Christmas has come and gone, New Years resolutions have been made and now it’s time to return to work for another year. Are you struggling to find your mojo for the year ahead? Got the post- holiday summertime blues as you sit and daydream at your desk, wondering how you are going to get through another year in your current workplace? Don’t worry you’re not alone!
This is the time of year when we are inundated with enquiries from people who are thinking about changing jobs. They simply can’t see themselves sticking out another year doing the same thing they were doing last year and think that jumping ship to a different company or finding a whole new career might just help them achieve success in the New Year.
But how do you know if a new job or career is the right move for you or if you just need a change of pace in your current work environment?
Here is our step by step process for deciding if you should stay or go:
- Write a Pros & Cons list
- Getting your thoughts down on paper, in black and white, in front of you will give you clarity. On the Pro’s side list everything that you love (or even like) about your current job. It might be a big thing or it might be something trivial, but whatever it is write it down. Then write down the Con’s; all the things that you don’t like, find frustrating and / or de-motivating.
- Why? Here’s an example: Why: My team has a great balance of working and socialising together, we work hard but we play hard together
- Pro: Great work colleagues
- Once you’ve got all your pros and cons down on paper, go back to the top of the page and one by one write down next to each of them why it is a pro or con. This is the crucial part of the process. Understanding why will help you determine what exactly it is you value in the work place and will help guide you in later steps of the decision making process.
- Assess the cons
- Work through the cons list and think about what would have to change for this issue to be converted to a pro. Once you are clear on what would have to change you can assess if that’s realistic or even possible. If it’s possible that’s great, you can get to work on converting it to a pro straight away.
- What’s Not Negotiable
- Now you are left with the cons that can’t be turned in to pros. Of the cons that remain on your list, assess how many of the cons are really crucially important to you. There are always going to be things that we don’t necessarily like about our job and that we can’t change but this is where you have to decide if the con you listed is something you can or can’t live with going forward. Cross off all the cons that you think you can live with.
- Do the Pros outweigh the cons?
- This is where you compare the pros that you have with the cons that you have left. Do the pros outweigh the cons? Are the pros more important and valuable to you than the cons?
- Expert Advice
- It can be a good idea at this stage to do some research and get some independent advice. To be able to weigh up your options accurately you need to know what else is on offer in the marketplace and what the reality of your situation is. A recruiter will be able to give you a first-hand understanding of what the market conditions are and how your circumstances compare to market rates and conditions. Make sure you share with the recruiter the pros you would want in your next opportunity and the why you noted down in step 2. This way they will be able to really understand what it is that makes you tick.
- Is the grass really greener on the other side?
- Once you know exactly what is important to you and you know what’s on offer in the market place, you’ll be armed with the facts and information to decide if its time to start exploring other opportunities or if you are simply suffering from the post-holiday blues.
Either way, now you can work out an action plan for finding that next great career opportunity or working on how to get your mojo back in your current workplace. Good luck!
Stay tuned for next week’s blog on our top tips for finding your work mojo in 2015.
