Is our elusive hunt for a work-life balance causing us undue stress in our lives and the lives of those around us? Generation X introduced the philosophy of the work-life balance in the 1970’s, and organizations and employees alike have spent the last few decades searching for that balance. But can anyone say they’ve found it? The major flaw with the work-life balance philosophy is that it’s based on the premise that your work self and your life self are two separate entities and to achieve balance, you must maintain that separation and seek a level of equality between the
Most people live in an “or” world. Whether we like it or not, we think in terms of always having to choose between two or more options or paths, rather than thinking in terms of “and”. I was reminded of this when hearing the CFO of Eli Lilly, Derica Rice, speak to a group of college students who have received scholarships he and his wife fund. He told them that he always thought in terms of “or”. I can have this career “or” that, but not both. I can have this life “or” this one, but not both. But
Working in career development, I’m fortunate to have the opportunity to work with individuals from all over the U.S., and I occasionally have clients that live or have lived abroad. It is eye opening to see how different cultures and areas of the country approach career planning. Embracing diversity and inclusion is important for job seekers, employers and career practitioners. Here are 3 ways to embrace Diversity and Inclusion: Job Seekers – Seek out companies that are searching for candidates based on culture fit. You can often recognize these organizations because their culture is evident in their marketing, mission statement
Returning home from the HR Tech Conference proved to be a challenge when it came to weighing our bags. One bag weighed too much. How did this happen? It wasn’t that way coming. It was all the swag from vendors! I was impressed by the vendors’ creativity in designing their gifts. I didn’t even have to buy a souvenir for my kids. I snagged a backpack for my son, nail polish (bright purple and pink, no less) for my daughter and a coloring book and colored pencils for them both. I got a monogrammed luggage tag for me, a personalized
I was 24, interviewing for a job in economic development, of which I knew almost nothing about. Moving because of my husband’s job prompted me to start looking in my hometown, and an indirect connection had landed my résumé on the President’s desk. Through conversations with the President, I felt like this interview was just the last step before they would hire me. The board chair was there. I knew him, but not well. He was the mayor of our town when I was growing up. I never will forget what he said to me. “You know, economic development has always been a man’s job.”