Does Your Job Actually Suck…?

Does your job actually suck…

Or do you just enjoy complaining about your job…

Have you ever heard the story about the Farmer’s Beagle that kept howling non stop?

Day in, Day out.

Arrrooooo Arrroooo

The first time a new neighbor saw the Beagle he thought the beagle was going through a rough patch in his senior years... So he just ignored the howls… Thinking one day they must stop, right?

But it didn’t…

1 week passed…

Arrrooooo Arrroooo

2 weeks passed…

Arrrooooo Arrroooo

1 month has passed…

The new neighbor couldn’t take it anymore and went back over to the farmer's house to chat with the farmer about the howling beagle.

“Farmer why does your dog keep howling”

The farmer responded back to the neighbor, “Oh, he is just sitting on a nail.

Bewildered the neighbor asked, “Why doesn’t he just get up and off the nail then?”

The farmer responded back to the new neighbor… “That’s because it doesn’t hurt enough yet”.

Is that nail that you're sitting on (your job) hurt enough yet for you to look at getting up?

Or

Do you just enjoy howling like the beagle on sitting on the nail?

I know that’s a funny story, but let's talk about how it applies to real life.

Over the past few years, I have worked with hundreds of high-level leaders in their prospective fields. Even if I am can’t help them make a move at the moment I try to help. 

2 Leaders in DC and NYC stick out the most along with this parable of the job hunt. 

One has complained for years about how bad things are and how they need to leave. 

The second leader also complained…

Both of them asked for help on putting together plans to help them move on and up into their next growth role.  (Both of them are outside my industry so most of my clients didn’t have active roles for their backgrounds.)

The first leader was always the first to ask for help but over time I realized not that much was getting done all the requests.

The second leader would ask for help, and a few days later I would get a call from them…

Hey, I did this, how do you think I should approach it next. 

Let me take a step back…

I know both were unhappy with their current employment situations and were looking for the next place they can grow and add value.

But one of them… The first leader would take the occasional approach here and there…

The other did just a little bit of outreach on a daily or every other day basis…

Chiming in: I am probably thinking about the minor stuff daily since I am currently reading the book The Slight Edge and it talks about how your daily habits and the things you do each day… even though they seem small and might move the needle .0001 each day… if you do that day in and day out even if it’s a little. It will move that need a much larger percentage over the course of a month, year, or a decade and that will have a major impact on your life.

From what I have seen the little bit of work that is tracked each day… Might not be seeing the results right now… 

Might not have gotten the offer they want. Yet…

But they are actively expanding their network connecting with fellow industry peers and I can tell you from the experience of 15 years in recruiting and headhunting…

The leader on a daily basis doing the work…

Is setting themselves up for not just the next offer…

But for the next 15 years of their professional lives.

What you do in your job hunt, your networking…

Your daily little habits matter when you are chasing a goal…

The goal for your next place where you can add value to a team and organization.

So…

Are you the Beagle that is just going to sit on the nail….

Or are you the Beagle that is going to finally get up and move forward?