Career Risks vs Rewards

Thanks for reading High Impact Humans, a weekly (Friday) newsletter where I share stories and ideas for creating impact that lasts and that matters. "Subscribe" above ?

With an uncertain and unpredictable future-of-work, we can all expect to confront career options and choices that we cannot predict. You may confront these options during a season of "offense" - seeking more aspirational career goals on an accelerated timeline. At other times, you may be exploring options from a position of "defense" - reacting to layoffs or leaving a toxic environment.

In either case, change comes with risks and your attitude towards risk will affect the range of opportunity options available to you. As your experience, status, and compensation increases, the risks become more complex and emotions influence decisions more than you realize. For this reason, wise people seek perspective and advice from others as they navigate these choices. I get calls almost daily from people who are contemplating career moves and I want to use this post to share three ideas that I frequently share on these calls.

#1 - Your current income is irrelevant to your future employer. An unusually high percentage of people have a sense of entitlement to ever-increasing income. If you will only consider options that immediately offer you more compensation than your current role, then you will miss out on many great opportunities. If you want to earn more money than you do today, you have to figure out how to make yourself more valuable. While you are paying your dues to learn new skills or gain new experience in a new industry, your value - and therefore your income - may temporarily go backwards. Taking less pay in order to make yourself more valuable can be a smart risk. What's important is that you're making yourself more valuable every year.

#2 - The value of an opportunity door comes from the future doors it unlocks. You may make a career move in order to get a better manager, or a more prestigious title, or higher compensation, but all of those things are temporary. All of those things may be in place in year one, which may lead you to believe in year one that you made a great move. In year two, though, your manager may change or that industry may experience decline, and you could regret making that move. Similarly, I've made moves that did not work out as I hoped, but I met people in that role that opened exciting doors for me later. There are many futures that may unfold in the coming years. Assess each opportunity based on the range of futures it unlocks for you. Optimize for optionality. How many future doors will this opportunity unlock for you? What's important is that you are creating more future options for yourself every year.

#3 - Make sure that everyone that bets on you wins. There will be some risk to you in any career move. In fact, there will always be some risk in not making any move. You need to make sure that everyone that provides you with an opportunity is rewarded for their risk. There should be a 100% chance that making a bet on you produces great outcomes for that leader and the organization. When everyone that works with you endorses you as a teammate, you will always have access to opportunities. Even if you do not believe your current role is the best for you, you need to bring your best to your team for as long as you are a member of that team. What's important is that you prove that your commitment to the team always exceeds their commitment to you.

Taking no career risks is a risky strategy, especially when career options and choices will be changing so rapidly in unexpected ways. Don't limit yourself to only those opportunities that will match or exceed your current compensation. Optimize for optionality because there are many futures that might unfold. Make sure that everyone that bets on you is glad they did. If you follow these simple guidelines, you'll give yourself the best opportunity to be invited to join winning teams for years to come. I'm rooting for you!

If you enjoyed today’s High Impact Humans, please subscribe and share?. Your comments and your stories about impact that matters are the reason I write. Join the conversation in the comments below!