Like most
of you, I spent this past weekend relaxing, catching up on some
long-neglected
chores and between periods of light showers and heavy rain, enjoying
some
traditional July 4th fare, hotdogs, apple pie and lemonade.
I did give
some thought about the reason for our celebration. I think many of us,
because
of more immediate concerns about work, family and our future, don’t
fully
appreciate the freedoms that we enjoy and seem to take for granted. Then
the
thought occurred to me that there might be a way for us, all of us, to
more
fully appreciate what our forefathers went through, endured and fought
for so
that we, the people, could indeed claim our “inalienable rights of life,
liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” And it has to do with our
careers. Let
me explain.
Most people
would agree with the findings of numerous surveys and studies that the
majority
of our workforce is not happy. They are not happy with their job, their
boss,
their co-workers, their chance for advancement, or their prospects for
the
future. They are working but are not satisfied. There is no joy. There
seems to
be a disconnect between what people do for a living and the idea of a
“right to
life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”.
In his award
winning book, We Are All Self-Employed, Cliff
Hakim suggests that “The
drastically changing world of work demands a new social contract – one
that
says we are all self-employed whether we work inside or outside of
organizations. Approaching the marketplace as an Independent
problem-solver can
be an aid when searching for work that is meaningful and relevant.”
To see if
you have the proper mindset to be self-employed or independent in how
you
approach your work, Hakim has put together the following Self-Employed
Inventory. Ask yourself these questions and answer “Yes” or “No”.
·
Do
you believe that your current job is not guaranteed or that you will
not have the same customers forever?
·
Do
you go beyond your job description?
·
Do
you volunteer for projects?
·
Do
you identify problems?
·
Do
you initiate solutions?
·
Do
you look beyond the hours you work to the task or job that needs to be
done?
·
Do
you seek out others with whom to share ideas and advice?
·
Do
you take an inventory of your skills every four to six months?
·
Do
you ask your customers – on a regular basis – what you can do to improve
your
service delivery or product quality?
·
Do
you enjoy what you do at least two-thirds of the time?
·
Do
you make it a point to learn something new every week?
·
Do
you ask questions rather than simply accept what comes your way?
·
Do
you develop flexible action plans as you assess your options to change?
·
Do
you believe that you are responsible for your career or job?
If you answered
“Yes” to most then consider yourself having the self-employed mindset
and
address the questions to which you answered “No”. If you answered “No”
to most
then you have a good idea of where you need to improve in order to have
the
self-employed mindset.
So, what
did your answers indicate? Based on your answers do you have a
self-employed
mindset? Would you consider yourself Career Independent? If so then
celebrating
Independence Day has a great deal of meaning to you. If you do not have
the
self-employed mindset begin to work on it so that next July 4th
you
too can declare and celebrate your own independence!