Don't Be a Jerk at Work

This season of DBAJAW was inspired by The Great Resignation so we thought we’d spend some time digging into what it is, how it has evolved, and what it means to us.

Key Takeaways:

• The Great Resignation feels like too narrow of a phrase to capture the deep reflection and nuanced decision-making that many people are experiencing. We like The Great Re-ignition, Contemplation, and Reset.
• It can be scary to contemplate life and career changes. Many people have found reassurance in being part of a collective.
• This moment in time is an opportunity for employers to contemplate and reflect on the past few years – to make decisions about how they want to continue to operate and to get curious about what is now important to employees.
• It is also an invitation to employees to take stock of where they are at, what is important to them, and how they want to spend their time and energy.

This time, we talk about Tara’s very recent decision to quit her job and make a departure, after 20 years, from the animation industry. This is definitely a Great Resignation story, and we discuss how this is both simultaneously uncomfortable AND reassuring. As of the publish date, Tara is one week into the rest of her life! What’s next?? Key Takeaways:

• Sometimes the biggest A-HA moments come when we see ourselves reflected by the people around us.
• Our careers can be really impactful to our identities. When we are so often asked, “So, what do you do???” – Who are we without our careers?
• If you are thinking about an idea and want to see it become more real, consider talking about it with your people! Talking about it may create more accountability. Annnnnd, if you are making a big life-change decision, find your “boosters”!! And talk to them often.

Also:

• Is a “retirement job” something that other people are planning on?? Asking for a friend…

In this episode, Sandy shares her great contemplation story and the “what’s next” moments that led to her decision to trade in full-time employment for self-employment. A breast cancer diagnosis was the catalyst for change but it was a series of intentional decisions and small steps that added up to one big decision.

Key Takeaways:

• “What’s next” is a journey
• The fear of “what’s next” is real and never fully goes away
• Sandy’s go-to question for deciding what to say yes to -- will this energize me or will this diminish/deplete me?

In this episode, Sarah shares a couple of her own “what’s next” moments. The first came after losing her job in the first year of becoming a new mom. The second came when she had a conversation with someone about her writing, and was challenged to make a choice between identifying as a writer and committing to it...or not.

Key Takeaways:

• A shitty situation or experience can help us get clear on who we are and what we want.
• How you see yourself shapes how you talk about yourself, and can push you forward or hold you back.
• Sometimes one question can shift our perspectives. Be curious! Thank you, Paul Heywood.

It’s 2022! What the heck!!?

We've been away for…awhile. First, it was our usual summer break. Then, we determined we needed a bit more time off. Hello Covid fatigue. Simultaneously, we were generating ideas for what season 4 would look like and we had a plan…

But, it just wasn’t clicking. We felt uninspired. Over 3 seasons, we had talked about a LOT of jerky, and non-jerky, workplace stuff. If we felt maxed out on workplace jerks, had DBAJAW run its course? And if not, what’s next??

Eureka!!! WHAT’S NEXT????

Everyone is feeling it. 

We are inspired to explore this, because we KNOW it’s really sitting with people, and it is heavyyyyyy. And exciting! And scary. And freeing! And…let’s talk about it. Welcome to season 4!!!

We are at EPISODE 83! And, we are wrapping up the end of our fully remote season 3! 

We recorded on June 21 and were 3 weeks into the announcement of BC’s restart plan. If our COVID numbers continue in the right direction, by the time we return in the fall, we will be back to recording in person AND many of us will be back to office life.

Many people have described these COVID times as “a great pause” or “a great reset” -- an opportunity to reflect on what really matters to us. That got us thinking...after 15+ months working from home, what might office life be like in the “AFTER” times?

Key Takeaways...for this unprecedented season:

• We are super grateful for technology that has allowed us to keep recording through the pandemic. Doing the podcast has been important for our mental health.
• We are super duper grateful that people have kept listening to us! Thank you.
• And we are extra super grateful for Kylie generously providing her editing skills each episode. We <3 Kylie!

We’ll be back in the fall! Take care!

We’ve talked about it before during various conversations -- the state of the world and racism, sexism, homophobia, and all the awful actions being perpetrated against people for simply being who they are have resulted in more and more businesses and organizations making efforts for equity, diversity and inclusion. 

This is important. And companies say it is important. 

And yet, it is very common that the people IN CHARGE of the business are not showing up. For sure, they have lots of responsibilities and are busy. And yet, if equity, diversity and inclusion are that important...wouldn’t they make it a priority? So, the question is, are leaders who don’t show up jerks?? Or just really, really busy?

Key Takeaways:

• Human resources can’t do this alone! 
• “Showing up” can mean a variety of things. Here are a few: 
• • Attend the important workshop! 
  • Be consistent with your values! 
  • Beyond talking about it...take action!
• Leaders are going to make mistakes. Let’s give value to what they do AFTER they know they’ve made a mistake. 

Bonus Takeaway:

• “It’s easier to solve a capacity problem than a jerk problem. ”Wise words, Sarah, wise words.

We’re back with the final Guardian episode for season 3! In the Guardian series, we’ve been focusing on the concerns and perspectives of future business and HR professionals. 

This time, our Guardian is Laura Orban. Laura is a current business student at BCIT who has worked in a few fields and explored different education paths before pursuing business administration...and she has discovered she loves it!

Over the course of the last couple of seasons of DBAJAW, we’ve talked about self-doubt quite a few times and how much it impacts us and our work. It can be a total jerk! Today, we’re revisiting that topic from the perspective of someone who is educating themselves to embark on a new career, and how pervasive self-doubt is when you are thinking about how to “sell yourself” and your past experience when applying for jobs in this new career space. 

Key Takeaways:

• Think about the skills you’ve gained and how you can connect the dots for the interviewer/recruiter. Prepare in advance and anticipate how to create the links that will tell the story you want to tell and communicate them in a way that shows how transferable they are! 
• Don’t downplay your experience in the service industry. So many awesome skills are required in that setting...and are keenly transferable to so many environments.
• You’ll never have all the answers all of the time! It’s about how you would think about getting the answer. Resourcefulness for the WIN!!

Burnt out. Languishing. Unmotivated. Tired. Stuck. Many of us have had these general feelings of malaise over the past 15 months and lately...well lately, it seems even more acute.   

A recurring theme that we’ve been hearing from leaders and HR professionals is that they are feeling helpless when it comes to the topic of employee burnout. They have been seeing employee burnout throughout the pandemic and supporting their teams and colleagues as best as they can. But, they are also experiencing burnout and that leaves them with a lot less capacity to lead and support others. And less capacity is typically a recipe for us inadvertently becoming jerks at work. So, what to do??

Key Takeaways:

• It is important to talk about this because it is real! Talking about it makes it more okay.
• All of us are responsible, regardless of job title, to take care and notice burnout, and that our colleague, our employee, may be languishing. 
• In spite of everything, acknowledge that work is STILL getting done! Amazing.

We’ve talked about imposter syndrome (aka newbie nerves, productive discomfort) and today we are talking about something a little different. While we have noticed that more women in leadership are feeling worthy AND welcome AND confident and not like imposters at all, we still self-edit our words and actions because we worry our confidence will be judged negatively.

So in this episode, we consider the question: why do so many confident and successful women leaders worry that their confidence and success is making them look like jerks at work?

Key Takeaways:

• There is a difference between confidence and arrogance.
• Adaptability is a valuable skill. At the same time, being too adaptable can lead to self-editing, being a chameleon, and a loss of self.
• Be brave! Be confident! And lift others up with you.

*In this episode, we noted the work of leaders Rachel Cargle, Glennon Doyle, Liz Plank, and Tara’s pal Fiona Proctor. Thank you to all of them!