A Field Guide to Finding an Organization to Partner with (sometimes incorrectly called a job)

You will work for one-third of your life and if you don’t design that one-third someone else will and it might not be what you wanted.

My goal in this article is not to preach but to share what worked for me. Treat this article like a buffet – take what you want and use your own judgement, everyone is different, everyone is unique, and I sincerely believe that everyone has a gift to give. Time to give yours.

This article has nothing to do with job hunting, resumes, solving puzzles or searching for "top interview questions”.?I am not saying you won’t do these things or that they don’t matter,?I am talking about your vision and your strategic goals and the tactical steps you can take to get there.

Finding an organization that aligns to your values and leaves you feeling like you fit in is like finding a great partnership – it takes time, planning, daring, preparation, risk-taking ?and a little luck.

Remember when you were younger and were asked "What do you want to be when you grow up?” Congratulations you’re a grown up. Now, comes the hard part.

Before you take Rome you have to know where it is. Before you find your ideal organization, ?making sure that the person with the vision (you!) is still in charge is the hard part.

I like to create vision boards to manifest my goals into reality and I recommend this method to anybody who is looking for a goal-oriented plan to help them in any facet of their life – career, health, fitness – it can apply to everything.

Once you have your vision, you can lay out tactical milestones to get there, These are just suggestions, and many may seem contradictory. Just how life is complicated and messy, your steps to your vision will be too.

Field Guide Observation #1: “Perfection is the enemy of good.”

It’s not going to happen overnight, and there is a near 100% chance that you will take some jobs that are not perfect but generally align with your vision and move you forward.?The trick here is that you can “lose” every tactical milestone and still win - it's about moving the needle, making progress and following the path.

Suggested Tactical Action: Take the small wins and short-term contracts as long as they keep you moving in the right direction. You’re not settling, you’re moving in line with your goals. For instance if you love Information Technology?, it does not matter whether you count houses or count oranges – it's all data and you can express your skills in any environment.

Field Guide Observation #2: “Showing you can do something is better than saying you can.” Regardless of the industry you are in, find ways to demonstrate your abilities.

Suggested Tactical Action: If you're in a technical environment, you can build something at no cost. If you’re in a non-technical environment, you can demonstrate your abilities as a volunteer – organize an event, author a white paper or plan a strategy.

Field Guide Observation #3: Pick the organization you want to partner with first, not the role.

?Suggested Tactical Action: Your role will change over time, so the focus should be on ?finding the right partner. The role will come.?I am a software developer and always will be, but I have been in a Quality Assurance role for the last two years. I was in development for 15 years and have been asked why I would “settle” for a different role and area of focus? My answer – I’m not settling on a role, I'm continuing my professional growth within my ideal organization.

Field Guide Observation #4: Do what you love and pick a partner organization that does what you love to do – the money will show up.

?Suggested Tactical Action: Taking risks to achieve your goals is gutsy and not for everyone. If your focus is solely on making money, this won’t apply to you. But If you’re really looking to work for an organization that aligns to your vision and values, then I suggest that this risk is worth it. Take a more junior position in a better fitting organization – the value will pay off in the long run.

Field Guide Observation #5: Don’t be afraid to pull the ejection handle, preferably within your probation period - and have your red lines well mapped out.

Suggested Tactical Action: I left a company seven days after I joined because they counted code productivity by the number of lines that I wrote, not the quality or what it did..?Some might think that seven days in is too early to tell how you might “end up” enjoying your partnership with the organization. I think there is no point in me wasting my time, or the organization’s time, if I see an immediate red flag. Remember the probationary period is for both sides.

Field Guide Observation #6: Honesty about your limitations is a force multiplier, not a sign of weakness.

Suggested Tactical Action: “Experience is what you get when you don’t get what you wanted.” (Randy Pausch, The Last Lecture). No one person is a perfect employee and no one organization is a perfect employer. Everyone makes mistakes - don’t hide yours, share it and relish the lessons you learned from it.??When you get asked the inevitable question, “Tell us about your failures...” be confident in your answer. Dive into your failures ?– highlight the lessons and how you applied the learnings. If your sincere answer is that you don’t have any failures then you are not trying hard enough.

Field Guide Observation #7: Have Fun!

If this pandemic has taught us anything it is that life is precious and your time matters - whatever you do have fun. Remember in all the universes (and maybe more) there is only one you! Take care of your-self and show the world the gift you have to give!

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