You know how it is….maybe your boss said something that pissed you off – or you didn’t get the resources you thought you would for project X, or you can’t help noticing that others less deserving seem to get the promos, stock awards, and cool assignments while you feel stuck doing the same ol’ thing. Then the phone rings and a recruiter has an **AWESOME** opportunity for you. All of a sudden you are telling your cube mates you are “heading to the doctor's office” with a sort of “don’t ask for details look” in your eyes.
And just like that...Bam! You completely disengage at work. Whether or not you actually get or take the **AWESOME** job, you are now contemplating all the other **AWESOME** jobs that are not your current job.
But here’s the deal…you are still being goaled, measured and rewarded for THIS job. If you start spending all of your time looking for your next gig, you will get increasingly less engaged, work will seem to suck more and your boss and colleagues will notice. Then ANY job will seem better than your current one and you have a very high likelihood of the cycle repeating.
So, what to do? Well, sort of like “shopping in your own closet,” it might be time to take another look at your current position and company. What made you excited about the role when you first took it? What is it like on your best day? What makes it your best day? What do others find cool/fun/exciting about your company or what you do? What do you appreciate about the people you work with?
Rarely would you throw out all of your clothes at once. You might find your favorite pair of jeans smooshed into the back and that cool shirt crumpled onto the floor – give it a wash and see if it still fits. Just like with your job – If you don’t engage with your current company, you are not accurately assessing it.
So what do you need to find, shake off, and see it in a new light? It might be that you jump back in with both feet and remember that you love it, or just like with those old jeans, maybe it doesn’t fit as well as it used to. But, you have to try it on to know for sure.
So, re-engage in your current role, seek the passion you used to have, and see if your current job is the **AWESOME** job.
