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Career News for June 2007
Your Career Compass

AUTHOR:      Gayle Oliver
PUBLISHED:  July 7, 2007

I hope that the three-day Memorial weekend gave each of you a chance to relax, even for a moment. If the re-invigorating effects of the holiday have worn off too quickly, it may mean you are suffering from a lack of fulfillment and job satisfaction in your everyday working-lives. Hopefully, the coming summer months will allow you time for a more extended getaway. But, instead of using your meticulously planned vacation as an exotic count-down to the time you have to go back to work, take some time to consider what is most important to you in your professional future.

Whether it?s achieving more life-balance, acquiring new areas of expertise, limiting your commute, or improving your compensation, some well-deserved contemplation may reveal that you don?t have a clear plan of action. If so, keep in mind that EXECUME offers career consulting services that have helped many of our clients devise a Career Strategy that matches their heart-felt career goals.

You may need some unbiased feedback, or some career ?therapy? that will allow you to define the necessary steps you will need to take in order to transform your determination into purposeful action. Consider setting up an appointment as your first step in establishing your career focus and ensuring that your career compass is pointed in the right direction.

Join us for our next Execume event:

?How to Tell Your Career Story? ? June 28, 2007

All the best, Gayle

Gayle Oliver, President and CEO
EXECUME





SHOULD I STAY, OR SHOULD I GO NOW?


Knowing how long to stay in your current position or when the time has come to move on can feel like a daunting decision. Here are three key things to consider when determining whether that next job is right for you:

1) Does the compensation you are being offered really justify going through the stress of a job change?

If you are unpaid and overworked, the answer is easy. If you are fairly compensated now, keep in mind that more money always comes with a price. Often it means more travel, more stress, and less job security.

2) Will you have sufficient contact with people?

Experts say that a misaligned work environment is a primary reason for job dissatisfaction. If you enjoy heavy interaction with people to feel enthusiastic and energized, don?t get trapped in a job that alienates you from others. Conversely, if you need frequent solo time, don?t choose a job that demands constant interface. Be clear about your people quotient because it will dramatically impact your job satisfaction quotient.

3) Do you want a prestigious job?

Prestige matters tremendously to some and almost none to others. If having sufficient levels of authority and a job title that will impress your friends is important, be honest about it. Make sure that you apply for jobs that match your desires. Don?t let a recruiter or any one else (even spouses) convince you that a step backward in job title or responsibility will be tolerable for you. It probably won?t. Not only will you likely be unhappy from the outset of your new job, but you may have a hard time ?climbing back up? the corporate ladder from a lower-level position.

As a recruiter, I frequently see people flounder in their career decisions because they don?t narrow down what?s most important to them. Like life, job opportunities usually offer people a series of trade-offs. In order to get one thing you really want, you may have to give up something else. To get more money, you may have to give up life-balance. To have frequent contact with people, you may have to work in an office instead of out of your home. To have an executive job title, you may have to give up job security since executives are high-risk, high-liability roles. Compensation, work environment, and prestige/responsibility are three aspects of your career decision-making that require self-awareness and total honesty. Once you?ve defined what?s most important to you, you?ll know whether it?s time to stay or go.

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