What to do when a job turns sour

Giddy at the Bank Holiday weekend, I played hooky on Friday afternoon to meander among the azaleas and admire the fallow deer at Richmond Park.

I?even treated myself to lunch at the cafe.?

Now I’m not quite sure what happened, but somewhere between the question “Do you want your tuna mayo sandwich hot or cold?” and my answer “Cold is great, thanks”,?the wind must have twisted my words into “Throw that baby into your giant toastie machine and give it all you’ve got”.

The result was a challenging combo of nicely crisp sourdough and warm tuna, sweaty rocket and hot -?yes you heard me right?-?hot?cucumber.

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I ploughed on regardless. I didn’t want to be that person. You know, the moaning one, the one who says “I don’t know if you heard me, but ...”,?the one that points out that unless cheese is involved, a tuna mayo sandwich has no place on God’s earth under a grill.???

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I admit to being a little disappointed. I thought I’d bought one thing and ended up with another.?

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I ended up with hot cucumber.?

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But never one to waste a mediocre sandwich or a perfect metaphor, it got me thinking.?

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How many of us start out excited by our career choice and only later wonder how the job we enthusiastically plumped for became something altogether different???

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How many of us feel demotivated by the fact that the role we signed up for has evolved into something we barely recognise??

Take the teacher drawn to a life of inspiring children and sharing his?love of History, who ends up a miserable head, dealing with budgets and governance.?

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The designer whose work started out with captivating hands-on creating and morphed into a frustrating life behind a computer.?

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Or the lawyer fired up to fight injustice, who finds herself going into battle for money-hungry oil, alcohol and tobacco companies.?

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What do these people have in common? They ordered a tuna mayo sandwich and ended up with hot cucumber.?

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It happens for any number of reasons. Here are just a few you might have experienced:

? your organisation is restructured and your role with it?

? promotion takes you higher up the ladder but further from the work you enjoy

??technological advances change the nature of your work

??you get a new boss or change team and suddenly everything’s different?(and not in a good way)??

? you start working with a totally new client base

? two words - the pandemic??

And it’s classic career shift territory. Making you think about calling it a day and embracing a radical change.?

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So if your refreshing tuna mayo sandwich has morphed into a hot mess, what should you actually do?

Here are 3?approaches?to help you?figure out if it's really time for something new.?

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???Write a list of the 10 things that originally drew you into the work you're doing?

Re-engage with the bits of your work you loved, that excited and inspired you when you first signed up - whether that's particular skillsets or tasks, motivators or?values, people, places,?challenges or rewards.?

???Ask yourself, "Has?the?work?changed or have?I?changed?"

As you look at that list, consider how far you've?moved from those ten important elements. Are you unfulfilled and frustrated because key features of your work have altered? Or is the work still the same but your needs and priorities have shifted?

Sometimes we find the nature of our job has shifted far from what it once was.?

Other times we realise that our personal evolution (hitting 30, becoming a parent, nearing?midlife, or a change in our practical circumstances) means we now need and desire something altogether different from our career.?

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???Identify the specific parts of the puzzle that no longer fit and take steps to alter them

Once you're clear what needs your focus, consider what's in your power to change, both in the short and longer term.

What "job crafting" could you start?right now, by saying no to certain things, putting yourself forward for particular tasks or projects, and better communicating your preferences and ideas to your team or boss?

Going forwards?could those relatively small tweaks get you back to your vision? Or are you seeing that a bigger reshaping is required? And if so,?what are the options you'd like to investigate??

I'd love you to?hit REPLY?and tell me what you realise.

Or buy my book?"The Career Change Guide: Five Steps to Finding Your Dream Job" ?for more help deciding if hot cucumber requires a whole new sandwich.?

Stay curious,?

Rachel

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Whenever you're ready, here are 3 ways I can help you:??

1. Buy my book?"The Career Change Guide: Five Steps to Finding Your Dream Career"? which will take you from procrastination and confusion to clarity and action. It's currently ￡14.85 on Amazon and garnering 5 Star reviews.

2. For personal, super-focused career support, invest in my signature 8 session?"ReWork Your Life" coaching course. ?First book?a no-obligation, relaxed 30 minute Zoom call, where we can chat about what you need and see if we're a good fit.?

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