A mistake some newly minted managers make is wanting to be liked by all their reports. Another is wanting them to all be happy, which of course isn’t their job but also impossible to achieve. But back to the first mistake; wanting them to like you. I recall hearing a…

Yesterday I was watching a movie titled About Schmidt starring Jack Nicholson. He plays Warren Schmidt who is retiring from his position as an actuary with a life insurance company. After his retirement dinner, Schmidt finds it hard to adjust to his new life, feeling useless with no sense of…

In the book Alice in Wonderland, Alice reaches a crossroads where the Cheshire Cat is sitting. Alice asks the cat: “Which road should I take?” In reply, the cat says: “Where are you going?” To that, Alice says: “I don’t know.” “Then it doesn’t matter which road you take,” the…

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (https://www.bls.gov/) reports that the average employment term is 4.2 years but there are times when a person quits a new job shortly after starting or accepting it. In my experience as a career coach it’s been fairly rare, but it does occur. While not ideal…

Those of us that have worked in a managerial position and after being promoted had to hire, onboard, train, and manage our replacement know the stress it can cause. You have to do the things required in the new role…

I have worked as a career coach with successful sales professionals that expressed a desire to move into a leadership role. While there is nothing wrong with aspiring to be a leader — it can be quite rewarding — some have learned that they preferred being an individual contributor. Here…

For many years the conventional wisdom was that leaving a job after two or three years was a bad idea. Hiring managers frowned upon it and derisively referred to it as “job hopping”. When companies provided a life-long career path for their employees (today they’re “stakeholders”) and had great pensions…

Many of us have been fired from a job. At times it might have been called a “right sizing”, which is corporate speak for “downsizing”; it’s supposed to make us feel better. Other euphemisms include “separated”, “let go”, and “relieved of duty”. The only problem is that doesn’t feel “right”…

For about 80% of my career, I worked in marketing and sales. Either as a rep, manager, or VP in several industries in the U.S. Even when I began working as an independent business consultant and leadership coach, I was continually seeking to land the next engagement, i.e., “selling”. I…