gwenfoow

A young graduate told me she was feeling like a failure in her first job after college. Her job lacked formal training, leadership, and guidance. Although she was trying to work through it by asking various people for help and working overtime, she felt exhausted and unsuccessful. I asked her what this experience taught her professionally and personally? Was she going to continue the cycle, hoping it would improve? Or, would she take her talent elsewhere? She didn’t have many answers... Read Full Story

A friend of a friend was telling me about hating her job —how everything and everyone related to it emotionally drained her. She was bored, unchallenged, and a few other adjectives that meant she was leaving, resigning and didn’t want to work there anymore. She said she spent every free and not so free moment looking for another job. I asked, “Are you Painfully Employed (PE)? Do you wake up every weekday with 101 reasons to call in… immediately followed by three motivating reasons to go in... Read Full Story

I spoke to a woman in her late 50’s who was humorously telling me about ending her 30-year marriage. Her husband had an affair and, after she confronted him, he asked her was she happily married prior to the discovery? She said, “Pretty much,” and he then confessed to having other affairs over the years; but since she was ‘pretty much’ happy, then why divorce? She was stunned by his revelation and even more shocked when the majority of her friends agreed with him. Her friends told her that... Read Full Story

When I converse with young college alums, we often discuss the life between their parent’s home and their own. Whether the transition is from their parent’s home or from college to the workplace, our talks about handling the angst in transitioning are engaging. Most of them were told to go to college, major in something they like, and then get the job they would love. Some of them said they fell for it hook, line, and sinker without being prepared for the seeds of discontent. Others said... Read Full Story

A while ago, I met a childhood friend and after a few minutes of conversation, I realized…she needed to stay in my childhood. She was gossiping about people I didn’t remember and I felt like I was stuck in a high school, “mean girl” moment. When she finally said “let’s stay in touch” I dodged her statement like a superstar in a dodge-ball game. After this encounter, I realized that some people and some things you outgrow. And when you recognize it, you need to let it go— no explanation... Read Full Story

The New Year means different things to different people. For some, it inspires change for the better, for others it’s just another year, and the rest of us fall somewhere in between. For the inspired, great successes will ensue. For the pseudo-inspired, great intentions will ensue for about 30 days instead of 365. Nevertheless, they TRIED and that counts for something, right? Sometimes our resolution passion masks our tendency to procrastinate. When you couldn’t button your pants in May... Read Full Story

I was volunteering in a job mentoring program and reviewing a participant’s job history which included several short-term jobs. When I asked him why he left each position he replied “It was the people.” After hearing him repeat this four consecutive times, my polite-self left and I said “You’re the People!” He looked startled and said, “What?” I explained that he had two options. He could get a restraining order against these people who were stalking him from job to job, or he could look at... Read Full Story

When I accepted my first management position, my new boss told me his secret to managing people was to treat them like whiny children. I asked him if managing people was his thing, and he bluntly said, “No, because I hate dealing with people and their petty issues.”  Despite his revelation, we had a good relationship because I didn’t ask him for leadership advice and he didn’t have any to give. I quickly realized that I had inherited a slightly hostile team driven by two factors: I was the... Read Full Story

A couple months after being downsized, current and former employees were still angry, complaining and blaming. I still didn’t engage in it because bitterness needs an expiration date, plus it dominates your life whether you realize it or not. It is also a toxic tool in a job search or interview. When someone draws a line through your name, you can pick up the pen to write a new chapter or continue drawing the line by being stuck on something you can’t change. I understood a grieving process... Read Full Story

While my boss was telling me that I was his go-to person, he was also informing me that my position was being downsized. It struck me as funny because my immediate thought was…the go-to person is GONE? This happened years ago while I was working at a tech company; a product launch, delayed several times over, prompted the downsizing. At the time, tech companies were going down faster than leaded balloons, which meant the unemployment rate was increasing along with the competition. I had... Read Full Story