Here's a concept you may not have heard of for a while: the psychological contract. This was coined to describe the bond of trust between employer and employee which started as "obedience for security". In other words, if I display obedience to you Mr Employer, then you provide me with a secure job.
Of course, this psychological contract was irreparably damaged over the past two decades starting with the waves of downsizings in the 1980's.
The mid 1990's saw the new psychological contract evolve into "initiative for opportunity", that is, you provide me with opportunities then I'll display my initiative. To a degree this still exists today, however, the display of initiative has tended to benefit the individual far more than the employer.
I believe the psychological contract has shifted again. It is now "Purpose and Meaningful Work". Work is no longer transactional - the exchange of loyalty for money or opportunity for outcomes. Rather, work today is a collaborative project between employers and employees that is not dictated from the top down. Rather, the most successful companies clearly articulate their purpose consisting of their vision for the future and the values that will guide their behaviour to get there.
"Meaningful" is the glue which binds the individual to the organisation. If work has meaning, individuals will stay. The challenge is for people to communicate what is meaningful to them and for organisations to be flexible enough to provide the environment for meaningful work to occur.
Monday, 7 February 2011
Monday, 31 January 2011
What actually is a career?
The original meaning of career was 'to move headlong at high speed' as in, the cart careered down the road. Some days I'm sure your career still feels like that.
My favourite definition of career is by Michael Arthur and his colleagues:
"The unfolding sequence of a person's work experiences over time"
Lets break this down a bit.
First, unfolding, which describes the fluid nature of how careers are created. There is less orderly planning than we think as we respond to events and opportunities that come our way. Earlier definitions of career used 'evolving' but contemporary writers realised that this suggested a structured, logical flow which didn't represent the reality of a modern environment.
Second, work experiences. The term career emerged from the Chicago Shool of Sociology in the 1930s and had a broad meaning, for example, the career of deliquents. Today, career has a vocational flavour to do with work related activities, regardless of whether they are paid or not.
Third, over time. Our career is not static. It unfolds over time as we move through different stages. Often, our career appears fragmented looking forward, yet distinct patterns are noticable when we look back over our experiences.
Everyone has one career. We may have many jobs with multiple employers, go through different stages, and travel across geographic and occupational boundaries. But all these experiences coalesce into one career. Enjoy it!
Reference
Arthur, M.B., Hall, D.T., & Lawrence, B.S. (1989). Handbook of Career Theory. New York: Cambridge University Press.
My favourite definition of career is by Michael Arthur and his colleagues:
"The unfolding sequence of a person's work experiences over time"
Lets break this down a bit.
First, unfolding, which describes the fluid nature of how careers are created. There is less orderly planning than we think as we respond to events and opportunities that come our way. Earlier definitions of career used 'evolving' but contemporary writers realised that this suggested a structured, logical flow which didn't represent the reality of a modern environment.
Second, work experiences. The term career emerged from the Chicago Shool of Sociology in the 1930s and had a broad meaning, for example, the career of deliquents. Today, career has a vocational flavour to do with work related activities, regardless of whether they are paid or not.
Third, over time. Our career is not static. It unfolds over time as we move through different stages. Often, our career appears fragmented looking forward, yet distinct patterns are noticable when we look back over our experiences.
Everyone has one career. We may have many jobs with multiple employers, go through different stages, and travel across geographic and occupational boundaries. But all these experiences coalesce into one career. Enjoy it!
Reference
Arthur, M.B., Hall, D.T., & Lawrence, B.S. (1989). Handbook of Career Theory. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Thursday, 20 January 2011
Career lessons from the flood
The worst floods in Australia’s history, have been nothing short of devastating. Parts of South East Queensland looks like a war zone with rubbish strewn everywhere and the stench of the flood overpowering.
Two things stood out for me as this tragedy unfolded.
First, your life is not your possessions. I was helping my sister-in-law clean out her second-level storage unit that was flooded. The entire storage facility in Rocklea was wiped out and hundreds of people were slowly cleaning out their possessions and an enormous pile of rubbish was building on the sidewalk. I overheard one person say to another in front of the discarded stuff: “look at all those peoples lives, just thrown away”. But those were not people’s lives – it was just their possessions, some prized, some not. People were alive. That’s the most important thing.
Second, you can’t underestimate the importance of community in your life. The spirit of help was everywhere. Strangers were appearing to help people they didn’t know. In fact, so many people wanted to help that donation centres were soon full and volunteers had to be turned away. We do not live our lives in isolation and the people around us, in part, make us who we are.
Descartes pronounced “I think, therefore, I am”. But perhaps the Hindu principle of sattvic is more accurate: “You are, therefore, I am”.
In a similar vein, your working life – your career – will be most successful if you engage and support those people around you. Make 2011 the year of your career community.
Two things stood out for me as this tragedy unfolded.
First, your life is not your possessions. I was helping my sister-in-law clean out her second-level storage unit that was flooded. The entire storage facility in Rocklea was wiped out and hundreds of people were slowly cleaning out their possessions and an enormous pile of rubbish was building on the sidewalk. I overheard one person say to another in front of the discarded stuff: “look at all those peoples lives, just thrown away”. But those were not people’s lives – it was just their possessions, some prized, some not. People were alive. That’s the most important thing.
Second, you can’t underestimate the importance of community in your life. The spirit of help was everywhere. Strangers were appearing to help people they didn’t know. In fact, so many people wanted to help that donation centres were soon full and volunteers had to be turned away. We do not live our lives in isolation and the people around us, in part, make us who we are.
Descartes pronounced “I think, therefore, I am”. But perhaps the Hindu principle of sattvic is more accurate: “You are, therefore, I am”.
In a similar vein, your working life – your career – will be most successful if you engage and support those people around you. Make 2011 the year of your career community.
Monday, 1 November 2010
Are you tired?
Do you need to work those long hours? If so, do you have the energy to sustain the effort?
Almost 1 in 5 people in Australia work more than 50 hours per week. And that's just the average figure. I've spoken with clients from a cross section of industries and in some areas such as engineering services and mining, that number is a lot higher.
What typically happens toward the end of the year is that people get tired. The difference this year is that there's nothing left in the tank. Most people have been working at 100% for the past two years to get through the GFC and now have to continue to work hard to keep business moving forward. But there's only so long that people can keep operating at this speed.
Most people need to rebuild their energy yet companies are failing to give them the opportunity to do so. In the absence of a letup in the relentless pressure, I think individuals will make their own decisions and look for a change. The seasonal churn after the Christmas break next year will probably be higher than usual as people decide over the holiday period to make a change then start looking for a new job.
In response to these issues, we've offered our Resilience for Knowledge Workers program as a public workshop for the first time in October. The demand was so great that we've rescheduled another one for November. This shows to me that energy levels are low and people are looking for a practical solution to increase energy to get them through to Christmas and through 2011.
Look after yourself. If you do decide to change, make sure that you think it through carefully.
Almost 1 in 5 people in Australia work more than 50 hours per week. And that's just the average figure. I've spoken with clients from a cross section of industries and in some areas such as engineering services and mining, that number is a lot higher.
What typically happens toward the end of the year is that people get tired. The difference this year is that there's nothing left in the tank. Most people have been working at 100% for the past two years to get through the GFC and now have to continue to work hard to keep business moving forward. But there's only so long that people can keep operating at this speed.
Most people need to rebuild their energy yet companies are failing to give them the opportunity to do so. In the absence of a letup in the relentless pressure, I think individuals will make their own decisions and look for a change. The seasonal churn after the Christmas break next year will probably be higher than usual as people decide over the holiday period to make a change then start looking for a new job.
In response to these issues, we've offered our Resilience for Knowledge Workers program as a public workshop for the first time in October. The demand was so great that we've rescheduled another one for November. This shows to me that energy levels are low and people are looking for a practical solution to increase energy to get them through to Christmas and through 2011.
Look after yourself. If you do decide to change, make sure that you think it through carefully.
Thursday, 25 March 2010
Magnetic Relationships
Dr Miguel Lopes, a Portugese academic, has developed the concept of 'magnetic relationships'. His research focused on how entrepreneurs attract resources for new ventures, in particular the way in which the individual entrepreneur sells ideas and builds networks.
Successful entrepreneurs sell ideas through a mix of an engaging and persuasive style and the pure force of their personality.
Building a network involves two key strategies. The first is to develop 'legitimacy', in other words, building trust and authentic relationships with people. People who act in line with their values automatically attract other people.
The second is positioning oneself in the market. This involves three strategies:
- Broaden the scope of the relationship with people with whom resources are exchanged. This allows a broader range of options should a particular type of resource be required in the future, whether it be physical or information.
- Increase strong ties with important resource providers. Such people could be staff members, colleagues, suppliers etc. The aim here is to develop the relationship with a person that is based on more than just one topic or transaction.
- Increase weak ties to as many people as possible. This is the traditional definition of networking. Meet as many people as you can. Such meetings generate opportunities through 'chance' encounters.
The concept of 'magnetic relationships' has immediate applicability to careers. We all know the importance of networking, but for most of us it is a difficult thing to do. The power of 'magnetic relationships' is that people will be attracted to you, making your networking easier. However, you still have to maintain your magnetism using the three strategies above:
- Keep regularly in touch with those who you deal with. Try and meet other people around those you already deal with
- Setup a system to stay in touch with those people that are important to you. They may play a number of different roles (eg mentor, information provider, networker etc) but the key is to remain visible.
- Keep up the traditional networking. Yes, its hard work but its importance to your career cannot be overestimated. Make a goal to attend 1 networking function each month.
Remember that even magnets need to be re-magnetised, so keep at it!
Friday, 9 October 2009
Crafting Your Job
A job never remains the same. We constantly alter the tasks and activities we do as well as change the people with whom we interact with on a daily basis. Amy Wrzesniewski and Jane Dutton, Professors of Management call this 'crafting a job' and define it as 'the physical and cognitive changes individuals make in the task or relational boundaries of their work'.
Take our office cleaner for example. Over the past 9 years that he has cleaned our offices he has come to know us well and vice versa. Without fail he will take the time to have a chat and our relationship has moved from contractual to friendship.
He is a superb example of job crafting. The 'relational boundaries' of his job has changed as he spends more time in our offices than on other floors so that he can have a yarn with whoever is in the office. His tasks have also changed as he comes to our floor as close as possible to 5pm to say hello to staff. He'll also go over and above the call of duty to keep our offices clean. He takes coffee spills personally. He'll dry-clean parts of our carpet without charging. And don't get him started on fingerprints on our glass door.
As a result of this job crafting, his identity and the meaning of his work has changed. For him, it's not just about emptying the bins and vacuuming the carpet each day. He sees himself as an integral part of our business and takes pride in the cleanliness of our office. By altering who he interacts with and subtly changing the tasks and activities undertaken, he has crafted work that is more meaningful and fulfiling.
Job crafting exists whether we are conscious of it or not. It may occur more visibly in some workplaces than others depending on whether employees perceive that there is opportunity to job craft as well as individuals' perceptions toward their work.
Job crafting is neither good nor bad. If job crafting results in work patterns that are aligned with organisational objectives then there may be a benefit to the organisation.
Ultimately, we all strive to increase the satisfaction we derive from work. One way in which we do this is by actively crafting our jobs through task changes and altering our relationships at work. We spend such a significant amount of our life at work, why not enjoy it?
Further Reading
Wrzesniewski, A., & Dutton, J. E. 2001. Crafting a Job: Revisioning employees as active crafters of their work. Academy of Management Review, 26(2): 179.
Take our office cleaner for example. Over the past 9 years that he has cleaned our offices he has come to know us well and vice versa. Without fail he will take the time to have a chat and our relationship has moved from contractual to friendship.
He is a superb example of job crafting. The 'relational boundaries' of his job has changed as he spends more time in our offices than on other floors so that he can have a yarn with whoever is in the office. His tasks have also changed as he comes to our floor as close as possible to 5pm to say hello to staff. He'll also go over and above the call of duty to keep our offices clean. He takes coffee spills personally. He'll dry-clean parts of our carpet without charging. And don't get him started on fingerprints on our glass door.
As a result of this job crafting, his identity and the meaning of his work has changed. For him, it's not just about emptying the bins and vacuuming the carpet each day. He sees himself as an integral part of our business and takes pride in the cleanliness of our office. By altering who he interacts with and subtly changing the tasks and activities undertaken, he has crafted work that is more meaningful and fulfiling.
Job crafting exists whether we are conscious of it or not. It may occur more visibly in some workplaces than others depending on whether employees perceive that there is opportunity to job craft as well as individuals' perceptions toward their work.
Job crafting is neither good nor bad. If job crafting results in work patterns that are aligned with organisational objectives then there may be a benefit to the organisation.
Ultimately, we all strive to increase the satisfaction we derive from work. One way in which we do this is by actively crafting our jobs through task changes and altering our relationships at work. We spend such a significant amount of our life at work, why not enjoy it?
Further Reading
Wrzesniewski, A., & Dutton, J. E. 2001. Crafting a Job: Revisioning employees as active crafters of their work. Academy of Management Review, 26(2): 179.
Tuesday, 6 October 2009
How much we miss
The story below is copied verbatim from an email that has recently been circulated. If you haven't read this, do so. It's a beautiful story of what is important.
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Washington, DC Metro Station on a cold January morning in 2007. The man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time approx. 2 thousand people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After 3 minutes a middle aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried to meet his schedule.
4 minutes later:
the violinist received his first dollar: a woman threw the money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.
6 minutes:
A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.
10 minutes:
A 3-year old boy stopped but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. The kid stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. Every parent, without exception, forced their children to move on quickly.
45 minutes:
The musician played continuously. Only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 gave money but continued to walk at their normal pace. The man collected a total of $32.
1 hour:
He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.
No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. = Two days before Joshua Bell sold out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100.
This is a true story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people's priorities. The questions raised: in a common place environment at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?
One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be this: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world, playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments ever made.... How many other things are we missing?
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