February 1st, 2010
There are lots of different ways that you can improve motivation in all aspects of your life. I would suggest that perhaps the most effective and measurable way is to set goals for both long-term and short term achievement. It is also important that you have a support network around you to help you and encourage you to achieve these goals (they must have some understanding of what you are trying to achieve in order to do this effectively).
An example of this is that I train for rowing every morning and evening, before and after work and all morning at the weekends. It can get pretty tough especially in winter when everything is freezing and you are always training in the dark. People often ask me – what keeps you motivated? (I often ask myself the question too!). So here is a quick list of what I think are the most important factors:
University trial eights racing on the tideway
- I love the sport – If you don’t enjoy it then what is the point! Ok - when it’s dark and miserable in the winter or when we have endless gym sessions and experience a hell of a lot of pain or when you lose a race you should have won - then it is far from enjoyable. However, I love all my teammates and coaches, I love racing and the sense of achievement when you race well after a lot of preparation, I like having a constant goal and I love winning.
Me (front-right) and some of my team representing England last summer.
- I have a massive support network – coaches and teammates with common goals. It is also really nice when family and friends are supportive of what you are trying to achieve.
- I want to win – this is where it starts to get interesting as firstly you want to beat your crewmates into the best boat. And then you want to make sure that as a crew you win against other teams.
- There are continuous goals/aims. You have to set realistic goals about all aspects of your training e.g. if you are lifting 50kg on weights then in the next couple of weeks you may aim to lift 52.5kg, but you may aim that by next year you can lift 60kg. It’s the same on the water, you may be ranked 10th and want to beat the person ranked 9th in the next race, however you may aim to be ranked in the top 4 by the end of the season. You don’t want to miss any sessions as this would hinder you progression toward these goals and this is what keeps you going day after day. Take a look at this Canadian rowing motivational video for inspiration.
I hope this has given some insight as to how you can motivate yourself towards achieving the best you can in whatever aspect of your life. Setting goals, enjoying what you do, being competitive and letting other people support you and help you.
Tags: motivation, personal development
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January 31st, 2010
I was talking to the Head of Careers at a school this week. During the discussion, she mentioned that one of her biggest problems is arranging work experience. I can understand that as it involves liaising with many businesses in the area, twisting a few arms, calling in a few favours - all the kinds of things that MP’s are good at. In the middle of the conversation though, she mentioned something that I found staggering …
Her school spends £10 K per year arranging these work experience opportunities for year 10’s. Guess what the money gets spent on? Travel or perhaps useful resources? No. The school spends this money on … wait for it … HEALTH AND SAFETY CHECKS.
So there are loads of companies out there coining it by conducting health and safety checks on the good people who are prepared to provide work experience opportunities. It this weren’t so serious, it would be laughable. Firstly, spending money on health and safety checks is essentially money peed down the drain - there is no return on this investment. Secondly and more importantly, this school (and there are plenty of others) are reconsidering whether they can afford work experience for their students. In a way, that’s good for us, because we provide career resources for students. However, we would never suggest doing away with work experience opportunities - they are probably the most important experience to have when coming to terms with how the world of work functions.How will students make the right kind of decisions about their futures? Services such as the Career Foundations Programme can solve this problem, but not everyone has the money to spend.
This health and safety stuff is a load of bollocks - it’s like a cancer in our society. It costs us billions every year and produces absolutely nothing. A safety first philosophy will never create anything great. It’s these kinds of constraints that make ongoing educational and economic competitiveness more and more difficult and increasingly unlikely.
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January 30th, 2010
Today, I’ve been writing some new content for our series of webinars aimed at helping careers advisors at schools to provide a better quality of career advice. The webinar has to do with “preparing for change and transitions”. In thinking about it, it strikes me that young adults need to realise that some of the changes they face are entirely predictable whereas others are far less so. For example, we know for sure that on leaving school, we will either go to University or some form of further study or we will (try to) enter the world of work. These are entirely predictable.
If we look at these examples in more detail, let’s try and identify the essence of the change in each situation. For those young adults entering University, the real change has to do with coping with much greater personal freedom and independence. If we look at what’s required to cope well with this new situation, it comes down mainly to the quality of our decision making and our ability to learn from mistakes.
For those young adults entering the world of work, the challenges presented by this change are very different. I would argue that the biggest challenges have to do with fitting in, complying and figuring out how to make one’s mark. The skills and attitudes required to make this transition successfully have much more to do with the ability to adopt the appropriate behaviours this new environment requires. Decision making the learning from mistakes are still important, but not as important as learning and adopting the behaviours required by one’s working environment. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to sit down and figure out the kinds of things that should be done (generically) in order to fit in to a full time work situation.
So predictable change is one thing - unpredictable change is another. I would argue that unpredictable change in itself is becoming more predictable given the pace of change in our lives but also that this change requires a distinct set of change skills. These are largely about awareness (having a good radar), developing a broad range of commercial and technical skills to improve one’s ability to adapt and having the confidence to act proactively. I’ll make sure to write on this in a future post.
Tags: Changes, Transitions
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January 24th, 2010
Believe it or not, the prime minister was once a teenager. Spots, at least as awkward as he is now etc. If I were his career advisor at the time, what would my advice have been? If I had been good enough to spot his need for power, I would have advised politics. A great place to be if you’re keen on power. If your top motivation is power, think no further than politics. Of course, it’s all dressed up as doing good for others, blah, blah, but politicians are generally there because they love the sound of their own voices, the expense accounts and the lack of accountability. If you’re a non performer in business, you’ll be out within a year. As an MP, you’ve got 4 and even then you’ve still got a chance to hoodwink the electorate.
So, back to Gordon. I do think he’s in the right career. Unfortunately though, he suffers from what’s known as the “Peter Principle”. Don’t ask me why it’s called that, it just is. The Peter principle occurs when an individual gets promoted beyond their level of competence. Happens all the time. The individual who hitherto has been a fine performer is suddenly out of their depth.
If we look at the qualities required of an individual to lead a country, in addition to a decent set of brains (tick for Gordon), integrity (tick - I think), there’s something called leadership. Big topic. There’s been quite a lot written about transformational leadership. These are leaders who can bring about change and take people willingly along with them. These leaders have genuine empathy, the ability to keep people on their toes by being really clued up as well as some charisma. Well, on the C word, I think we have a zero score there. No person should be allowed to run a country if their only use of power is as a blunt instrument. If people like and respect you, as a leader you have a much better chance of building a strong followership.
So Gordon is in the right career, he’s just been promoted beyond his abilities. Let’s face it, it’s really difficult to turn down the promotion when it comes around. All of us though, get to a point where we’re officially out of our depth and therefore likely to be far less effective. So, beware that fantastic promotion - it might just be your downfall!
Oh, and if you do need good career advice, check out our programmes.
Tags: Leadership, power
Posted in Student Career Advice, Uncategorized | 3 Comments »
January 22nd, 2010
A while back I wrote a post questioning whether you need to be arrogant to become a Doctor or whether this is a natural outcome of all the studying and adoration received. Well today I’m wondering whether it helps to be a nerd in IT.
Let’s face it, IT requires a certain mindset. It does require a good ability in mathematics, in logical thinking, in attention to detail and in the ability to talk to and possibly fall deeply in love with, a laptop. I know a few people who prefer their Macs to their partners! While we’re still at the stage that PC’s aren’t talking back to us, why not? I have to say, that the majority of people I know in IT are on the nerdy end of the spectrum. Of course there are exceptions, but here’s a game to play when you’re next in the company of IT people. Listen to the way they speak and in particular, to what they argue about. You’re likely to hear them arguing about detail and semantics. These are really important to do the job well but can become a complete pain in the butt in a human interaction.
I happen to think that the nature of the industry reflects and to some extent, reinforces the nature of the individual within it. Here’s the message though … the industry is changing. Software is becoming more intuitive as well as easier to programme. More and more content is being created by users. While the IT sector will still retain a core of skilled technical roles, there are a large number of new roles being added that don’t require such deep technical skills. Many of these roles are hybrids between the old software developer role, design and usability. So the relative importance of technical roles is declining and insights into how customers use and engage with the software and content are becoming more important. A more outward looking, generalist and commercial approach is going to be required for success going forward.
Them nerds are going to have to change!
Tags: IT Sector
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January 15th, 2010
There’s been quite a bit of navel gazing in the US recently (they do navel gazing well there) about happiness at work. A recent survey shows that 45% of Americans are unhappy at work. Maybe that’s why they’re so fat. Joking aside, being happy and fulfilled at work is seriously important, given the amount of time we spend at work in our lives. I find it hard to imagine that anyone who works and is unhappy at work will be generally happy with their lives. This applies in particular to us men who tend to define themselves more by their careers than the fairer sex do. I know I’m standing on lots of toes here.
Someone coming home from work in an unhappy state (bad boss, lack of autonomy, boring work, repetition, not learning anything, not being challenged etc) will normally find it difficult to switch over into the jolly and bright person they’d like to be.
What the US survey should have asked is the percentage of people that would choose the same career if they were to start all over again. My guess is that the answer would be about 50%. A poor fit between who you are and the career you choose has got to be the strongest cause of unhappiness at work.
So, we have got to get better at choosing our careers. Falling into it, doing what dad or mum does as defaults etc are not good ways of starting off and starting off badly is often difficult to fix. Once the mortgage, partner and kid number 1 arrives, change becomes less of an option. Choosing a career is one of life’s most important decisions. You need all the help you can get. If you want help, check out some innovative solutions
Tags: Happiness
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January 15th, 2010
I’ve spent all of this week in Hong Kong and China discussing the launch of www.mytalentplace.cn. My business partners and I are convinced that the Chinese mindset together with the single child policy and massive market size makes this a great place for a business offering careers advice to students. It’s my first trip to China and I thought I’d share some of my impressions with you. Seeing and experiencing something first hand is always much more powerful than reading about it.
Career competition
Firstly, in this week it was announced that China is now the world’s biggest car market. Last year, the growth in new car sales was 46% at a time when all the Western car markets were dead! China also recently overtook Germany to become the world’s biggest exporter. Get the idea? The momentum here is unstoppable. This new wealth and prosperity is creating a thriving market for luxury brands too.
Everyone I spoke to (students as well as parents) gave us one message. The message is that Chinese parents will do everything they can to further the prospects of their child. There’s only one child to lavish attention and resources on and having experienced hard times under communism, parents know that their children have great prospects, particularly if they can gain an international qualification and experience. Of course, most parents in the UK will say that they want their kids to have the best and to do well, but I don’t think there’s that same level of intensity that exists in China. Western life is comfortable and fairly predictable. A UK student who screws up his exams this year knows that there is likely to be another chance. We need to be prepared to see lots more Chinese students at our UK universities. As universities struggle financially, so more and more Chinese parents will pay for their child to get the best education.
So, not only will new graduates be competing with their Chinese equivalents for jobs, but they’ll be competing with more Chinese students while they’re studying. While these foreign students might lack in certain areas, they certainly won’t be out on the lash every night! From March 2010 Chinese students will also be benefitting from the career advice provided by MyTalentplace
Tags: China
Posted in Career Counselling, Parents - their role in Career Advice | 3 Comments »
January 4th, 2010
If you haven’t had time to make a New Year’s resolution yet – it’s not too late! It is important it is achievable so you stick with it – think tortoise rather than hare. If you think them through, then resolutions should be life changes that last longer than a year (rather than fizzling out at the end of January!). Here are some ideas to help you achieve 5 popular resolutions:
- Make yourself attractive to employers – whether looking for a job or wanting a career change, make sure you get up-to-date advice on your career. Use our career resources database – free videos, downloads and podcasts!
- Get yourself in shape! – join a sports club, sign up for classes or make your own club. It is a lot easier to exercise with other people, as if you commit to other people you are less likely to let them down. Do not simply join a gym on your own, as often you will have to commit for a year – and it’s a hefty fee if you get bored.
- Ditch your scales. If you want to make a resolution to lose weight – first of all change the way you think about yourself – think in terms of shape rather than weight. Muscle weighs 3x more than fat, therefore to get more toned you may actually get heavier on the scales.
- Make some savings or investments. You never know what life is going to throw at you - so see where you can cut back, and put aside the money you have saved. Simple ideas include – taking lunch to work and not buying take away coffee. You could try cycling to work and save a fortune on travel.
- Ask for help. This may sound easy but it can make your life a lot easier. Try to analyse a problem or situation and if there is someone who may be able to help it can save you a lot of time and hassle. If you need help in your career take a positive step and get a career advisor now to improve your success rate.
It is important that you see the changes as improving your lifestyle, decide on a small change and stick to it! If you can make it part of your daily routine and it will soon become habit.
Good luck for prosperous 2010!
Tags: careers advice, goal setting, new year's resolution, personal development
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January 4th, 2010
I never thought I’d say this, but I am now convinced that the header of this post is correct. When I studied my first degree - the extremely useful, practical and commercial BA majoring in Psychology, I looked at Commercial degrees, particularly those with an emphasis on Accounting as being dry, boring and for nerds. I was wrong about 2 of the 3 points. A sample of a typical Accounting class will probably show a higher than average nerd factor, but this is not a terminal problem. Nerds can be interesting and who knows, they might be good to stay in touch with so they’ll take your call when they’re Managing Director and you’re looking for a job!
Let’s forget the stereotypes for now though. The one thing that stands out among the Accountants I know is how they all have a great grasp of business principles and have used this to real benefit during their careers. A big part of the training often involved auditing of different companies. This is a great way of getting exposure to all sorts of different sectors and business types. By the time your average nerd (sorry accountant) is 25, they have been exposed to more types of businesses than most of us will come across in our working lives. Cogitate on that for a mo!
OK, some accountants will stay accountants and that’s fine for all concerned. A large number though use the knowledge they have of how businesses work either to create their own businesses, rise to senior positions in the corporate ranks or in professional firms. There is a myth that Accountants don’t become entrepreneurs. That’s bollocks. Certainly the ability to identify risks accurately may mean that accountants don’t get involved in some of the more zany schemes or ideas, but I’ve met enough who have their own successful businesses to know that this view is a myth.
So, if I were starting all over again I would study accountancy first without any doubt. With a business grounding like this, I would then have the flexibility to take my career almost anywhere I wanted to go (both geographically and job wise)
Want to find out more? Click here to to find out more about Accounting as a Career choice
Tags: Accounting careers
Posted in Career Counselling, Parents - their role in Career Advice, Student Career Advice | 4 Comments »
January 3rd, 2010
There’s been a lot of press recently about how the pay gap between the public and private sectors has closed and in fact, has swung in favour of the public sector. Although I find it hard to believe, who am I to distrust the press? Factors like better pensions, better basic pay, more holiday allowances are listed as being better in the public sector. One of the issues I did not see discussed was that of bonuses. I’m not talking about bankers’ bonuses, I’m talking about the 10% - 15% bonuses that many private sector jobs have (although these are seldom guaranteed). Even so, there’s clearly an issue here.
If you want a less stressed working environment, the chances are that the public sector is better for you. If you’re a lazy so and so who can’t be asked to provide a decent service, then the public sector is definitely for you! Why? Well its almost impossible to get fired. One of the stats written about in the debate is how public sector workers take about 50% more sick days than their counterparts in the private sector. Why? Because they can! I have a number of friends in the public sector and they complain about their colleagues who are clearly taking the piss. The word malingering comes to mind. It’s really, really difficult to get fired and the unfortunate fact, is that in an environment like that, piss taking flourishes. So, if you’re lazy, useless or have decent skills but don’t want stress, the public sector is for you.
Let’s consider though, the job satisfaction or lack of it to be found in a working environment that is not merit based. Of course, there are many extremely competent people in the public sector, but its draining on morale to see the piss takers get away with it. Why slave away, put in extra hours and improve your qualifications and skills when the person next to you who takes 4 days sick leave every month gets the same salary increase as you? So while the public sector may be attacting talent now due to lack of jobs in the private sector and excessive labour government spending, its hard to keep talent when the working environment doesn’t reward or even focus on performance.
There, that’s off my chest now!
Tags: private sector, public sector
Posted in Student Career Advice | 1 Comment »
