter, 8-10 hour a night sleeper who gets only 6-7 on a regular basis and one who can't get a visit to the gym in unless she goes between midnight and 4:30 am (NOT), I say YES.

Is your well dry? Do you feel as though you have nothing left to give? Do you wonder if it is your job? If it is not your job, it must be something. If not something it must be someone. Right?

Not necessarily. In her post Are you tired of your job .  . . or are you just tired?  Peggy Andrews describes a time when her well was empty. The best part is the quote from her father-in-law when he says,

"It's very easy to think you are tired of someONE or someTHING when the reality is, you are just TIRED."  

The father-in-law may be on to something. Let's go get some sleep! 

"You can be anything you want to be, if you just try hard enough"

I have heard it, I have read it and I have even said it. Do I really believe it? No. And neither does Tom Rath, author of Strengths Finder 2.0 and it is he whom declared this maxim misguided. 

My disbelief is based on the fact that no matter how hard I try, I have absolutely no ability to woo people. I do not enjoy the challenge of meeting new people and although I admire my extroverted friends and so want to be like them, I am not and have to face the truth that I never will be :( . 

Fortunately, Tom's disbelief is based on more empirical evidence and Gallup's 40 year study of human strengths. Tom was part of a team that identified 34 most common themes of talent and a companion on-line assessment. The assessment identifies a person's top 5 themes.

My top 5 were right on and as I read the descriptions, I felt as though I was looking at myself and at least once said, "ahh, so that's why I do that!"  or "yup, that explains it!" My top 5 themes were: input, individualization, learner, relator, and intellection. Yes, I was a little disappointed themes such as command, futuristic or strategic did not make my top 5, but, oh well . . . .I will just have to continue to surround myself with these types of friends and colleagues so they can rub off on me! It takes all kinds to make the world go 'round. . . . .

Back to business now, this is a tool that can be used for individual development as well as team development from the perspective of identifying and leveraging strengths. Really, the only effective way to lead.

 A key part of my role (and my personal job satisfaction) is developing my staff. To do that, I have got to know what makes them "tick."  So, true to form, I proceeded to review the remaining 29 themes and attempted to identify my staff members in them. Some jumped right out at me, others did not. I realized that I do not yet not know some of the newer members of my staff well enough to do this, and this is not ok for me.

Tom closes a chapter with a more accurate maxim:

"You  cannot be anything you want - but you can be more of who you already are."

Lisa closes by saying, "And I am here to help you!"

All righty now, let's get ready for some quality face time with the boss!

I am recruiting and hiring employees who were born when I was in high school. Never thought I'd see the day, but yes, here it is, here they are and here I am fortunate enough to interact with them every day. And I am loving it. I am lucky enough to have an awesome HR intern fresh out of law school, a student from the local technical college gaining work experience while finishing her degree and one or two staff members under the age of 30. They are young and they have ideas different than my own. They bring a fresh energy and perspective to what we do each day.

I am interested in work life from the perspective of younger workers and I am interested in new perspectives on every day work life issues to ponder to help me to break out of this rut I think I am in.  Well, I found both in Penelope Trunk's  new book, Brazen Careerist.

The chapters and rules I enjoyed the most are:

Do Your Own Work Last. Rule # 17 provides advice to new managers to help them avoid the typical pitfalls and not be a general nightmare to work for. Could probably use this advice for some experienced managers as well for a little grounding :)

Playing Office Politics and Other Acts of Kindness chapter actually puts a positive spin on one thing many people dread. Penelope expands on this thought in her Nine Biggest Workplace Myths when she states in Myth # 4 (which I absolutely love!): 

• Office politics is about backstabbing.

  The people who are most effective at office politics are people who are genuinely nice. Office politics is about helping people to get what they want. This means you have to take the time to figure out what someone cares about, and then think about how you can help him or her to get it. You need to always have your ears open for when you can help. If you do this, you don’t have to strong arm people or manipulate them. Your authentic caring will inspire people to help you when you need it.

Don't Be the Hardest Worker chapter supports a "happy medium in order to perform the best" and taking the time to think and the chapter that follows, Getting a Promotion is so Last Century, really hit home for me. This chapter validated much of my recent thoughts as I weigh out my devotion to my family with career advancement, and conversations about mommy tracks, reentry in to a workforce if one should decide to step off the fast track, yada, yada.

I do have to say that Rule #28, Use Harassment to Boost Your Career , caught my interest from an HR perspective but I soon realized after reading Penelope's example that I did just that, rather successfully, as a female Army officer in a predominately male maintenance battalion. HR hat back on again, I am here to help and when you find that you cannot rein it in yourself, please come see me.

Brazen Careerist is a quick read, packed with tons of fresh ideas. I recommend it highly!