Do you share some of these questions?

• ”I’m not ready to retire, but my company is pushing me out.”
   
• ”I don’t think I have a future in this organization any more; I can’t get any straight answers.”
   
• ”I like my job, and I’ve survived two work force reductions. But I’m always looking over my shoulder, and I hate that.”
   
• ”I always thought loyalty was a big deal—but no more. There isn’t any loyalty from my employer anymore. Where do I find that job security, like it used to be?”
   
• ”When will all the changes here (in the work place) stop?”
   
• ”I’ve been in a corporate environment all my life, but things are different. I’m uncomfortable, things change all the time, and I don’t think I can stick it out until retirement. But I’m over 50, and don’t know how to begin or where to start. It’s probably foolish to try.”
   
• ”I’m really burned out on 60 hour weeks and doing my job plus the job of two people let go in the last layoff. What choice do I have, really?”

Respond (not react) to workplace changes.

We’ve are in the Information Age, and any workplace that hasn’t kept up with technology changes and increased global competition faces certain failure, probably sooner rather than later. Our ancestors who lived through the move from the agrarian age to the industrial age surely feared the same uncertainty—but the transition occurred and changed our workplace for the remainder of the 20th century.

The best way to manage the uncertainty and constant change in the work place is to set your own course: become “career resilient” and “career self-reliant” by taking responsibility for your own career and future direction. While this may not be easy, it is less stressful and puts you in control of your future. A career coach can help you determine how to develop the self-reliance to respond, not react, to workplace changes.

The “employment contract” has changed…is actually non-existent. Employers used to provide “a good day’s pay” for a “9 to 5” job with “cradle to grave” employment and “upward mobility” or “career ladder” for hard workers who put in the time and played the political game. Today’s global economy and increasing competition has forced employers to change their practices and employee expectations in order to remain in business.

Only you can determine your job security, your employment future; to wait for your employer to do so is a waste of time. If your beliefs and expectations are caught in the “shoulds” of how things used to be, it’s time to align your expectations with business reality.

A coach is that supportive partner who listens to where you are and then serves as your guide and mentor as you align with reality, develop new skills and act on your choices.

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