The job is a “romantic date”… How can you find what suits you?
According to a recent report by Gallup, employee disengagement at work costs the global economy up to $8.8 trillion.
According to what organizational psychologist Andre Martin told CNBC, the reason why only 23 percent of employees consider themselves thriving at work is that most people simply are not in the right jobs.
“When you’re in an unfit state, your energy should go to other things, like modifying behavior or negative emotions,” the author of “Wrong Fit, Right Fit” told the network.
He stressed the need for a person to discover ways to achieve success within the system, and added: “This does not mean that you do not have the energy to engage in work, but rather it only indicates other things, which is sad.”
According to him, making sure the job is a good fit starts with the interview. Martin has found that employees often notice things they don’t like even before they start the job.
He continued: “What happens is that we are passionate about wanting to get this job… We tend to only care about information that will confirm our choice to join the company, and confirmation bias plays a role.”
Job searching is like dating
Martin likened the job search process to a date, explaining that it’s hard to know whether you and a potential employer would make a great couple on a first date — but there are questions you can ask to get more than just positive first impressions.
He also explained that “job interviews were not prepared so that we could get to know each other on a deep level. Therefore, you must be an expert in asking questions, and you must show your best investigative journalistic skills during the job interview.”
According to Martin, job satisfaction comes when your expectations for the following three areas match what the new job can offer.
Working methods
For a job to be a good fit, the first thing that needs to be in line is expectations about how work will be done on a daily basis. This means asking yourself the basic question: “How do I like work?”
Martin gave an example: “When a person who is truly talented in doing creative work via (Power Point) has to use notes on (Amazon) – here the feeling becomes similar to writing with your left hand.”
He added: “It is not about values or big ambitious statements. It is about how the company strategies and collaborates. How do they manage conflict? How do they develop people and integrate ideas? What is their relationship to time?
One of the essential things to find out during the interview is the profile of the person who succeeds in this workplace. For example, what qualities they have, what skills they display, and how much time they spend at work, according to Martin.
Asking open questions about how work gets done and who succeeds can be a really nice way to gauge where you stand, he explained.
Define your ideal leader
Another 2020 Gallup poll found that 70 percent of employee engagement in a company is influenced by managers. “That’s why you need to make sure you’re working for your ideal leader or manager,” Martin said.
In his book, Martin encouraged job seekers to build an “ideal leader profile,” which outlines such broad outlines as: values, leadership style, team approach, development approach, personality and personal qualities.
One question you can ask your potential manager in an interview is: What is the most recent positive comment you’ve received from your team about your management style, according to Martin.
You can also ask other interviewers about your hiring manager, specifically, “What is the reputation of the team I will be joining?” What makes him great?
A final tip from Martin is to “spend as much time as possible with this person during the interview and before the start date.”
Don’t bother with the entire job description
The job descriptions listed on listings are usually a list of all the things you can do in the job.
But according to Martin, a realistic job preview should revolve around the two or three most important accomplishments that can be accomplished within the next six months. Then you can ask yourself, Do these near-term accomplishments align with my superpowers or strengths?
He noted that really making sure you can excel at the job within the first 90 days is also a good way to avoid having to switch jobs.
