Stephen Brown Resignation, Job Searching, Personal Development...
If you dislike what you do, it can destroy your soul!
I once worked a glorious summer in a factory with no windows, an aggressive production manager and a miserable workforce. My supervisor told me it was character building, to which I replied it was in fact soul destroying! I needed the money to pay for college so I stuck it out to the bitter end and in the process became one of their longer serving shop floor employees, which says it all!
If you dislike what you do, or who you do it for (most people leave their boss not their job), then it can destroy your soul, it causes you stress and this in turn can cause you physical illness. Some people are literally being killed by their jobs.
This is why finding the perfect job is essential to your health, wellbeing and soul. A perfect job for you isn’t necessarily the perfect job for everyone.
The perfect job has to provide you with the following 5 elements:
1) Your employer’s values must match your own. The best way to fit in anywhere is to feel like you belong and the best way to feel like you belong is to know that your values are aligned with the culture of your organisation.
2) Your job must use your core competencies. Doing what you enjoy and can do well is the best way to feel job satisfaction.
3) Your job must connect with a higher purpose. If you can see how what you do can benefit the lives of others, the environment or the community then you will always feel satisfied that your work is meaningful.
4) You have a level of control over what you do and how you do it, which you are comfortable with based on your level of competence and skill.
5) You are recognised and rewarded (this can be a simple thank you) for what you do and how you do it. This reinforces your connection with the work you do and who you do it for.
So how will you know when you find the right job?
If you love what you do then you will never have to work again. This doesn’t mean turning a hobby into a job, which can actually ruin the thing you enjoy doing to relax. It does however mean building a career around the 5 core principals. You will intuitively know when you have found the right position for you; the following case study of a recent placement we managed demonstrates how getting these 5 things right makes such a difference to the lives of the people involved:
Case Study – Richard, Engineering Quality Inspector:
Not long ago we followed up with Richard; Richard is one of the people we placed with a local family owned engineering company.
After leaving school Richard joined the Royal Marines, where he became a bandsman, he was often involved in ceremonial duties and saw action in several tours of duty. Upon leaving the Marines, Richard was employed by an internationally renowned, high quality manufacturing business as a Quality Inspector. He was well suited to the role with his diligent and fastidious nature.
Unfortunately, like many in 2008, his job was made redundant and he found himself having to work for a business with a negative culture and where quality was tolerated but not an aspiration. In this culture he soon lost his usual motivation, feeling his purpose had lost its value. Finding Richard a new role with one of our customers, a family business who manufactures high quality precision parts for aero engines not only ensured they employed someone who lived and breathed quality and accuracy, but it also reconnected Richard with his passion amongst like-minded people.
We matched Richard to 5 key elements he needed for his perfect job:
1) Your employer’s values must match your own: Richard’s values for high quality, precision, cleanliness and accuracy were directly reflected in the new employer’s way of working.
2) Your job must use your core competencies: Richard’s core competencies are inherent in his job, he enjoys the precise and fastidious nature of his work.
3) Your job must connect with a higher purpose: Richard’s employer makes components for jet aircraft engines; there are no lay-bys at 30,000 feet. Ensuring parts meet aircraft safety standards will literally save the lives of aircraft passengers.
4) You have a level of control over what you do: Richard runs his own inspection room, has helped to develop inspection procedures and has a voice on the team for quality control.
5) You are recognised and rewarded: Like all his colleagues, Richard is given regular feedback on his work and is thanked for his contribution to the business. He can see how what he does matters to his employer and the company’s customers.
By placing him in this role, we didn’t just save Richard’s soul, when we interviewed him he also said “My wife has got her husband back and the kids have got their dad back.”
If your soul is being destroyed by your job then let us help rescue it by helping you find the company and role that will fit the 5 key elements you need to never have to work again.
If your job is soul-destroying and you're ready to find a job that you'll love, search for a job, register your CV or give us a call on 01530 833825.