Why Don't ...: Why Does Power Go To People's Heads?

Why Don't ...: Why Does Power Go To People's Heads?: It is strange that people who normally act with empathy and emotional intelligence then often start to misuse the role power they have been...

Is anger justified in the workplace or interviews?

When a little bit of temper might just be your friend!

Human beings as a species have come to dominate the planet for a number of reasons, not least is our ability to co-operate; together we can achieve more than we can individually. Groups who can co-operate in their use of the ‘opposable thumb’ have the edge over those that don’t (or evolutionary advantage). But within the group slightly different rules may operate and total co-operation may not always be the best tack. Being co-operative in your ‘tribe’ or within your workplace has many benefits and having a reputation as a ‘good team player’  is no bad thing: but as I have consistently said this is not about being a pushover. People who are perpetually angry and shouting, create stress in others, people who run others down and are negative about their peers don’t win a lot of friends. But being sweetness and light all the time can also work against you.

The trick of course is knowing when to reveal you that you have some teeth and can be out to win. When it comes to winning that sale, holding back and saying to the competition ‘after you’ is not going to get you in the boss’ good books!  In the sales environment having  some hunger and a desire to be better than the rest or out front rather than one of the crowd is key to success.

In the debates about company strategy, there is a time for competition and a time for co-operation. Once the debate has been had and the boss has decided the way forward it’s time to cooperate. All that  is just common sense?

But what about in the interview process, surely that is another place where it is essential to be seen as a good team player? Well apparently it is not quite as simple as that. An experiment carried out by Dr Victoria Brescoll at Yale showed that candidates who demonstrated some anger at the loss of a client and blamed their co-workers were rated more competent  than the candidates who expressed sadness.  The ones who behaved less well, were deemed to be better able to cope with a position of high authority.

In a similar study at Rutgers University the social psychologist, Corrine Moss-Racusin discovered that men who were modest were judged weak and less likeable than vain or arrogant candidates. She says this is because they were behaving in line with strict expectations for masculinity.

So how should you present yourself in an interview? Should you show your anger?  Well there are a clear set of circumstances when no one would criticise you for expressing a strong emotion. Even the mildest mannered person can share an impatience and anger with poor performance, with low quality, inefficiency or wasted resources.  Passion for excellence can only be seen as a virtue.  I would counsel more caution with blaming others, consistently blaming others would suggest someone who does not take responsibility and has sloping shoulders. It might also suggest someone who can’t learn from mistakes or failures.

Anger needs to be used very sporadically and carefully because although it can be seen in some western cultures as an expression of toughness and resolve in other cultures, particuallary in Asia, it can be seen as loss of control.

I struggle to advise candidates to be arrogant or vain:  but be confident and assertive, being proud of your achievements and hungry for new challenges are a more attractive way of presenting. There is a real need not to be overly modest or diffident. You need to be able to command respect in leadership positions and have authority, so energy and self assurance are important. And lower risk than appearing vain and arrogant.

So what does all this research demonstrate? Well not having read it in detail I may be disagreeing with it out of ignorance!  But I think that interviews are very complex interactions and there are many variables, maybe research that identifies one and suggests that it may be a determinant would be wrong.

Eleven things you need to know about an organisation before accepting a job offer

In the current economic climate it is tempting to accept the first job that comes along but you do so at your peril. You may find that you have jumped from the frying pan into t he fire; that you find yourself back on the dole queue faster than you could imagine or worse still a captive of circumstances in a job you hate.  So before you accept any role that is offered think carefully about whether the organisation really chimes with your values and whether the role really meets your needs and fits your career plans.

So in researching a company what do you need to know? By the time the offer comes through you will already have amassed a wealth of knowledge about the organisation but here are some key issues that you should know by the time you make that big decision.

1.       Outlook; what are  the  future prospects for this industry? Is it growth or decline? Is it going to be in the UK in five years time or overseas?

2.       Health; what is the financial health of the organisation? Is it going to survive this recession? You might think that recruiting staff is an indicator of health but it may not be, especially if they are recruiting sales staff on commission only.. that could be a sign that they desperately need sales but don’t have cash.

3.       Business strategy; ties ion to the first two, what is the business planning t o do in the next few years? Are the owners thinking of selling, merging or expanding overseas? How might this affect the role you are thinking about? What opportunities might it bring you?

4.       Size and geography; again related to strategy, if you are being offered a job by a multi national what opportunities might that present, if their second plant is in a remote corner of Scotland, would you want to go? You can travel now to the office, what happens if they moved your function form one side of London to another?

5.       Learning paths; what sort of support does this organisation give to people who want to learn, to do qualifications, go on course, on conferences. Do they have a robust appraisal scheme and does it include learning?

6.       Career path: what are the policies around internal transfers, promotions and secondments? Will you be able to move around an get help to do so?

7.       Rewards; what are the policies about pay rises, benefits and bonus. Will you be on a fixed point salary with no way of increasing it unless you change jobs? How will your success be measured?

8.       Work life balance; is this company family friendly? Will they allow time off for critical family events? Can you manage your working day so that you can do pick-up sometimes, take mum to the hospital or catch the four o’clock to the county of a weekend.

9.       Culture; ask some test questions to see how much autonomy you will have in deciding how to do your work, how  many forms you might need to fill in to access some resources. Is this culture one of empowerment or rigid bureaucracy. Do they value creativity and off the wall or praise conformity and consistency?

10.   Management style; is there an open n door policy for managers, can you approach people with ideas or not? Does the company support social interaction with in teams or between teams?

11.   Workloads: what will you be spending most of your day doing? What determines when you have finished the day’s work? What happens if you have too much to do? How often do people in this team have to stay late?

Not everything on that list will matter to you very much, some of it may not matter at all. But if you know all the answers you can see a full picture of your potential future employer and decide if they are really are someone you want to work for… oh and don’t  just believe the company handbook.. get evidence from people who work there.. taking care not to believe just one person. It’s hard work to do this work but then making a mistake could be much more costly.

 www.maryhopecareersuccess.com for more advice and tips on how to advance your career

Jobs you may not think you want but have lots to offer!

Following on from yesterday's blog about what you  thought you wanted for a career but may find less than palatable is the reverse. CareerCast have graded occupations by how desirable they really are by looking at the stress, hours, pay, promotion, security etc factors. Now the commentators on their web site don't really seem to agree that these jobs are not stressful.. but it's only one factor.. just look at how low the unemployment rate is!

Most Underrated Jobs in 2011


When most of us were in elementary school, our teachers taught us to aim high in our careers and strive for such prestigious jobs as doctor, lawyer, pilot and even President. But as we learned in the years that followed, the excitement those jobs promise typically sounds a lot better than the reality. On the other hand, the jobs held by our parents, neighbours and siblings, which seemed like “normal” jobs, may actually provide many more rewards than we ever imagined.
To that end, the CareerCast.com editors reviewed our in-depth Jobs Rated data to identify the most underrated jobs based on a range of criteria. While terms like flashy, glitzy, glamorous and prestigious aren’t typically associated with our list of underrated jobs, these careers have some great advantages that are often overlooked. They’re professions that don’t woo people with the high salaries or notoriety, but instead have characteristics that make them especially worthy. For instance, our most underrated jobs typically have median-to-higher income levels, lower stress, lower environmental dangers and lower physical demands. And even in this tight economy, all share one great attribute: a lower than average unemployment rate.
"I have the best of both worlds. I get to do the work that I want, but I don't have the high demands that a lawyer does,” says Jennifer Dahms, a paralegal at a Milwaukee law firm.. "I wouldn't say that my job is underrated. I would say it's equally balanced. I get to take vacations, leave work and have a life."
While paralegal takes top honors in our ranking, insurance agent isn’t far behind. "I think it's interesting, but not a surprise we made the list," says Sherri Primes, an Orange County, Calif., insurance agent. "It's the only career or job that I've ever had that I feel I get to do something good for people. I can impart change in people’s lives."
In order – with their US unemployment rate attached, the top ten most underrated jobs:

1.      Paralegal 4.6%

2.      Accountant 5.0%

3.      Loan Officer 7.7%

4.      Market research Analyst 7.7%

5.      Software engineer 4.6%

6.      Computer systems analyst 5.9%

7.      Insurance Broker 5.4%

8.      Dietician 3.2%

9.      Dental Hygienist 1.2%

10.  Civil Engineer 3.9%

While the paparazzi may not be knocking down their doors, the following jobs are worth a look if you’re considering changing careers. They also apply if you’re a recent graduate looking for a career that will reward you for many years to come.That is of course if your talents and motivations are suited to those roles!

How to achieve career success

In the USA studies of how people achieve career success identified seven broad strategies:

• ·         Competence in the current job
• ·         Working long and hard
• ·         Developing new skills through training and job experience
• ·         Opportunity development through volunteering to take on new tasks in the work place and networking
• ·         Developing sponsors and supporters, colleagues, mentors and advocates
• ·         Image building so that you appear successful
• ·         Navigating organisational politics to avoid pitfalls and ensure longevity.

So how successful will you be in your career? Do you have the plan, the will and the skill to do all of those things?

Of course some of you may have spotted the flaw in this.. what is the researchers definition of success? Do they mean people who climb to the top of the greasy pole? IS that the only measure of success?

I think that if you are ambitious and want to attain power and influence in an organisation then this is just the advice that I would give you but first you need to challenge any assumptions that this is what success means.

Designing a beautiful bridge, supporting a troubled teenager, ensuring an old person dies with dignity are all fantastic  contributions and are successes. There is no law that says you can’t be a success without achieving a high status role. In fact I’d say that success is what you want it to be. So work out what you really want and not what some old fashioned, outdated concept of career implies you should have. Then work out how to achieve your own personal vision of success.

For more support and advice on how to find out what will make your career a success, go to www.maryhopecoaching.co.uk

How to make career decisions - 7 key strategies

How to make career decisions - 7 key strategies

There are seven key reasons why it is really hard to make a career decision and identify clear career goals. Adopt these strategies to overcome the sources of indecision.
Strategy 1: Increase your  information about yourself and want you want . To make a decision you need to work really hard at understanding your interests, strengths, values and lifestyle preferences.
Strategy 2-Increase your  information  about the  organisation your work for. Make sure you really understand what your organisation does and where there may be opportunities for you and what possibilities exist. Could you create your own role?
Strategy 3 –Increase your  information bout the external environment.  If you know that your organisation can’t or won’t  provide opportunities then you really need to explore outside that organisation and beyond your sector. All my years as a headhunter taught me that every organisation is more complex and more interesting that it looks from the outside. Get into the detail and really discover what goes on.
Strategy 4 –Overcome any lack of decision making confidence. It  can be really difficult to make decisions about new roles or new directions. Use all the decision making tools that you might use in a business scenario. SWOT, Force field analysis, foursquare decision making tools. Then tap into your emotional resources, go back to what your interests, desire and goals, meditate, pray or reflect. And ask how you will feel if you don’t do this thing.
Strategy 5- Overcome the decision making fear and anxiety that can produce a paralysis. Literally it can cause panic attacks. So using your decision making tools calm those fears.  Really focus on looking at the risks you might be taking and identify each of them; then  brainstorm the measures you can take to reduce the risk. Really think through what’s the worst that could happen and what is the worst that is likely to happen. What would you do then?
Strategy 6 –Consider the stakeholders and talk to them. There may be conflicts between what you want and what someone else thinks you should do. In the end it is your life. However you need to garner support by showing them how passionate you are, how carefully you have researched the decision and how carefully you have identified the risks.
Strategy 7-Overcome your constraints. If you have a lot invested in one profession or one organisation then it may be difficult to contemplate leaving to do something different. Again there area  whole range of decision making techniques that can support you to weight the balance of doing something different.  What’s clear is that research shows if you do all your research you can make life changing decisions with less stress and are more likely to succeed in your chosen path.  
Highly anxious people may jump to conclusions before they are really ready, they may make premature or hastily contrived decisions. Or they may be paralysed and make no decision. Information and research are the keys to helping you make the right decisions at the right time.
For more help and advice on how to set and achieve your career goals talk to Mary Hope at www.maryhopecoaching.co.uk