Career Chat // Benefits and challenges of work // Friday, 27 May

[Former-Member]

Woah, the BIG question!

I have played that through in my head so many times. That's where a mentor would be really helpful.

My conclusion so far is that I actually have quite a bit of freedom in my role to adjust and handing over some of the tasks - whether I will eventually manage myself out of the company then becomes another question.

The change I would have to do would also mean leaving my passion behind. When I doubt work I remember what a difference I can make and how much I love what I am doing. I would prefer to find balance, stick to my job and find ways to accommodate my new energy levels.

[Renstar]

Thanks @Silenus i like a challenge!! 

Well, I help people with resumes and sometimes professionals can get it wrong ...  Mainly however I made that comment as you queried whether your CV might have been a problem in the past.

Discrimination towards consultants is not as common I would expect since consultants don't have to account for lost time, so maybe the issue relates moreso to your lack of desire to market yourself as you said in your first post.

And that's difficult, I was just chatting to @Former-Member about a coach ... have you considered a coach to help you with what appears to be not mental health issues but other barriers?

Just a thought.

Yes, you're right about companies not providing feedback (honest feedback anyway) but I do, so I know at least one person in this country who does  ... 

When I completed my degree in counselling ... a friend also completed hers ... we both set out and I worked where I could. She began to get bitter about not being able to find suitable (read: interesting) work. Instead of griping about my first counselling job (which wasn't great) I looked around for how I could use what I had to create something ... I found it in a magazine article. From that article I formulated a program (very rudimentary) for women that I tried to sell, get funding for, give away to many people who did not want it. Then I stumbled across an organisation that did, they bought it and I never looked back. My friend is now unemployed and bitter about the degree we completed (both as mature age students) because it's not recognised by Medicare blah blah.

Why was I (and so many others) different ? We got creative.

You're a creative, technical writer @Silenus with passions and viewpoints unlike anyone else (you're unique) ...  start a blog, start a forum, write for free for a NFP get creative about using your talents in ways that you've not tried before and see where that takes you.

It will at the very least give you some much needed exposure to potential clients or avenues which did not seem available or apparent before.

Selling may not be a strong point, but you have something to offer that others don't - find out what that is and just create the platform for it yourself.

Bipolar condition is manageable and I know clients who are able to work with the condition, successfully however I have noticed that they have had to reinvent themselves. I notice you were an engineer and now produce written work, maybe a new re-invention is in the wings ...

I also suggested working for companies that value 'lived experience'.. have you researched these orgs?

Challenges at work! Fun stuff!!

[Renstar]

@Former-Member it sounds like you have the right focus in mind 

A mentor or maybe a coach could be another element to add into your life to help create that balance you need. They hold you accountable, assist with scheduling and prioritising.

We should all have a coach - I need a coach!!! 

You mention you do something really great and a feeling of passion towards one's work is hard to find, so your idea to stick with it but modify your workload/stressors sounds ideal for you at this moment.

As a mental health professional I advocate (and research shows!) that 

• having a toolbox for coping (including meditation)
  
  
• making your mental health a priority and
  
  
• putting elements into place that maintain the balance you need to face challenges at work
  
  are the main things to consider.

You have @Former-Member, in today's discussion allowed me to discuss all those things so thank you again for sharing and being part of it!

[Former-Member]

@Renstar Thank you so much for all the input today!! Have a lovely weekend!

[Renstar]

Thank you to today's great contributors @Former-Member @Silenus and @Former-Member on the topic of benefits (which we sort of discussed) and challenges of work!

The reality of 'challenges at work' is that they don't come with ready made answers or solutions .. they remain challenges not problems that can be solved.

Challenges fortunately or unfortunatley depending on how you view them, require you to think outside the square, perhaps monitor the situation and/or have a plan for when the challenges arise, you may need to bring someone in to constantly bounce ideas off or maybe gain understanding or get advice from.

I have many challenges at work and I'm always glad to hear what others are doing!

It's my hope that you felt at least today, "I am not alone", I know I did.

Thanks again for sharing and look forward to CareerChatting next week, same time and place.

Have a relaxing weekend 

Renstar

[Renstar]

@Former-Member it's been very 'real' today ... loved it - hope to hear from you again. Enjoy your weekend too (phones off!!)

[Silenus]

Thank you @Renstar for your time, and for sharing your insight and experience. Very much appreciated. 🙂

I appreciate the up-and-at-'em approach too... full of vim and vigour...

I would like to add to the conversation with the positive message that gainful employment is a wonderfully stabilising and balancing thing to have in one's life...

So much is tied to our perspective. As with your bitter friend @Renstar ...

I looked at my past few years of (almost) unemployment as a great opportunity to explore this country and explore my self. It was a valuable and life-changing exploration on both fronts...

I self-published my first 2 books - one of poetry, one of philosophy - in this period of unemployment... that's a huge win, and something I've been working on (my poetry) since 1989 to present to the world...

Success...

I taught myself a valuable new skill - learning how to use the leading professional desktop publishing program Adobe InDesign, and designed and published my own books from cover to cover, all during this period of unemployment...

Another success...

I'm working on 3 more books of my own writings (one of which will be a world-record holder in a form of constrained writing) during this period of unemployment...

All this work going on, whilst I am unemployed...

Hahaha...

It's all how we view it - get down about being unemployed, or get proactive and, yes, creative... 🙂

The only mild concern I've got is this - often we don't see some underlying truths of society - it is hard to use CBT to remove stigma...

Maybe CBT is good for dealing with our own response to stigma, but still the stigma exists as if in defiance of our best wishes... hahaha...

Me and another bloke, going for a job. His job record is solid, mine leaks like a sieve. Boss-man is gonna go for another bloke - Mister Reliable - 9 times outta 10...

That leaves me time to write more novels... hahaha...

Thanks to you all for the conversation. It was great. 🙂

Hugs and happy vibes beaming to all...