“John, I heard you quit job! What happened?” The only thing I could say to that was “We just didn’t click!” That got me thinking, was exactly did I mean when I said that I didn’t click with my job. So I grabbed a pen and paper and created a checklist of what I thought the perfect job offered to see just how we “didn’t click”.
This is what my checklist looked like:
- Multinational Company
- Company Reputation
- Company Portfolio
- Great Annual Package
- Regional Position
To my surprise, the job I just quit aced my checklist, so what exactly was I complaining about?
I wish I knew then, what I know now … in today’s post, I will reveal to you an important, if not the most important, aspect to consider while exploring the next company to work for. VALUE!
Yes, value matchmaking should be on top of your checklist. Your values are what make up your belief system. You can’t detach yourself from your values … they are what make you who you are! Knowing your set of values helps you making sound career decisions. They serve like a compass guiding your career to happier and more satisfied you. Identifying your values will help you recognize whether you and a particular company of interest would make a good fit.
Let’s take some examples:
- If you value family, then you are less likely to feel comfortable with a job that requires of you to be away from yours 90% of the time. As exciting as the suitcase-life might be at the beginning, you will soon grow restless because you just miss you family too much.
- If you value fairness, then you will be frustrated to be working for a company that has a tendency of terminating employees under the pretext of internal restructuring, even if you yourself are pampered.
- If you value calmness, you are bound to blow a fuse working as a manager for nightclub.
Matching your values and that embraced by the company you intend to work for will leave you with a greater sense of content and in turn allow you to be more productive.
To make sure you “click” with your next job, your homework before heading of to the next job interview is unearthing your top 5 personal values. If you have difficulty identifying your values, I recommend you take note of things that bother you. Usually when something bothers us, it’s because one of our values is being violated.
… and like I always say, “You shy, you die!”
This article was first posted in YOUnique newsletter on May 23, 2013 as part of my monthly column dedicated to help graduates stand out from the crowd and take control of their career legacy.
There’s so much buzz lately around the idea of “Personal Branding”. What exactly is personal branding, and why is important to me in my job search if I’m not a freelancer or self-employed?
Great question Patrica. Personal Branding is not a buzz word or a marketing trend. Maybe calling it “Personal Branding” is the only thing new about it; however, the concept of promoting oneself to stand out from the crowd to attract the right attention is common practice in the business world. At the risk of sounding redundant, Personal Branding is basically identifying what makes you unique and monetizing on that. In my profession as a personal branding strategist, I have three “types” of clientele: 1) fresh graduates that are interested in creating a brand that would showcase their talents and help them attract the right job opportunities, 2) career shifters that are interested in changing careers having identified what they are really passionate about it in life (for example: i had a client who was a dentist but his passion lied in the kitchen … he loved to cook and wanted to become a chef, so my role was to identify this unique talent, develop the proper attributes that make him unique and showcasing the transition smoothly to his intended audience. now he’s enjoying what he loves most in life, creating mouthwatering menus to different clients), 3) last type of clients are the business executives and entrepreneurs that are interested in highlighting their personal brand and taking control of the legacy they leave behind them. So as you can see Partica, personal branding is intended for everyone who would like to basically cash in on their passion. hope this helps clarify things!