Relatable Leader

EP091 Find Work That's a Good Fit for You


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When you seek out work that builds on your natural talents, you will be good at your job and you won't have to work so hard. Why? Because you are happy doing what comes naturally to you. At that point you can simply had more skills and knowledge to your existing skill set so you can expand your career path and evolve constantly. That's right, continuous improvement includes building on your natural talents through continuous learning and application of new knowledge and skills. 

Being a “good fit” for a job means the job is suited to your natural talents. When people find work that taps into their natural talents, they enjoy most of their tasks.

Instead of starting with, “Is this person good at this job?” I start with, “Is this person a good fit for this job?”

If the answer is “Yes”, based on a review of natural talents, then I explore whether or not the employee received adequate training for doing THIS JOB at THIS COMPANY.

After those questions have been answered, I can start to work with the person to discover together if the person likes the job and if the person is capable of doing the job.

If it turns out the person IS NOT a good fit for the job, I assist with transition plans to support the person finding a job that is a good match. I want people to be happy in their work and feel like they are good at what they do.

It can be especially challenging when a person is clearly not a good fit for the job, but he/she thinks it’s a good match. Indicators I look for include 1) are you happy in this job? 2) Are you meeting the basic requirements of this role? 3) Are you capable of following the assigned processes? 4) Do you have the skill set to grow with the department?

Let’s back up and assist you in considering the fit for your current job.

We return once again to your childhood. When you were left alone to do whatever you wanted to do, what types of activities did you enjoy?

In the Office Assistant Program, I asked college students what natural talents they possessed that made them a good fit for office assistant careers. People aren’t always used to thinking about their natural talents, so I’d frame the question by asking them to tell me what they’d ask for at Christmas when they were 8-11 years old. Many times students told me they asked for:

  1. A desk
  2. A telephone
  3. Office Supplies

Terrific! If a person has been “playing office” his/her whole life, then it seems like getting a job as an office assistant is a good fit.

Another example comes from when I taught unemployment classes for job readiness. If a person told me he/she enjoyed being out in the garage for hours taking things apart to see how they worked and putting them back together again – and they could do this without ruining whatever it was they were taking apart – then, yes, it seems like auto repair or computer repair/support might be a good fit. I recall one person was so drawn to this type of activity his marriage was in jeopardy because he constantly had greasy projects all over the living room…now that’s a man who HAS TO find a job that fits his natural talents!

As a personal example, I loved to write and draw. I wrote long, illustrated letters to friends and cousins. When I was in sixth grade, I told my teacher I was a writer. She encouraged me to write a story and she typed it for me and sent it to a scholastic publisher. In 7th grade my parents gave me a typewriter for Christmas and that sealed my self-image as a writer. In high school classmates left quarters in my locker for the newsletter I put together; by that time I’d also sparked an interest in photography, so I wrote little gossip articles about high school happenings and took photographs to go with my stories.

Fast forward in life and my books and artwork have been published. I used to sell my photography at shows and now I edit them into videos. I get paid to write training manuals for companies. I love the work because I’m engaged in my natural talents.

Making time to actively engage in your natural talents, paid or not, is one of the ways to establish positive attitude habits. If you do what you like to do, you will naturally be a happier person.

Read the rest of this chapter to learn more and complete your action assignments! 

Get Catherine Goggia’s book, “LIVE IT! Mastering Positive Attitude Habits, 15 Practical Tips for Managing Your Mindset,” on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/LIVE-Mastering-Positive-Attitude-Habits/dp/1534666923/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1491232688&sr=1-1&keywords=catherine+goggia+attitude

Does your role include responsibility for employee performance discussions? If so, those conversations just go a lot easier for you! Go to the Relatable Leaders website and send me your email request for the Performance Management Worksheet, a discussion tool that organizes all the key points of these important conversations.

Relatable Leader Website

To learn more about Catherine’s projects outside of her focus on leadership resources, see her website:

http://www.catherinegoggia.com/

My focus is training supervisors and managers, or front line employees who have the goal to promote to leadership some day. The time to start behaving like a leader is before you fill a leadership position.  The information, tools, and resources shared in this podcast are designed to help you reach your highest potential in your career. I taught college level Business Communication and Employee Readiness courses for 15 years. Employees and students tell me my courses change their lives for the better, and my evaluations consistently rate me as an engaged and motivational speaker. I decided to produce a podcast in the effort to support a broader audience of people in higher levels of job satisfaction and productivity, as well as encourage people to find jobs for which they are a good fit.

Please and Thank you for *RATE & REVIEW* on iTunes and Stitcher – your review might inspire someone else to listen and receive the assist they need to be more successful in their job!

If you know anyone getting ready to start college, or even at a crossroads in life trying to put things back together in a positive way, I encourage you to give them my book, From Average Student to Academic Rock Star! This is my foundational college orientation available on Amazon in paperback. Set up like a workbook with action steps, this information has helped thousands of people get their goals on track. Some readers are purchasing it as a gift, and then deciding to keep it for themselves because of the life lessons addressed in the book.  Check it out on Amazon!

From Average Student to Academic Rock Star!

If you use a technique from the podcast or find any information especially useful, please jump on over to my website at relatableleader.com and you can email me or post your feedback on twitter CatherineGoggia@goggia

#relatableleader

For additional information and tools to support your success, go to my website:

http://www.relatableleader.com/

Advance your job skills: schedule Individual Coaching Sessions with Catherine!

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https://www.linkedin.com/in/catherine-goggia-771408ab/

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Relatable LeaderBy Catherine Goggia