Career Reflections / Blog |
 When was the last time you sat by a lake in a chair that was hard to get out of and you were happy and felt relaxed, like you had no place else you had to be, no obligations pressing on your brain? I live in Minnesota, in the northern United States, and I feel the pull of my closest lake far more often than I yield to her.
Are you working too hard? Too many hours as well? Have you gotten your vaccine(s)? Do you sleep enough? Do you remember your significant other's name?! Women's Loyalty to Employers Astounds Me As I work with my executive career coaching clients and talk to former coworkers, family members, and neighbors, I am struck by how many people are working harder than ever. There is a level of loyalty-to-employer among professional women that I see as not being in their best interests. I even see it in women who hate their jobs and/or their bosses. What is up with that? A good friend of mine once complimented me on something that many resume writing experts try to get us to avoid -- I have always changed jobs when I became unhappy with the work, the bosses, the culture, or all three. This may have made me look like a job-hopper in my first years as a new mother, but I have no regrets. Along the way, I learned a lot about myself and the world of work. I developed new areas of knowledge, new skills, and new colleagues and friends as well. Shout-out to my dear friend Marianne for calling me brave for quitting jobs! I love you! Relationships Matter Some of my all-time favorite people are the women and men with whom I worked in previous organizations. After taking time to recover from the place, I made sure to reconnect with the former coworkers I most adore. You know who you are. Thank you for being my friend all these years. Are there former coworkers you miss? Contact them and say so! Self-Care Matters Too We need to take better care of ourselves and our planet. If we cannot do it for ourselves, then maybe we can trick ourselves into saying we need to 'do' self-care so we can take care of our loved ones -- whatever works. You run the risks of feeling depleted and resentful, getting sick and burned out, if you wait to do any relaxing until after you finish up this one last big project, this one client pitch... fill in the blank here. Please be good to you. And stop working so hard! |
