This month's focus is on work. I have been a working mother for 3 years and working at the same company for 7 years, since November 2003. It would be 8 years, but I took a year off to stay at home with D. I decided it wasn't in my nature to be a stay at home mom and went back to work. I love my job, the company I work for, and my boss is great to work for as well, a definite plus for any employee. I get great evaluations every year, but the one thing he always tells me is an "opportunity" for me (depending on the context, and in this situation a performance eval, this company lingo for "weakness") is developing a clear career path. He always follows this statement up with: "not that I want you to leave me (I'm his assistant), but you have potential to do more." I really appreciate that encouragement, but that's the perpetual "what do I want to be when I grow up", $50 million question.
I graduated from the U of A in 2002 with a bachelor's in fine arts, emphasis in psychology. I worked for a psychologist for 2 years and really enjoyed it. The problem with any profession that couples the words "people" with "practice" is the extra schooling. At the time, I didn't have the patience or the means to fund a masters or doctorate degree. Plus, driving 30-45 minutes to the office I worked in everyday was a pain in the you know what. My husband helped me put my resume together for a position at the company I currently work at and the rest is history.
I've heard that the best way to figure out what you want to do in the future is to look at what you've done in the past - starting with updating your resume, my first goal for January. The next step is to get involved in areas you have an interest in or a special skill set for and that you enjoy. That's an important caveat - if you are good with numbers, but hate budgets, you probably shouldn't be in finance. I look to accomplish, or rather explore, this goal through mentoring relationships. I have one mentor who is in special events and communications - an area of interest and past experience, as well as an area I've been told I have some skill level in; and another mentor in merchandising - an area I've always been interested in getting involved in but have no idea how to break in.
The other goals for January really focus more on improving day to day work quality - working smarter, not harder. In addition, I want to improve and foster better relationships at work. To accomplish the first goal, I want to organize my work space, both physically and electronically. I enjoy the feeling of satisfaction and stimulation that I get when I just move things around a bit on my desk in an effort to be more efficient or have things laid out so they are easier to get to or they help me stay on top of projects and to-do's. To organize my work space electronically, I'd like to start by doing a better job of organizing my day. I know what my boss is going to be doing every minute of every day (because I schedule them all), but my day is a toss up. Of course that's part of the nature of my job. If he needs something now, that's priority. If I have to rearrange his day or travel, I drop what I'm doing and do it. However, barring those interruptions, I can make task lists, to-do action items and schedule time to work on major projects in my day.
So, what does all this have to do with happiness? I get a sense of fulfillment out of accomplishment. When I complete a big project or check off a task, I feel a sense of pride and contribution that makes me happy. Probably a big part of the reason why I work. When I feel organized and like I'm just "on it," I feel great. Things click. But those things don't always just happen, they are planned for. And I'm if anything, a planner!
No comments:
Post a Comment