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The Quest For Career Fulfillment

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StrategyDriven Professional Development Article |Career fulfillment | The Quest For Career FulfillmentWhen embarking on a career, there are a number of goals that most of us want to achieve. The most obvious goal is the desire to earn enough to live on comfortably; enough for a stable home environment and, if possible, a few treats along the way. Secondary goals tend to include a pleasant working experience – getting on with colleagues, feeling valued, and so on and so forth – as well as a work-life balance that allows us to work to live, rather than live to work.

However, there is one goal that tends to be, at best, overlooked – which is somewhat surprising, given its importance to our overall well-being. The goal in question? Career fulfilment.

What is career fulfilment?

The concept of career fulfilment is, as one would expect, a desire to feel fulfilled – in some way – by the work we do. On a basic level, fulfillment is simply a way to achieve a sense of satisfaction from your career; a satisfaction that comes not from the wage you earn and the lifestyle you are subsequently able to afford, but from the work itself.

Career fulfillment is most commonly associated with careers that serve a greater good or improve the lives of others; careers like that of Cynthia Telles, which take a passion and turn it into a vocation. However, any career can offer a sense of fulfilment; some careers are more likely to offer fulfilment but any type of career can under the right circumstances be fulfilling in its own way.

How common is career fulfilment?

Unfortunately, not particularly. A huge number of people work for their entire lives without achieving true fulfilment – and for some individuals, that works just fine. Particularly in financial and city-related jobs, many individuals choose to work extremely hard in a role they don’t really care about, with the goal of retiring early. For these people, fulfilment is not a necessary aim; the end – early retirement – justifies the means, and they are willing to tolerate even an unpleasant decade or so, as long as they meet their eventual FIRE goal.

However, for those not focused on FIRE but instead just trying to make a living, fulfilment becomes more important – but it remains incredibly rare. A surprisingly large number of people dislike their job, and only 33% of workers are fully engaged with their role; which, given that engagement is more likely to lead to fulfilment, is concerning.

Why is fulfilment so uncommon?

The reason many people work without career fulfilment varies wildly. Some people just need to earn a living; what they do, or how fulfilled they feel, is fairly unimportant. For others, the work itself does not – and cannot – offer significant fulfilment. What’s more, some people don’t even see fulfillment as particularly important; even those who are not aiming for FIRE may be more than content to simply work comfortably, earning what they need to live on, and look for nothing more.

As a result, career fulfillment is best thought of as a concept that is important for some people. For others, it would be nice to have, but far from crucial – we all have different priorities in life, after all. However, this does beg the question…

What happens if fulfillment is important to you, but your career is not fulfilling?

The above circumstance is the worst case scenario: you may be someone for whom fulfillment is incredibly important, but you do not find that your existing role – or even your entire career – offers this fulfillment. The consequences of working in such a scenario can be extremely challenging, leading to dissatisfaction, unhappiness, stress, and even an exacerbation of underlying health conditions.

How can you tell if you are lacking in career fulfillment?

Common signs of poor career fulfilment include:

  • Disinterest in the work itself; you do not feel excited or enthused by the work you have to do
  • Frequent absenteeism; you will more readily take sick days and will usually try to use all of your available vacation days
  • Malaise or even depression during the working week, which tends to lift in the evenings or on weekends – i.e. times when you are not working

What can you do if you are not achieving career fulfilment, but want to?

First and foremost, it’s worth considering other methods of achieving a sense of fulfilment and satisfaction outside of the workplace, as some people find that this can help them to better manage their overall career concerns. After all, if your hobbies or out-of-work activities offer a sense of fulfilment, then achieving this from your career may become less important. You could, for example, consider volunteering or fundraising for a cause close to your heart in your spare time, and switch to trying to see the work you do as a means to an end.

However, if you find the above is not sufficient – or you simply want to achieve fulfilment in your career rather than your personal time – then switching careers is likely to be the best choice.

StrategyDriven Professional Development Article |Career fulfillment | The Quest For Career FulfillmentWhich careers should you consider switching to?

As we touched on above, while careers that can be considered meaningful are arguably more likely to offer career fulfilment, any career may be suitable. It’s just important to try and focus on a career where you feel that you would be happy with the work itself; where you feel that your contribution would be valuable (not necessarily in terms of money) in some way. To that end, it might be worth considering volunteering initially, so you can try out a few different ideas and see which affords you the most fulfilling experience.

In conclusion

Career fulfilment is not an essential – many people can spend their entire working lives without career fulfilment, but remain happy and content with this fact. However, if career fulfilment is important to you personally, then making a change that allows you to achieve the fulfilment you require could well be the right choice for your future happiness and well-being.

What’s the Deal? 3 Steps for Entrepreneurs & Spouses to Live Happily Ever After

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StrategyDriven Entrepreneurship Article | Entrepreneurs | What’s the Deal? 3 Steps for Entrepreneurs & Spouses to Live Happily Ever AfterAs a fan of classic films, I am always searching for films that apply to family businesses. I recently viewed the 1936 film, Dodsworth, that stars Walter Houston in the title role, as well as Ruth Chatterton and Mary Astor. Dodsworth, an entrepreneur, owns an automobile manufacturing company, who sells his company and retires without a plan for his future—not unlike many real-life entrepreneurs.

As soon as Dodsworth retires, his wife, Fran, begins to plan their extensive trip to Europe and throughout the process both Dodsworth and Fran encounter differences in their expectations for the trip. Their differences are similar to what my former colleague, Jeff Rothstein, referred to as “What’s the Deal?” Jeff’s assumption was that all couples have an implicit “deal” that is never spoken about and governs how they interact with each other. Jeff posited that when couples move into their 60s, they begin to discuss and question their expectations for their golden years. From Jeff’s perspective, this is an opportunity to dialogue and recalibrate your expectations and come to a common understanding about your future together.

Nearly all couples have implicit, unmentioned, assumptions about their marital relationship. As couples get older and consider retirement or changing their work relationship, many have not considered a plan for the future. They have no resources, no practice, no roadmap, and when they look ahead, they feel adrift.

I help business families address this change using a process I call Life Career Planning. Using Career Life Planning techniques, they realize a sense of fulfillment and purpose. Both the entrepreneur and spouse turn their dreams into reality. The couple enjoys peace of mind about their future. Most importantly, the process helps them devise a common perspective of their values. They can effectively share their goals and dreams with each other in a manner that honors and engages both. They redirect their wisdom and their knowledge of life to produce a realistic, engaging plan for meaningful work and leisure time. They look ahead by looking back.

Nineteenth century Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard extolled, “Life can only be understood backwards but it must be lived forwards.” To me that means we recognize, embrace, and celebrate our accomplishments so that we can use them to energize the future.

Life Career Planning unfolds in three simple stages that help draw the entrepreneur and spouse from the past to the future: Harvest the Past, Turn the Soil, and Plant New Seeds.

  1. The couple harvests the past by celebrating the blessing of their life. They own and let go of regrets and hurts of the past. I offer pathways that encourage candid exchanges and mutual encouragement. As the couple harvests their past, they can stand in the present, to make conscious choices about what they want for themselves, their family, and their business.
  2. By turning the soul, the couple speculates on all they might like to do. To get there, they may talk about their personal purpose, what’s meaningful in their lives, and the role that spirituality plays in their work and life. They discuss how to be content by aligning their gifts with all areas of their lives.
  3. As the term implies, planting new seeds puts the couples’ new ideas into a plan for the future. They create a new dream together based on their explicit, shared goals and values—the discussions they have had in harvesting and turning the soil. Many aspects are drawn together: work, relationships, money/wealth, community service, leisure time, health, and spirituality. By recognizing and aligning all of these aspects, the couple builds direction into their future and an enthusiasm to engage in it.

In the case of Dodsworth and Fran, their vastly different expectations were highlighted during their European travel. Fran was youth-obsessed and wanted to embrace a spontaneous and impulsive lifestyle. Dodsworth wanted a more secure lifestyle to enjoy experiences and the wonders of the world like viewing the Northern Lights and appreciating the mysteries of the universe.

Had Dodsworth and Fran realized that entrepreneurs are driven by their dreams they could have anticipated their differences and avoided the tragedy that their relationship would soon befall.

To achieve this new dream for work, our challenge is to understand our purpose and identify what gives heart and meaning in relation to [our] work. That may mean we don’t have to leave our companies, but basically change our job descriptions from day-to-day management to much less demanding daily activities. It also requires us to become the architect and designer, with our families, of the new ownership and management system of our companies.

The new dream for the family is the most important part of Life Career Planning. It is an opportunity to directly confront the question of “What’s the Deal?” and renew your relationship with your spouse and children and redefine your role as grandparents. Related to this is the opportunity to perpetuate your legacy for the benefit of your community and your family.

Likewise, the opportunity to create a new dream for leisure time is the chance to plan, as a couple, to do all those things you have never had the time to do together, but also is an opportunity to plan and do things you have wanted to undertake individually. Recently, while talking with an entrepreneur client who I will call John, who had been exploring his own Life Career Planning, he shared that he has been weighing the possibility of taking a one-month sabbatical to experience what it feels like being away from his company. What John discovered while on sabbatical from his business was that his initial fears of not having a sense of self-worth were not realized. The sabbatical gave him the opportunity to feel good about developing plans to follow up on some of the dreams that he always wanted to explore. In addition, quite to John’s surprise, even though the sabbatical was only one month, his executive team quickly adjusted and began to establish a successful leadership plan to effectively run his company.

To create a new dream for service and philanthropy is an opportunity to reflect on your skills of compassion and sense of gratitude. C. Michael Thompson wrote in The Congruent Life, that “service is on the outside like prayer is on the inside.” Creating a family foundation or donor-advised fund are a few of the ways that are available for you to give back. It is also an opportunity to engage the next generation and your grandchildren in the process of service and philanthropy. Several of my clients engage their entire family in service projects. As grandparents, you can be quite influential with your grandchildren and assist them in establishing gratitude for the blessings of their lives.

If order for you to begin the process of Life Career Planning in your own life, you can reflect on and answer the following seven questions.

  1. What are your seven most important beliefs?
  2. What are the 10 major steppingstones of your life?
  3. How have these events shaped your life and influenced you in regard to your life plan?
  4. What are the major strengths you have developed as a result of your life experiences?
  5. What are your spiritual gifts?
  6. What is your purpose in life?
  • What are your talents?
  • What are you most passionate about?
  • What is the most natural environment for your life?
  • Identify the most important elements of the three previous questions and combine them into a sentence that goes as follows: “My purpose in life is…”

7. What is my new dream in relation to:

  • Work (Achievement)
  • Family (Intimacy)
  • Leisure (Play and Creativity)
  • Service (Compassion & Contribution)
  • Philanthropy (Legacy – Values)
  • Health
  • Purpose (Meaning)
  • Personal Mastery (Know Thyself)

With an appropriate amount of planning and discussion with your spouse, you can avoid the pitfalls that Dodsworth and Fran encountered. Take the time to engage in Life Career Planning with your spouse to ensure that your golden years are truly the best years of your lives.

About the Author

Tom Hubler is the author of THE SOUL OF FAMILY BUSINESS: A Practical Guide to Family Business Success and a Loving Family (2018). He is a family business advisor and President of Hubler for Business Families. When Hubler began working with family-owned business in 1980, there were very few in the field and he has therefore played a major role in this area, from helping colleges and universities establish family business institutes to his work with countless families and their business enterprises.

The Importance of Taking Care of Yourself While Working

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StrategyDriven Entrepreneurship Article | Self-care| The Importance of Taking Care of Yourself While WorkingWaking up and getting ready for work in the morning is a routine that many people are familiar with. You get up, brush your teeth and wash your face, change, eat some breakfast and make sure you have everything you need before you head out the door. If you’ve done this long enough, your morning routine may start to feel robotic.

The question is, when was the last time that you really took some time in the morning to meditate? What about to make yourself a healthy lunch for work? Overall, when did you last set some time aside for yourself, in order to better your mental and physical health? This doesn’t only apply to your morning routine, but is incredibly important for your afternoon, evening, and during every hour in between.

Even something as simple as taking a break at work and stepping away from your computer can benefit you. Or even just going for a teeth cleaning session with the dentist at Cape dentistry West Harwich clinic can immensely boost your self-morale.

Here are a number of reasons you need to prioritize self-care while you are working a full-time job.

You can never be too busy

You are never too busy to take care of yourself, no matter how many deadlines you have or how pressing a particular project is. It is incredibly important that you learn how to properly manage your time while you are at work, and it’s equally paramount that you never leave projects to the last minute, under any circumstance.

Mental health and productivity

You will notice a significant improvement in your mental health and productivity if you take time for yourself. Remember, you aren’t a robot, and you can’t work like one. Make a habit of stepping away from your work computer and you’ll notice a boost in your work creativity. You will even start to feel much happier, overall.

Hobbies and activities outside of work

How often do you participate in hobbies and other activities outside of your usual work routine? This hardly needs to require a lot of money on your part, as even something as simple as taking time to read at night, or practicing meditation, can positively impact your physical and mental health alike.

Providing support for your family members

If you don’t take care of yourself, how can you possibly hope to take care of your loved ones?

Of course, the older your family members get, the more they will require additional assistance. People’s health starts to decline with age, and you will likely require non-medical elderly in home care, which you can read more about on www.inhomecare.com. It’s important that you understand the difference of being able to take care of yourself and whether you need additional help.

You need to be attentive to your surroundings and know that in neglecting to take care of yourself, you also are not providing the best possible support for your family members. If you are consistently working late nights, you may not even realize that your loved ones are facing certain health issues, themselves. You may not even think to get at-home support, either, as your mind is constantly focused on other matters.

There isn’t a single person that can tell you how to live your life on a day-to-day basis. That being said, it would never hurt to be mindful over what the healthier alternatives are and how they can impact your life. Consider some of the points that have been mentioned here, for instance.

Struggling with Stress: How to Have More Fun at Work

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According to an Everest College Survey, 83% of US workers are suffering from stress at work, which is often related to a low salary, too many tasks, a lack of job security, a poor work-life balance, or a lack of professional developments.

Unfortunately, stress at work can eat into a worker’s personal life, as they may feel defined by their chosen career. Fortunately, there are numerous ways you can combat stress in your job. Find out how to have more fun at work.

Go for a Walk

Whenever your job becomes a little stressful, take a walk to clear your mind and distance yourself from the tasks. The small break will not only help to clear your mind, but it can reportedly increase creativity. You’ll return to work with more passion and determination for a project, so you’ll feel happier in the job role.

Play a Game

Games have been proven to alleviate anxiety and stress both inside and outside the workplace. It can, therefore, be a fun and helpful activity during a lunch or coffee break. So, play a video game in the office breakout room, or enjoy a Unibet game to relax your mind and have a little fun. It could potentially lift your mood, which will make the working day seem less of a chore.

Personalize Your Workspace

Do you have your own office, cubicle, or desk? Put your own stamp on it with a little personalization. Create a fun space you are proud to call your own. For example, you can add stress balls, family photographs, decorative accessories, or you can decorate it with postcards or cards. It will be your own mini home away from home, and it’s bound to capture the attention of other colleagues – so it could be a good way to make new friends at work.

Don’t Be Afraid to Have Fun

While it is important to maintain professionalism at work, nothing is stopping you from having a little fun with your colleagues, too. So, stop being afraid to have fun and simply crack a joke, laugh with others, share funny articles, or smile at your colleagues. You will help to create a happier workplace – and you’ll feel happier as a result, too.

Compliment a Colleague

A compliment could potentially make a person’s day, so don’t be afraid to give a colleague some positive feedback each day. For example, genuinely compliment them on their presentation, or ask where they bought their clothing. It will make others feel good, and it will, in turn, make you feel good. They’ll also be more likely to compliment you in the future, too, so you can help to create a more positive working environment for everyone. You’ll be surprised by how something so small can make such a big difference to both yours and another person’s day.

Do you have any helpful tips on how to have more fun at work? Please write a comment below.

Building a positive work-life culture

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Although work-life balance policies are meant to acknowledge the realities faced by dual earner families, existing workplace norms often stigmatize the use of such policies. While employers have started to offer several policies that facilitate better work-life balance, there is scant evidence that they are helping organisations foster a healthier work-life culture. There is also low utilization of such policies despite the widespread demand for such flexibility. The pressure to work long hours along with the career penalties associated with the use of work-life policies are creating workplace cultures where employees have limited choices in terms of managing their work and non-work demands.

Transforming the culture of an organisation to one that encourages a better work-life balance is often very challenging. Although it is debatable whether organisations have a responsibility for work-life balance, evidence suggests that providing support for work-life issues has significant payoffs for the employment relationship. Frequently organisations may offer a range of work-life policies but if not properly implemented these policies may fail to facilitate better work-life reconciliation.

Often effective policy implementation requires a transformation of the workplace culture and underlying assumptions about how work should be organised and how employee performance should be evaluated. Cultures that emphasize long working hours as a symbol of commitment frequently hinder employees from making use of work-life policies. In several organisations, managers focus on rewarding “face-time” rather than actual performance. When managers have subordinates who face work-life conflicts, the best approach is to direct their efforts toward evaluating actual performance rather than presenteeism or “face-time”. Effective role-modeling by leaders who are aware of the importance of work-life balance may also help in building a culture that champions reconciliation of work and nonwork lives while reducing feelings of inadequacies among workers who utilize work-life practices. Likewise, employees should also be encouraged to raise nonwork issues with their managers and should be assured that their employer does not expect them to subordinate their personal or family roles while prioritizing their work roles. Such a culture may allay worker fears about the negative career consequences of addressing work-life issues and also result in a favorable image of their employer as one that cares about their well-being.

About the Author

Shainaz FirfirayShainaz Firfiray is an assistant professor in the Organisation and Human Resource Management Group at Warwick Business School. She received her PhD in management at IE Business School, Spain. Her research interests include work-life balance, social identity, and workplace diversity.