With 40% of employees intending to change jobs in 2022 (as reported by Smart company), Steve Grace, Founder and CEO of The Nudge Group, says, “more Australian workers are looking to change jobs because the pandemic has influenced their personal and professional goals.” With a shortage of talent in the market, for the first time in decades, it’s now an employee’s market.
However, landing up in the wrong job is much easier than you’d think, particularly if you’re not clear on your personal goals and values. Perhaps you’ve experienced it yourself? A job seemed attractive from the outside, but was not the same looking from the inside out.
It can be easy to get seduced by a pay rise and lose sight of the role on offer in the long term. Companies spend a lot of money and resources marketing their jobs in an effort to recruit the best talent. Every company seems to be offering the latest in whatever the going trend is – whether it’s flexible working, innovation, social or environmental responsibility, lifelong learning or perks like free coffee, ping pong tables in the break room, etc.
One new hire who we spoke with, Charlie, started in a role just this week and it’s become obvious just how many questions he neglected to ask during the interview process. Despite being clear on the importance of flexibility and family, he’s realised the company isn’t aligned with his values.
This is often a blindspot which is sometimes described as a “gut feeling,” but it’s so much more than that. Working for the wrong employer can affect your wellbeing, your motivation and, as a result, the people closest to you.
Finding the right fit
The single most important factor when establishing fit in an organisation is values – if you’re not aligned with the values and the culture, it’ll feel like walking through concrete every day, no matter how much you’re getting paid.
It also helps to establish your deal breakers. Ask yourself:
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Do the company values align with mine?
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Will I feel fulfilled / have a sense of purpose in this new role?
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Am I willing to sacrifice money for a role I love?
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What are the things I simply won’t tolerate?
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What about the job might affect my well being or that of my family?
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Do the hours work for me?
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Do I mind going into the office or working from home?
For Charlie, it’s that he doesn’t want to take an hour lunch break and would prefer to work through and leave earlier to pick up his daughter from school. His employer says his contract stipulates he has to stay until 5.30pm.
That’s a deal-breaker right there, in the small print of a contract, but ultimately the inflexibility of the organisation doesn’t align with his top personal priority – his family.
And he’s not alone: a Deloitte Access Economics survey, commissioned by Telstra, found 54% of employees saw hybrid work as either as valuable as or more important than a 5% pay rise.
So, before you make a career-limiting move, consider exploring why you’re considering a career change, what your values are, what your goals are and how you can achieve them.
How coaching can help
Coaching can help you explore those potential blindspots and play out the scenarios before you make a decision, and help you ask the RIGHT questions in the interview process. It can also help you feel confident turning down a role if it’s not right.
Your Hello Coach expert may even help you discover that the solution isn’t to leave – it’s to stay and get a mentor, ask for that raise, or speak with your boss about advancement. Having an outside champion can help you get perspective on what’s really happening and map out a plan for how to get what you really want.
As they say, the grass isn’t always greener on the other side. In fact, it might be full of pitfalls, but you won’t know until you explore your values and what motivates you.
Simple to book, you’ll automatically get matched with coaches that have experience in the area you want to address, as well as the coaching style you prefer. So, it takes the guesswork out of selecting the best coach for you.
All coaches must have at least 4 years professional coaching experience to be listed on Hello Coach, and each coach receives 150 hours of training per year, so you know you’re in safe hands.
Book a session now to see how Hello Coach can help you to clarify your values and goals before you make your next move: hello-coach.com
