Career Basics Course: Week 10, Day 46

"You can't stay in?your?corner of the forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes." ~ Winnie the Pooh

"It is easier to go where there already is a path forged. But the most rewarding trails are the ones we make for ourselves. Those are ones we can leave behind for others to follow. It also means we find new places few others haven't gone before. Though going where there is no path can be more difficult, it will be worth it when you get to your destination." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Everything you want to be, you already are. You’re simply on the path to discovering it.” ~ Alicia Keys

Write Your Own Job Description

THIS IS AN EXERCISE you should only do if you are asked to. If you haven't been asked yet, skip this (Doyle here: however, I'm going to encourage you to stay with this exercise even if you haven't yet been asked to do this.)

Being asked to write your own job description is an opportunity to get the job you have never heard about but always wanted. In nonlinear careers it happens more commonly that you might expect, especially with young companies, start-ups and nonprofits.

The Exercise

There are three main stages to go through when writing your job description.

Stage 1: Getting the Information

The major questions to address at this stage are:

• How would your work move the company's work forward?
• Which budget would your job come from?
• What are the expectations the employers have from this job?
• What resources would you have to manage, allocate, and access during this job?

Stage 2: Your Path, Their Needs

... knowing what path you want to walk, and figuring out how to structure your job description so that you are helping the company achieve its needs without taking you off your path.

Ask yourself the following questions:

• What do I need from the company to deliver on the above?
• What am I dependent on?
• How could focusing on my ideal way of working help me to do this job better?

The main thing that the employer will be looking for in the job description is that you can deliver on the goals. How you reach these goals and how you live your life while you do it is up to you.

Stage 3: Framing the Conversation

... consider how you frame the conversation.

• When dealing with smaller companies for whom creating a new job means taking a risk, offer to write a ninety-day plan covering what you would do in your first days at the company. Taking this approach and potentially pitching yourself as a ninety-day contract (at least initially) instead of a full-time employee from the start gives you more power and lowers the risk for them. This makes it easier for them to say yes and for you both to get a sense of the working relationship.

Note: This is

• Way 48, if you reference the 2018 version of the book, which I have, ...
• but doesn't match up easily if you're looking?in?50 Ways to Get a Job: An Unconventional Guide to Finding Work on Your Terms .

For me, ... this feels particularly relevant since I've been thinking less rigorously and less formally than Dev suggests ... I'm even thinking to apply this idea to several of the projects that I'm developing at the moment because if I write these projects as job descriptions in the three-stage format suggested above then I will be able to "test" out what I'm trying to hire myself for and what skills I'm seeking for my path ...

• a job description for collaboration with colleagues in Palestine
• a job description for collaboration around Teachers Design For Education
• a job description for collaboration around the Upkey Foundation
• and a few others....

For me, ...

• this is going to be really helpful.

Much peace.

Gerald Doyle

A Happy Monday ... Week 10, Day 46!

And, here we are ... to embark on Week 10. WOW!

Three cheers to those of you who have landed and others who are gaining interviews and traction; remember, we're all in for everyone and we will not rest until everyone has set themselves squarely on a path that's right for them at this moment.

We are welcoming several new individuals who will continue throughout the remaining week of the Career Basics Course as Contributing Respondents. They are:

• Kennan Carnegie ?- a Chicago-based human resource enthusiast with a deep commitment to the profession to help organizations co-create employee experiences that empower and enable individuals to thrive at work and in life -- improving retention and employee engagement, increasing innovation and invention (and implementation), where everyone thrives and flourishes
• Zoe Hatch ?- a Chicago-based health-care human resource professional having just earned her MA at?Pepperdine University , Zoe's empathetic approach aims to co-create and advance organizations where an attention to wellness and wellbeing improves the healing process for patients and their families as well as the staff and community that provides for their care.
• Will McKelvain ?- an undergraduate at?University of Chicago ?and a member of?Psi Upsilon Fraternity , Will is exploring the study of law and ethics to build strong communities within corporate and civic organizations
• Mark Falenchuk ?- an undergraduate at?University of Chicago ?and a member of?Psi Upsilon Fraternity , Mark is exploring the fields of energy and construction finance at the regional economy and global level to help nations achieve economic stability and freedom to intentional chart their course and destiny

And, our continuing team include:

• Caila Howell ?... a business/digital marketing professional and education advocate. We're delighted that Caila has joined us in this journey.
• Kathleen O'Brien 欧凯林 ?... a mission-motivated, people-oriented and a collaborator between and among cultures. We're delighted that Kathleen has joined us in this journey.
• Lap Gong Leong , a writer, author and political commentary who shares his thinking and writing regularly, most recently authoring,?Uncovering Sensibilities: rethinking axioms in the world of work for autistic people .

All the very best to everyone. Much peace.

Gerald and?Al Nunez