This is an article (from the Wall Street Journal, I believe) that I cut out a long time ago - see PDF. I thought it was a sobering account of what happens and what's important as you move up in organizations. Here is one excerpt:
Aspiring executives who wish to gauge their ultimate potential, or that of others, should ask instead: What level of leadership do they aspire to? And are they willing to invest the effort and make the sacrifices required to take on the responsibility of the position?
The most senior jobs present tasks that are massive, complex and full of conflict. The playing field and rules become less certain. Indeed, part of a leader's job is to shape these things.
Also, the further an executive rises, the more he or she must deal with high-caliber people who know how to get what they want, are difficult, strong-willed and have a sharp appetite for power.
Showing posts with label career. Show all posts
Showing posts with label career. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Thursday, December 02, 2010
Making it to the NFL
I was reading an article in Sports Illustrated awhile ago about Jim Harbaugh (the head football coach at Stanford) and his brother who coaches in the NFL. This was my favorite quote from the entire article:
Once in a while, Jim Harbaugh asks his Stanford players to name the one thing you have to do to make an NFL team. The answers come quickly: You have to be talented. You have to work hard. Nope, Jim says. A lot of guys are talented and work hard and never make it. "The one thing you have to do to make an NFL team," he says, "is take another man's job away from him. And those men really like those jobs."
Once in a while, Jim Harbaugh asks his Stanford players to name the one thing you have to do to make an NFL team. The answers come quickly: You have to be talented. You have to work hard. Nope, Jim says. A lot of guys are talented and work hard and never make it. "The one thing you have to do to make an NFL team," he says, "is take another man's job away from him. And those men really like those jobs."
I think this principle applies in a number of other careers and situations that are competitive by their nature.
Wednesday, December 01, 2010
Don’t grab what you can’t hold on to
This is an interesting story from the early days of the oil industry (as reported in this piece from Biofuels Digest).
I thought at the time it would be, therefore, useful to relate something of the character of the man who founded Saudi Aramco, Harry Deward Collier ... Collier was a marine engineer by training, who joined Standard Oil in 1903 when it became clear that the marine industry was going to completely convert over from coal to oil, and he took a leading part in that transition. His own father had participated in the transition from sail to steam. His grandfather had participated in the transition from the New England whalers to the great Yankee Clippers, as a fleet owner and china trader. From his own story, Henry Deward Collier understood the transitory nature of transportation technologies, the importance of thinking globally, the importance of China.
He had a little trick he would play. He would ask you, “Would you like a nickel?” This was back in the day when a nickel was worth something.
“Sure,” you’d say, “what do I have to do for it?”
“There is is, take it.” And he’d point to a nickel by the stove. What the victim didn’t know is that he’d have heated up the nickel, so it was burning hot, and when you picked it up you’d drop it right away.
“What the Sam Hill you do that for?” you’d say.
“Don’t grab what you can’t hold on to,” he’d answer. “Study the problem, make a tool, make a friend. if you do that, there’s nothing you can’t get a hold of and keep holding onto.”
This story makes me wonder what I'm grabbing for that I'm not prepared to actually hold on to. And, conversely, I wonder what I could (or should) be grabbing for if I only studied the problem, made a tool, and made a friend.
I thought at the time it would be, therefore, useful to relate something of the character of the man who founded Saudi Aramco, Harry Deward Collier ... Collier was a marine engineer by training, who joined Standard Oil in 1903 when it became clear that the marine industry was going to completely convert over from coal to oil, and he took a leading part in that transition. His own father had participated in the transition from sail to steam. His grandfather had participated in the transition from the New England whalers to the great Yankee Clippers, as a fleet owner and china trader. From his own story, Henry Deward Collier understood the transitory nature of transportation technologies, the importance of thinking globally, the importance of China.
He had a little trick he would play. He would ask you, “Would you like a nickel?” This was back in the day when a nickel was worth something.
“Sure,” you’d say, “what do I have to do for it?”
“There is is, take it.” And he’d point to a nickel by the stove. What the victim didn’t know is that he’d have heated up the nickel, so it was burning hot, and when you picked it up you’d drop it right away.
“What the Sam Hill you do that for?” you’d say.
“Don’t grab what you can’t hold on to,” he’d answer. “Study the problem, make a tool, make a friend. if you do that, there’s nothing you can’t get a hold of and keep holding onto.”
This story makes me wonder what I'm grabbing for that I'm not prepared to actually hold on to. And, conversely, I wonder what I could (or should) be grabbing for if I only studied the problem, made a tool, and made a friend.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Not fumbling the football
I was talking with a friend of mine tonight and he made this analogy that I thought was really useful. He pointed out that being the most talented person on the field doesn't do you any good if you fumble the football. He was talking about this in the context of making good choices in our lives. We might be incredibly talented or have other gifts but they won't do us any good if we make bad choices in our lives - especially if we make the same bad choices over and over again. For him, so much of success in life is simply holding onto the ball. That might seem obvious but I thought it was pretty profound.
Sunday, September 02, 2007
The Most-Praised Generation Goes to Work
There was a WSJ article back in April that I had told my wife about regarding how "uber-stroked kids are reaching adulthood -- and now their bosses (and spouses) have to deal with them" (see PDF for those of you without an online WSJ subscription). At the time I was too busy to blog about this so I read the article and simply set it aside. But my wife asked me about it the other day so I tracked down the article again. Here are some excerpts:
You, You, You -- you really are special, you are! You've got everything going for you. You're attractive, witty, brilliant. "Gifted" is the word that comes to mind. Childhood in recent decades has been defined by such stroking -- by parents who see their job as building self-esteem, by soccer coaches who give every player a trophy, by schools that used to name one "student of the month" and these days name 40. Now, as this greatest generation grows up, the culture of praise is reaching deeply into the adult world. Bosses, professors and mates are feeling the need to lavish praise on young adults, particularly twentysomethings, or else see them wither under an unfamiliar compliment deficit...
Certainly, there are benefits to building confidence and showing attention. But some researchers suggest that inappropriate kudos are turning too many adults into narcissistic praise-junkies. The upshot: A lot of today's young adults feel insecure if they're not regularly complimented...
Employers say the praise culture can help them with job retention, and marriage counselors say couples often benefit by keeping praise a constant part of their interactions. But in the process, people's positive traits can be exaggerated until the words feel meaningless. "There's a runaway inflation of everyday speech," warns Linda Sapadin, a psychologist in Valley Stream, N.Y. These days, she says, it's an insult unless you describe a pretty girl as "drop-dead gorgeous" or a smart person as "a genius." "And no one wants to be told they live in a nice house," says Dr. Sapadin. "'Nice' was once sufficient. That was a good word. Now it's a put-down."
And my favorite quote (describing the attitude of earlier generations): "Yes, I get recognition every week. It's called a paycheck." =)
I have to admit that I'm a praise-junkie - although not nearly as much in the last couple of years. I also have to admit that I struggle with the right balance of praise / positive-feedback with my kids. On the one hand, you want to be supportive and recognize their accomplishments but you also don't want to get carried away about every little thing.
You, You, You -- you really are special, you are! You've got everything going for you. You're attractive, witty, brilliant. "Gifted" is the word that comes to mind. Childhood in recent decades has been defined by such stroking -- by parents who see their job as building self-esteem, by soccer coaches who give every player a trophy, by schools that used to name one "student of the month" and these days name 40. Now, as this greatest generation grows up, the culture of praise is reaching deeply into the adult world. Bosses, professors and mates are feeling the need to lavish praise on young adults, particularly twentysomethings, or else see them wither under an unfamiliar compliment deficit...
Certainly, there are benefits to building confidence and showing attention. But some researchers suggest that inappropriate kudos are turning too many adults into narcissistic praise-junkies. The upshot: A lot of today's young adults feel insecure if they're not regularly complimented...
Employers say the praise culture can help them with job retention, and marriage counselors say couples often benefit by keeping praise a constant part of their interactions. But in the process, people's positive traits can be exaggerated until the words feel meaningless. "There's a runaway inflation of everyday speech," warns Linda Sapadin, a psychologist in Valley Stream, N.Y. These days, she says, it's an insult unless you describe a pretty girl as "drop-dead gorgeous" or a smart person as "a genius." "And no one wants to be told they live in a nice house," says Dr. Sapadin. "'Nice' was once sufficient. That was a good word. Now it's a put-down."
And my favorite quote (describing the attitude of earlier generations): "Yes, I get recognition every week. It's called a paycheck." =)
I have to admit that I'm a praise-junkie - although not nearly as much in the last couple of years. I also have to admit that I struggle with the right balance of praise / positive-feedback with my kids. On the one hand, you want to be supportive and recognize their accomplishments but you also don't want to get carried away about every little thing.
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Bit Literacy
A friend of a friend wrote a great book called Bit Literacy. I've previously written about a tool called Gootodo (see post). This book takes things a step further and outlines all the skills and strategies one needs to be successful in this digital, information-intensive age. The book's a quick read so I'd highly recommend it. In my case, I found the first part of the book (about email purges and getting to-do's organized) most useful. The rest of the book was all stuff I already know and do. Then again, my life is more bit-intensive than most.
After reading the book, I emptied my personal inbox. Still working on doing the same thing with my work email. I've also been using Gootodo again although I still sometimes supplement with paper. The real trick with all of this isn't knowing the strategies but being consistent in their application. I probably do better with this stuff than most but it's still a struggle. If others read the book, I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts on all this.
After reading the book, I emptied my personal inbox. Still working on doing the same thing with my work email. I've also been using Gootodo again although I still sometimes supplement with paper. The real trick with all of this isn't knowing the strategies but being consistent in their application. I probably do better with this stuff than most but it's still a struggle. If others read the book, I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts on all this.
Sunday, March 04, 2007
Kind of
We all have our "filler words" - little phrases or words that we fall back on when we're not quite sure what to say but we want to avoid silence. "Umm", "like", "so". My latest is "kind of" although I also use "so" a lot and used to be a heavy user of "like". It's amazing how easily these words enter my speech without me noticing. Periodically, someone like my wife or a co-worker will point it out to me. They're worried about whether others will perceive me as "junior" given these speech patterns. As long as I don't rush (and I pay attention), I'm fine. But if I get a bit flustered, all bets are off. I guess it just takes practice. One more thing to be cognizant of (and worry about).
Adam Smith turns green
I just read an essay in VentureBeat that accurately describes my rationale for moving into the cleantech world. Thought I'd quickly share it in case others are interested.
Friday, February 16, 2007
Ten Axioms to Guide Your Life
There was a good article in the February 2007 issue of Ensign magazine. It's a talk that Elder Robert D. Hales of the LDS Quorum of the Twelve Apostles gave at a commencement address at Brigham Young University on August 14, 2003. During his life, he distilled the following ten axioms to guide his life:
- It’s not the obstacle that counts, but how you overcome it.
- Pursue your goals with all your heart, might, mind, and strength. You are doomed to failure if you pursue them in a vacillating manner.
- From a tiny spark can come a large fire.
- Our greatest strengths can become our greatest weaknesses.
- Failure is one of the greatest teachers if we have the faith to learn from it.
- It is not how you start the race or where you are during the race. It is how you cross the finish line that matters.
- “If you wish to get rich, save what you get. A fool can earn money; but it takes a wise man to save and dispose of it to his own advantage.”
- You cannot learn the Lord’s will without exercising your agency and becoming accountable for your decisions.
- The more things change, the more they stay the same.
- The temple of God is the greatest university.
One interesting excerpt from the conclusion of the article is:
We can share the gospel only to the extent we live it. During my life at college, in the military as an adjutant and fighter pilot, in graduate school, or in my professional career in sales and marketing, as president of a division, or as a group vice president at corporate headquarters—I was never required to compromise my values or beliefs.
Was it easy? I don’t know. I wasn’t looking for easy.
Was it hard? I wasn’t looking for hard either. That is just the way it was.
Were there men and women who challenged me on my beliefs at times? Certainly.
When I held to my beliefs, did they respect and honor the commitment I had made to live the gospel? In every instance.
If you will remember who you are and act accordingly; if you will return with honor from every calling, task, and assignment; if you will be true to the Savior’s name and worthy of His eternal blessings, you will always have the light of the Holy Ghost to be with you, to lead you, to guide you, and to buoy you up. You will never want for what to say or how to act. It will be given you.
I think it's very important to hold true to your convictions, whatever they are.
Friday, November 24, 2006
Goal setting
I'm reading a new book by Michael Neill called You Can Have What You Want. Here is one interesting excerpt regarding goal setting:
I once asked one of my most financially successful clients, a multimillionaire "super salesman," whether or not he set goals. He told me that he did, and in fact always had, but not in the way that most people do. Traditional goal setting encourages us to think big and reach for the stars, but also to keep our target constant while we do whatever it takes to achieve it. My client didn't do any of that. He would sit down once or twice a year over a good meal and a nice glass of wine and ask himself, "What would be fun and exciting to make my life about over the next year?" He would then take as long as he wanted to write down his ideas until he had a list that totally inspired him. As the year unfolded, he would check in with his "goals" every now and then and adjust them up or down depending on how things were going in his life.
When he saw how horrified I looked (didn't anyone ever tell him you're not allowed to change your goals once you've written them down?), he told me something I have never forgotten: "The only real purpose of a goal is to inspire you to fall more deeply in love with your life."
There's another good quote regarding goal setting at the beginning of that section of the book. Michelangelo said, "The great danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it."
I once asked one of my most financially successful clients, a multimillionaire "super salesman," whether or not he set goals. He told me that he did, and in fact always had, but not in the way that most people do. Traditional goal setting encourages us to think big and reach for the stars, but also to keep our target constant while we do whatever it takes to achieve it. My client didn't do any of that. He would sit down once or twice a year over a good meal and a nice glass of wine and ask himself, "What would be fun and exciting to make my life about over the next year?" He would then take as long as he wanted to write down his ideas until he had a list that totally inspired him. As the year unfolded, he would check in with his "goals" every now and then and adjust them up or down depending on how things were going in his life.
When he saw how horrified I looked (didn't anyone ever tell him you're not allowed to change your goals once you've written them down?), he told me something I have never forgotten: "The only real purpose of a goal is to inspire you to fall more deeply in love with your life."
There's another good quote regarding goal setting at the beginning of that section of the book. Michelangelo said, "The great danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it."
Thursday, November 23, 2006
Thankful
Seeing as it's Thanksgiving, I thought it would be fitting to see a post regarding what I am thankful for this year. There are so many blessings in my life. I am quite lucky compared to most. I have a wonderful, supportive wife; two sweet, energetic sons; a brother and a sister-in-law near-by who are great supports to me and my family; loving parents and in-laws; a new job that I'm excited about; and good friends. I also have many material comforts that I too often take for granted (warm home, plenty of food to eat, financial security, etc). I couldn't really ask for more ... well, maybe instant knowledge of everything I need to learn for work. =) This is a really good part of my life and I am very thankful for that.
Thursday, November 09, 2006
Startup-land
Yesterday was my last day at my old job. I don't officially start my new job until Monday, November 20. But I've already started unofficially. There is a board-of-directors meeting on Friday, November 17. Originally, I was just going to be attending the BOD meeting (to listen and learn). Now I'm presenting some stuff as well. To set expectations correctly, I think the first words out of my mouth will be "hi, I start on Monday, but here are some thoughts". I figure things can only go up from there.
I decided to go into the office today to work on slides for the meeting. Two startup moments from the "unofficial first day". About an hour after I got there, the head of R&D (who is effectively the day-to-day CEO) asks me if I could put together letterhead and business cards for the company. So I spent an hour or so playing graphic designer. Then, later in the day, I was having trouble connecting to the wireless network. I spoke with our bioinformatics expert (who doubles as the IT guy) and he said that the wireless network's a little unreliable and needs to be reset about once a day by unplugging the wireless router and then plugging it back in. So he ran off and did that and then everything worked just fine. Welcome to the world of 11-person startups. =)
I decided to go into the office today to work on slides for the meeting. Two startup moments from the "unofficial first day". About an hour after I got there, the head of R&D (who is effectively the day-to-day CEO) asks me if I could put together letterhead and business cards for the company. So I spent an hour or so playing graphic designer. Then, later in the day, I was having trouble connecting to the wireless network. I spoke with our bioinformatics expert (who doubles as the IT guy) and he said that the wireless network's a little unreliable and needs to be reset about once a day by unplugging the wireless router and then plugging it back in. So he ran off and did that and then everything worked just fine. Welcome to the world of 11-person startups. =)
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Lots to learn
I'm starting to get ready for my new job. There's definitely no lack of new things to learn. And, what fun would it be if I didn't make the challenge extra-hard? Given the fact that Newco is focused on biofuels, I thought it might be interesting to learn more about conventional fuel production. So I looked at a book called Petroleum Refining: Technology and Economics. The very first sentence of the introduction is: "Modern refinery operations are very complex and, to a person unfamiliar with the industry, it seems to be an impossible task to reduce the complexity to a coordinated group of understandable processes." Wow ... and I thought it would be easy to get up to speed on this stuff. Well, perhaps the science side of things will be easier. Just ordered Organic Chemistry I for Dummies. The first sentence of the book description is: "Organic chemistry is rated among the most difficult courses that students take and is frequently the cause of washout among pre-med, medical, and nursing students." Hmm ... perhaps that won't be any easier. But, if freshmen and sophomores in college can tackle organic chemistry, I don't see why I can't too. My theory going into my career search was that there isn't any subject I can't learn. It's time to put that theory to the test.
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Newco
Some of you may be wondering why I haven't posted a new entry in so long. Others may not have noticed. Regardless, there is a good reason why I haven't posted recently. Specifically, over the last two weeks, I met and decided to join a small (9-person) startup. They're in stealth mode so no website or other information at the moment. Current investors include Khosla Ventures and Flagship Ventures. On the Flagship site, they describe Newco as "designing microbial factories to produce energy related products". So very different than what I've been doing in the past but certainly well-aligned with my desire to help fight global warming (since biofuels are carbon-neutral since the feedstock for the biofuel is plant-based and takes an equivalent amount of CO2 out of the air as cars put into it).
I'll be the "business entrepreneur" (officially "Senior Director of Business Development") - basically the first full-time business person. Everyone else in the company is a scientist-type. Should be interesting. Certainly an opportunity for me to shine ... or fall flat on my face. Hopefully it will be the former. =)
I'm actually writing this from the Advancing Renewable Energy conference in St. Louis. Even though I won't officially begin my new position for about a month, I'm here "drinking from the firehose" to learn about this new space. President Bush will actually be speaking at the conference tomorrow but, unfortunately, I'll miss his speech since I need to catch a flight and couldn't get onto a later plane (darn!). It's not everyday that you get a chance to see the President of the United States in person.
I have to admit that I'm very curious to see how I do in this new role. If nothing else, there is going to be a massive learning curve associated with both the technology involved (biochemistry and synthetic biology) and the market for the technology (biofuels). I basically have zero domain knowledge/experience with either and will be relying upon (a) being smart, (b) learning quickly, (c) being a strong overall "business athlete" with diverse functional experience, and (d) leveraging the experience of others wherever possible. We'll see if that's enough to be successful .
I'm both excited and scared about what's to come. But I take a lot of comfort from knowing that I have so many people in my corner. Let the new adventure begin.
I'll be the "business entrepreneur" (officially "Senior Director of Business Development") - basically the first full-time business person. Everyone else in the company is a scientist-type. Should be interesting. Certainly an opportunity for me to shine ... or fall flat on my face. Hopefully it will be the former. =)
I'm actually writing this from the Advancing Renewable Energy conference in St. Louis. Even though I won't officially begin my new position for about a month, I'm here "drinking from the firehose" to learn about this new space. President Bush will actually be speaking at the conference tomorrow but, unfortunately, I'll miss his speech since I need to catch a flight and couldn't get onto a later plane (darn!). It's not everyday that you get a chance to see the President of the United States in person.
I have to admit that I'm very curious to see how I do in this new role. If nothing else, there is going to be a massive learning curve associated with both the technology involved (biochemistry and synthetic biology) and the market for the technology (biofuels). I basically have zero domain knowledge/experience with either and will be relying upon (a) being smart, (b) learning quickly, (c) being a strong overall "business athlete" with diverse functional experience, and (d) leveraging the experience of others wherever possible. We'll see if that's enough to be successful .
I'm both excited and scared about what's to come. But I take a lot of comfort from knowing that I have so many people in my corner. Let the new adventure begin.
Friday, September 08, 2006
The Cutting Edge Of Ambition
I was reading an article in Men's Health magazine the other day called "The Cutting Edge Of Ambition" (see online version). The article is about what modern brain science can tell us about questions such as "what level of personal drive is most likely to produce true success? what level will kill you? or ruin the rest of your life?". I was only lukewarm on the article as a whole. But there was one call-out box that I found very useful (not in the online version). It was called "beat your coworkers to the punch (before they even arrive)" and said:
Start your workday bathed in the sickly glow of a gossip blog and you'll sabotage your productivity all day, says Julie Morgenstern, author of Never Check Your E-mail in the Morning. "When you accomplish a high-level task first thing in the morning, that sense of productivity feeds into the rest of your day," she says. These three quick fixed will optimize your first 60 minutes at your desk.
LAY THE GROUDWORK
Your workday really began in the last hour of the day before, when you contemplated the disaster zone known as your desk. "Never leave your office without knowing exactly what you're going to do with the first hour of the next day," says Morgenstern.
HIT A LEADOFF HOME RUN
"Use your brain's prime time for prime-time work," says Ronni Eisenberg, author of The Overwhelmed Person's Guide to Time Management. So target one major project in your first hour on the job: Knocking it off early amplifies your efficiency once you start multitasking again. The brain is better at multitasking later in the day, after you've had a chance to wake up.
TUNE OUT OUTLOOK
"E-mail has created an instant response culture," says Morgenstern. "It turns you into a reactive slave to Outlook." So turn off that "alert" noise, steal a "Do Not Disturb" hotel tag and post it prominently, and punch the "hold all calls" button on the phone. Now you're cooking.
I could definitely put the first hour of my workday to better use. Recently, I've been getting into work by 9am or 9:30am. By then, a lot of people are well into their day and it's hard to get stuff done since I immediately get pulled into things before I can even get settled. Wish I could get onto an earlier schedule. A co-worker of mine gets into the office every morning at 7:00am or so and is the only one there for about an hour to an hour and a half. That's the way to go. But that would also mean I'd need to get to bed earlier and also be out of the house before the kids are up. Hard call - especially since sometimes I'm the most productive from 10pm to 2am.
Start your workday bathed in the sickly glow of a gossip blog and you'll sabotage your productivity all day, says Julie Morgenstern, author of Never Check Your E-mail in the Morning. "When you accomplish a high-level task first thing in the morning, that sense of productivity feeds into the rest of your day," she says. These three quick fixed will optimize your first 60 minutes at your desk.
LAY THE GROUDWORK
Your workday really began in the last hour of the day before, when you contemplated the disaster zone known as your desk. "Never leave your office without knowing exactly what you're going to do with the first hour of the next day," says Morgenstern.
HIT A LEADOFF HOME RUN
"Use your brain's prime time for prime-time work," says Ronni Eisenberg, author of The Overwhelmed Person's Guide to Time Management. So target one major project in your first hour on the job: Knocking it off early amplifies your efficiency once you start multitasking again. The brain is better at multitasking later in the day, after you've had a chance to wake up.
TUNE OUT OUTLOOK
"E-mail has created an instant response culture," says Morgenstern. "It turns you into a reactive slave to Outlook." So turn off that "alert" noise, steal a "Do Not Disturb" hotel tag and post it prominently, and punch the "hold all calls" button on the phone. Now you're cooking.
I could definitely put the first hour of my workday to better use. Recently, I've been getting into work by 9am or 9:30am. By then, a lot of people are well into their day and it's hard to get stuff done since I immediately get pulled into things before I can even get settled. Wish I could get onto an earlier schedule. A co-worker of mine gets into the office every morning at 7:00am or so and is the only one there for about an hour to an hour and a half. That's the way to go. But that would also mean I'd need to get to bed earlier and also be out of the house before the kids are up. Hard call - especially since sometimes I'm the most productive from 10pm to 2am.
Wednesday, July 19, 2006
Headbangers ball
I came across this image earlier today while trying to solve an Excel question that I had. I'm not sure why it resonated with me so strongly. I guess there have been a lot of days at work recently where I've felt this way. I've always known that my current role at work was temporary (12-24 months) but I think it's time to get ready to move on to other opportunities - either at my current employer or elsewhere. Will be interesting to see how that evolves over the next 6 months or so. A big part of me wants to stay at my current company but there is an equally big part that wants to move on to a new challenge at a new company in a new industry (likely something related to renewable energy and/or combating global warming).
Can't stop working
I just read an interesting article on ExploreFaith.org called "The Lord's Picnic". I can certainly relate to this paradoxical observation:
Sometimes you just can't get away. Everyone knows the odd combination of longing and dread with which overworked people anticipate their work holidays - longing to be at leisure for a week or two, dread at the pile of work that will await them when they return. It's not worth it to take a vacation, more than one person has told me. I'd be better off not going away at all.
There is more to it than the dread of the accumulated work though. A perverse momentum takes hold in some of us when we are in need of rest: we can't stop working. We don't take it easy - we take it hard. It's as if we were afraid to leave the very thing from which we need a break.
Most exhausted people I talk to go to work earlier than they need to and stay later. Work much more, and accomplish about the same as they would have if they worked normal hours. Maybe less. Their world shrinks to the workplace and the workplace alone. No other arena of their lives command their attention.
Sometimes they think other people would be critical of them if they took it easy, as if there were some moral high ground of martyrdom demanded of them that is not expected of everyone else. Sometimes they think terrible things will happen if they aren't there. They may hate it, but they can't bring themselves to stop.
The truth is, terrible things will happen whether you're there or not. The escalating hours of work, the inability to do anything else - these are symptoms of depression, a loss of self and perspective on the world so profound it can paralyze and even kill if it is not stopped.
I'm improving along this dimension but I have noticed that when I need rest the most, I often press forward the hardest - as if one final burst of energy will magically get me across the finish line and allow me to rest (guilt-free) for as long as I want/need. But it doesn't work that way. As soon as I finish one task, there is another one waiting. There's no end to it. Also, you get into a vicious cycle. You stay up late one night to get some extra work done but that makes you tired the next day. Being tired leads you to be less focused and productive at work which causes you to get less done which causes more work to pile up. Faced with the growing pile of work, you stay up late the next night to "catch up" but the cycle simply continues and gets worse over time. In the end, you're burnt out and no further ahead work-wise than if you had just gotten a full night's sleep to begin with. Also, the consequences of not getting work things done - or at least done on time - is often much less significant than we convince ourselves they are.
That all makes rational sense to me but the irrational part of me still hangs on to its old ways. It wants to believe that I am indispensableble at work, that others are depending on me to get my stuff done on time, and that loyalty to my coworkers dictates that I (automatically) go the extra mile even if I'm not really up to it. It's hard to let go of old ways - they've worked so well for so long. But strengths during one stage of our lives can become Achilles' heels at the next stage of our life (see this post). Things change - hopefully for the better.
Sometimes you just can't get away. Everyone knows the odd combination of longing and dread with which overworked people anticipate their work holidays - longing to be at leisure for a week or two, dread at the pile of work that will await them when they return. It's not worth it to take a vacation, more than one person has told me. I'd be better off not going away at all.
There is more to it than the dread of the accumulated work though. A perverse momentum takes hold in some of us when we are in need of rest: we can't stop working. We don't take it easy - we take it hard. It's as if we were afraid to leave the very thing from which we need a break.
Most exhausted people I talk to go to work earlier than they need to and stay later. Work much more, and accomplish about the same as they would have if they worked normal hours. Maybe less. Their world shrinks to the workplace and the workplace alone. No other arena of their lives command their attention.
Sometimes they think other people would be critical of them if they took it easy, as if there were some moral high ground of martyrdom demanded of them that is not expected of everyone else. Sometimes they think terrible things will happen if they aren't there. They may hate it, but they can't bring themselves to stop.
The truth is, terrible things will happen whether you're there or not. The escalating hours of work, the inability to do anything else - these are symptoms of depression, a loss of self and perspective on the world so profound it can paralyze and even kill if it is not stopped.
I'm improving along this dimension but I have noticed that when I need rest the most, I often press forward the hardest - as if one final burst of energy will magically get me across the finish line and allow me to rest (guilt-free) for as long as I want/need. But it doesn't work that way. As soon as I finish one task, there is another one waiting. There's no end to it. Also, you get into a vicious cycle. You stay up late one night to get some extra work done but that makes you tired the next day. Being tired leads you to be less focused and productive at work which causes you to get less done which causes more work to pile up. Faced with the growing pile of work, you stay up late the next night to "catch up" but the cycle simply continues and gets worse over time. In the end, you're burnt out and no further ahead work-wise than if you had just gotten a full night's sleep to begin with. Also, the consequences of not getting work things done - or at least done on time - is often much less significant than we convince ourselves they are.
That all makes rational sense to me but the irrational part of me still hangs on to its old ways. It wants to believe that I am indispensableble at work, that others are depending on me to get my stuff done on time, and that loyalty to my coworkers dictates that I (automatically) go the extra mile even if I'm not really up to it. It's hard to let go of old ways - they've worked so well for so long. But strengths during one stage of our lives can become Achilles' heels at the next stage of our life (see this post). Things change - hopefully for the better.
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