Accountability for your Career
Accountability for your Career
When you leave a job after having had a demanding manager, you may feel like you just took off a tight pair of shoes. What a relief!
Even if you have been laid off and you are not sure what your next step is there can be a feeling of freedom.
Being accountable to someone else is constraining. You can't just do anything you want. You must do it the manager's way and in the manager's time frame. Sometimes you are in synch with him or her but sometimes not. Often the pressure of producing it fast is unrealistic and stressful. Hence the relief!
That is not to say that there is no anger, disappointment and fear that comes with being laid off. It is natural to feel this too. People often need time to recover after the trauma of being laid off because they do feel so upset and discouraged. They must learn to deal with those emotions and that can take some time.
On the other hand finding a new job takes time too and so the faster you can adjust to your new situation and put your anger and fear aside the better off you will be.
Initially being accountable to only yourself does feel freeing. But eventually reality sets in and you will need to figure out how to motivate yourself to take some steps forward.
How do you do it?
The first step is to set some goals. What is it you really want to do? Since you probably have fear around being out of work for a length of time as well as a desire to find a better job, a good place to start is to set some goals for making contacts and meeting people that can help you to find that better job.
While taking action and developing relationships will make you feel better, it still may be difficult to do. Days with no agenda may be welcome in the beginning. There is no boss to complain if you don't reach out to your network in a reasonable amount of time and it is so easy to forgive yourself for not moving. ("I'm still upset." "I need a rest." "I can wait until Monday.")
When you find you are procrastinating and finding a million other things to do instead of working on your goals, one way to move forward is to enlist the aid of a colleague or friend. Ask that person to become your accountability partner so that you can move forward. Share your goals and tell them your time line.
Making a commitment to that person and to yourself is a public promise to get moving. Your friend is acting as your manager. (There is a reason for managers!)
I've been talking about people out of work up to now but this is equally important if you are working long hours in a job. Whether you are love your work or are miserable in the position, I recommend that everyone work on his or her career a few hours a week.
Here again an accountability partner can be invaluable. Having your boss do this is not a good idea. Managers have agendas (They usually want you to stay where you are.) and their plans may or may not align with yours. Instead choose someone else with whom you are comfortable to help you and make this career work time a priority.
Where do you find an accountability partner? Ideally you'll know someone who also needs an accountability partner so you can help each other. If you don't know anyone like that, then a friend with whom you have shared your career frustration and/or highlights would work.
Finally of course people hire coaches to work with them for this purpose. Accountability coaches can help you to set realistic goals and then make you accountable for attaining them.
Coaches are trained to help clients to overcome the obstacles. They are unbiased partners who hold your vision of your next career move. So in addition to having an accountability partner who supports you and your goals you also have someone skilled in working with clients who want a partner who sees the vision and hears the obstacles to success. The coach will guide you through the challenges toward the dream.
Take Action
1. What are your current career goals? Write them down. Is there a time and date you plan to get them done? Would an accountability partner be helpful?
2. Make a list of possible accountability partners? (This could be helpful even if you don't want to have one right now. You might listen for opportunities to help the people on your list with their goals so that when you need them they will be available to do the same for you.)
3. Read Getting Things Done
4. http://www.asparker.com/rts0907.html for other ideas about getting your career goals accomplished.
Accountability for your Career - To learn more about this author, visit Alvah Parker's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
Accountability for your Career
When you leave a job after having had a demanding manager, you may feel like you just took off a tight pair of shoes. What a relief!
Even if you have been laid off and you are not sure what your next step is there can be a feeling of freedom.
Being accountable to someone else is constraining. You can't just do anything you want. You must do it the manager's way and in the manager's time frame. Sometimes you are in synch with him or her but sometimes not. Often the pressure of producing it fast is unrealistic and stressful. Hence the relief!
That is not to say that there is no anger, disappointment and fear that comes with being laid off. It is natural to feel this too. People often need time to recover after the trauma of being laid off because they do feel so upset and discouraged. They must learn to deal with those emotions and that can take some time.
On the other hand finding a new job takes time too and so the faster you can adjust to your new situation and put your anger and fear aside the better off you will be.
Initially being accountable to only yourself does feel freeing. But eventually reality sets in and you will need to figure out how to motivate yourself to take some steps forward.
How do you do it?
The first step is to set some goals. What is it you really want to do? Since you probably have fear around being out of work for a length of time as well as a desire to find a better job, a good place to start is to set some goals for making contacts and meeting people that can help you to find that better job.
While taking action and developing relationships will make you feel better, it still may be difficult to do. Days with no agenda may be welcome in the beginning. There is no boss to complain if you don't reach out to your network in a reasonable amount of time and it is so easy to forgive yourself for not moving. ("I'm still upset." "I need a rest." "I can wait until Monday.")
When you find you are procrastinating and finding a million other things to do instead of working on your goals, one way to move forward is to enlist the aid of a colleague or friend. Ask that person to become your accountability partner so that you can move forward. Share your goals and tell them your time line.
Making a commitment to that person and to yourself is a public promise to get moving. Your friend is acting as your manager. (There is a reason for managers!)
I've been talking about people out of work up to now but this is equally important if you are working long hours in a job. Whether you are love your work or are miserable in the position, I recommend that everyone work on his or her career a few hours a week.
Here again an accountability partner can be invaluable. Having your boss do this is not a good idea. Managers have agendas (They usually want you to stay where you are.) and their plans may or may not align with yours. Instead choose someone else with whom you are comfortable to help you and make this career work time a priority.
Where do you find an accountability partner? Ideally you'll know someone who also needs an accountability partner so you can help each other. If you don't know anyone like that, then a friend with whom you have shared your career frustration and/or highlights would work.
Finally of course people hire coaches to work with them for this purpose. Accountability coaches can help you to set realistic goals and then make you accountable for attaining them.
Coaches are trained to help clients to overcome the obstacles. They are unbiased partners who hold your vision of your next career move. So in addition to having an accountability partner who supports you and your goals you also have someone skilled in working with clients who want a partner who sees the vision and hears the obstacles to success. The coach will guide you through the challenges toward the dream.
Take Action
1. What are your current career goals? Write them down. Is there a time and date you plan to get them done? Would an accountability partner be helpful?
2. Make a list of possible accountability partners? (This could be helpful even if you don't want to have one right now. You might listen for opportunities to help the people on your list with their goals so that when you need them they will be available to do the same for you.)
3. Read Getting Things Done
4. http://www.asparker.com/rts0907.html for other ideas about getting your career goals accomplished.
Accountability for your Career - To learn more about this author, visit Alvah Parker's Website.
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Staging DivaDebra Gould, aka The Staging Diva®, is President of Six Elements Inc., an internationally recognized home staging company. Inspired by many requests from aspiring home stagers wanting to start similar businesses, Gould created the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program. Gould has trained over 1000 Staging Diva Graduates worldwide to start staging businesses. Buying decorating and selling six of her own homes in four years lead to an interest in real estate staging which she turned into a career with the launch of sixelements.com in 2002. Since then she has staged hundreds of homes in addition to teaching home staging training. Gould is the author of several home staging resources including a series of popular ebooks made up of a Design Guide, Color Guide and Portfolio Guide. For more information about Debra Gould visit stagingdiva.com. - Visit Staging Diva's Website |
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Stephanie RobeyStephanie Robey is President and CoFounder of Pivot Positive, LLC - an Internet marketing business focused on helping people start work at home ventures. Previously, she was employed at The Search Agency with over 20 years experience in graphic design and 10 years experience in online marketing. She was responsible for launching the Conversion Path Optimization (CPO) unit where she and her team have conducted hundreds of optimization tests for online companies across multiple verticals. She is a successful entrepreneur having started and sold 2 companies and remains on the board of directors of the third, PhotoSpin.com Stephanie began her career in the direct marketing realm creating and producing direct mail for many of the major cable television companies and directly attributes her understanding of Internet marketing to those early offline experiences. Stephanie is a graduate of San Diego State University with a BFA in Graphic Arts and also holds an Executive MBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Read Steph's Blog Meet Steph and Dave Sign up for our Free 7-Day BootCamp: Self Employed & Rich - Visit Stephanie Robey's Website |
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