Career Advice

To anyone who's ever seen an old black and white prison movie, the term "Lifer" is well known. Usually played by a grizzled and gnarled character actor, this is a jailhouse veteran, someone who hasn't seen the outside world for years, and never will. Invariably played with some sympathy, this is the 'go-to' guy for cigarettes, candy and a host of other goodies deemed contraband by the big and bad authorities. He also serves as a sort of advisor to the new convicts; a camp counselor, if you will, to the rebellious, the delinquent, the losers with nothing going for them except their youth. And because he lives in such a time warp, it's almost comedic as to how pathetically out of date, how clueless he really is to the modern world.  Basically, lifers can also be defined, in the corporate or business world that we inhabit, as simple careerists; people who have decided, for better or worse, to remain with one organization for their entire work life. It's interesting that, as a … [Read more...] about Career Lifers Deserve Your Respect

I’m Not Talking about Lacing the DecafI’ll be honest. As a therapist, I’m not a huge fan of what some aspects of the “positive psychology” movement have become - more on that in a bit. Martin Seligman, a psychologist who teaches at the University of Pennsylvania, is considered to be positive psychology’s founder. A Web site, Authentic Happiness, describes it as “a new branch of psychology which focuses on the empirical study of such things as positive emotions, strengths-based character, and healthy institutions.”I love his ideas and have used them with patients long before it had a name. It always seemed healthier to focus on people’s strengths and positive qualities than get stuck in pathology mode. My concern is that the idea is often distorted and very far removed from its original focus and intent. (I also believe it can be dangerous for clinicians to ignore patients' serious, underlying issues while applying these … [Read more...] about Using Attitude Adjustment in the Workplace

We all suffer through bouts of work fatigue.  These periods vary in intensity and length.  It can range from "work sucks" to "how the hell did I get trapped in this suffocating job?!"  I have several "tools" in my "box" that I go to when I experience work frustration.  Here are a few actionable items that help me break out of a work rut.  I REMIND MYSELF TO BE THANKFULI look at the nice things I have and remind myself that they would not be possible without my job.  The house, the car, the phone, the food and the relative comfort would disappear if I told my boss to shove it.I think about the 10% of Americans who would kill for my job.I write a list of things I like about my job, because no matter how much you dislike a gig, every job has redeeming qualities.I TAKE EXRTA GOOD CARE OF MY HEALTHRegular exercise, a well-balanced diet and enough sleep should help ward off any of the medical fallout that work aggravation can bring about.  I incorporate … [Read more...] about Does Work Suck? 9 Tips to Break Out of the Funk

When Not Fitting in is a Good ThingIn a recent post, “VIDEO: Pains in the Office,” Andrew gave some terrific examples of stereotypical rude co-workers and how they drive us nuts.  I’ve always been thankful that at least they seem to be in the minority. But an article in eWeek.com, “Four in 10 Workers Say They Don’t Fit in with Peers,” tells us that it’s possible most of us are outnumbered by these characters. The article points out how one “bad apple” in a work group can “spoil the “barrel” and have a negative affect on the group as a whole:“Rude, gross and inappropriate behavior by co-workers and managers is not the exception in the workplace, research suggests. A similar study on the effects of rudeness finds that when teams witness incivility, negative thoughts dominate and diminish productivity for the larger group.”Scary, huh?  It seems to me that the offender would self-select out of the … [Read more...] about Choose Not to Fly Your Freak Flag at Work

You'll often read that if you are bored with your job it is time to find a new one.  Solid advice, but easier said than done. If financial/stability or some other concern is keeping you at a boring gig, here are several ways to break out of the funk.  You might also want to consider researching online colleges.- RUN IN CIRCLES.   OK, you don't really have to run in circles, but if you find work unbearably lame, you need to make an effort to exhaust yourself before you get to the office.  This might be a trip to the gym or running errands.    This is a tactic that my shiba inu puppy employs (not the errand part!) before we put him into his crate for the night.  He knows that he must exhaust himself in order to avoid a restless night behind bars.  - KILL THE INTERNET.  Most workers who are killing time while 'on the clock,' rely on the endless supply of content provided by the Internet.  This poses two major problems.  1) … [Read more...] about Boring Job? 4 Unique Ways to Cope

How Does “Your Serene Highness” Sound?Many articles have appeared recently about making your employees feel valued and retaining the good ones who might be tempted move on when the recession ends. Sarah E. Needleman’s Wall Street Journal article, “Business Owners Try to Motivate Employees” takes a look at these issues. One of the business owners interviewed recognized that after layoffs, increased workloads, no raises, etc. her employees “are stressed out and in need of extra attention.”Nice of her to notice; many bosses don’t get it. Another boss gave her employees shiny new titles.Often companies will dole out titles in lieu of raises. But why would that appease us? From a psych perspective, my thought is that we are hot-wired to give too much weight and status to a job title. We are also programmed to look at co-workers in a hierarchical system. The VP is always more important than the admin. assistant. (My personal opinion is that an … [Read more...] about Getting a Nice New Title Instead of a Raise

The olde axiom of 'never look a gift horse in the mouth' is never as true as when your company offers to provide you with some unexpected goody. A few years ago, I was  able, after frankly much struggle, to get an internal company transfer. New duties, new title, and even a new work site-overall, a fresh start, for which I was desperate.To get prepped for 'The Day,' I called the guy whose slot I was taking (he was also being voluntarily transferred), and invited him to lunch. I thought that, especially since he was also going where he wanted, he'd be happy to provide some insights into the job, the players, and all the myriad of stuff we all want to know when opening new career doors. Very nice restaurant, real oak and subdued lighting, with great ambiance for confidential chats. Good food and large drinks. Everything seemed fine, except that this guy wasn't giving up a goddamned thing. I mean he was almost mute the entire time. No matter what tactic I tried, it all failed...so I … [Read more...] about The Truth About Getting a Company Car

NBC v. Leno v. O’BrienI won’t equivocate about who should get what time slot from NBC and the fate of “The Tonight Show” - I’m with Conan on this one. The network courted the guy five years ago with the promise of hosting "The Tonight Show" and gave it to him. Now they want to take it away. Instead of admitting that they made some poor choices, i.e., to put Jay on at 10 instead of the usual programming, they are blaming the hosts. Besides probably being contractually uncool, it’s just bad management.David Carr points out in The New York Time’s Media Decoder article, "NBC Broadcasts Itself As a Punchline," that the network who incessantly promotes itself is taking some hits, "…management can come in for a lot of wear and tear when your talent gets pushed around and gets into feelings. Talk-show hosts usually push back, because, after all, they’re the ones with the microphone and they have a new chance to maim you ever single … [Read more...] about FAIL for NBC as an Employer, Ask Conan

There’s More Than Office BingoMost folks have played or at least heard of Office Bingo - here’s Jobacle’s fun version from a couple years ago, "Bored at Work? Play Office BINGO!" It’s a great way to entertain your self in long, boring meetings. Recently reading about a company that uses water pistols in their meetings made me think of other ways we can make it through those interminable time-wasters.When I worked in a drug and alcohol treatment program, most of the staff were either in recovery from addiction or had experienced it in their families. So we used to play “How Many of Your Parents are Alcoholic?” This was a snarky upgrade of “I wonder if he has an alcoholic parent?” The game would be kick-started in response to someone trying way too hard to control the meeting (a typical issue for children of alcoholics is the need to control) or just really irritating behavior in general. Keep in mind no one ever said the words aloud, … [Read more...] about Long Meeting Survival 101

What Happened to Social Skills at Work?As Andrew eloquently put it in his post, “Violated at Work, The Death of Personal Space,”our personal space at work is shrinking and often encroached upon by co-workers. I’m lucky - I share an office with a cat (if he’s in the mood) and my spouse only works from home one day a week. I have a luxurious amount of space. But a related issue has come to my attention lately - lax or non-existent social skills in the workplace. Just as some people who aren’t very adept at respecting your personal space at work, they also are not be picking up on your facial expressions of “Can’t you see I’m busy?” annoyance, etc.Since I work as a therapist, I should mention categories of folks who have a legitimate diagnosis that inhibits or prevents healthy social interaction. People who have a social anxiety disorder, for instance, can have such a high level of anxiety when they are around co-workers, that … [Read more...] about The Lost Art of Reading People and Situations