Lessons from work

[wmw999 2,129]

OK, I'm retired, but I figured that those of us who have learned some things the hard way could share them with people who haven't had to learn them yet. Kind of an "old fogies talk" thing . People with lessons, feel free to share. I suggest keeping them short; consider what you'd be willing to read
Don't play "rock." What's "Rock?" It's the interchange where someone in management says "Bring me a rock -- no, not that one -- no, not that one -- no, not that one."
If you're asking for the rock, decide what's important, include it in the requirements for "bring me a rock," and if it's within the guidelines, then decide if either
a. the guidelines were wrong or
b. the rock really is OK, it's just not the one you would have chosen.

If you're bringing the rock, figure out three things that you might find, and run them by the asker to see if they'd be important. It'll give you some insight into how the asker things, and saves time. It also makes you think about what you're looking for (also a good thing).

There are others, but no one wants to read a long post full of life lessons

Wendy P.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[NewGuy2005 51]

Oddly enough, my wife and I go through this on the grocery list all the time. She will either write the "spec" too loose or too tight.

[wmw999 2,129]

The corollary to "don't play rock" is that if you ask for inputs on something you're doing, accept hem gracefully, even if they're not what you wanted. You don't have to implement them, but dang, you did ask...

Wendy P.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[GD64 1]

wmw999.......my advice.....never quit. It seems to me a lot of people I know "go horizontal" shortly after retiring. Also, a lot of retiree's (mainly men)....if they are still vertical, talk about the job they used to work at as the focus of the conversation.

I'm not necessary saying the same job all your life, but something. I love it when I meet an older person in their own business......they generally have passion for business, fun, life in general, and with employee's of all ages they are in tune with the world around them.

[Muffie 0]

My advice:

It's better to start at the bottom and work your way up to where you want to be than to sit at home on your parents' couch waiting for someone to bestow upon you your dream job. While you're waiting, all those people who weren't too proud to start in that job that's beneath you are working their way into viable careers and incomes that you'll one day envy.

[Niki1 1]

Muffie

My advice:

It's better to start at the bottom and work your way up to where you want to be than to sit at home on your parents' couch waiting for someone to bestow upon you your dream job. While you're waiting, all those people who weren't too proud to start in that job that's beneath you are working their way into viable careers and incomes that you'll one day envy.

Oh, great. Now you tell me.

Most of the things worth doing in the world had been declared impossilbe before they were done.
Louis D Brandeis

Where are we going and why are we in this basket?

[turtlespeed 212]

Most of a job is showing up.

If you show up and are at least 50% competent, you will likely keep that job if you want.

No, not saying that is 100%, it has exceptions, but it is the general rule.

I'm not usually into the whole 3-way thing, but you got me a little excited with that. - Skymama
BTR #1 / OTB^5 Official #2 / Hellfish #408 / VSCR #108/Tortuga/Orfun

[quade 3]

I'm going to go out on a limb here with an exception to my general rule against absolutes.

Every rule given by any guru about success has exceptions and sometimes the reason the guru believes the rule is because they ARE an exception.

The world is not black and white; it's grey.
The world is not a digital one or zero; it's an analog bell curve.

What "works" for the middle three quintiles almost certainly doesn't for the outer two.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[jcd11235 0]

Whenever possible, avoid breaking more than one law at a time.

Math tutoring available. Only $6! per hour! First lesson: Factorials!

[BobParker 0]

"Management always gets what they deserve."

[quade 3]

BobParker

"Management always gets what they deserve."

If that were only true, but I have a multitude of examples from my personal life which tells me it's not.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[NWFlyer 2]

"You don't ask, you don't get."

Expecting people to know what you want in your career, to know that you wanted to be considered for that promotion or that open position or that special project... well, that's setting yourself up for disappointment. Yes, the best bosses are on the lookout for growth opportunities for their people, but it really helps if you say "Hey, I'm interested in developing [this skill] - can you help me find an opportunity to work on that?" Then when someone says "Hey, I need some help on this project, can one of your people join the team?" I already know what you're looking for.

I just hired someone today, and although I said no for a whole host of reasons, he asked for a higher salary than what I'd offered. He had done his homework and knew the salary range for the position and that the offer that we gave him was below the midpoint for that position (appropriately so, since he's on the most junior end of the experience requirements for the job and we're already giving him a 10% bump from his current role). But he had done his homework (to know what the salary range was), and he asked respectfully, and I was impressed with his approach. It just confirmed what I learned throughout the interview process - this guy is not just smart, but also savvy. I'm really looking forward to having him on my team because I have no doubt, as a manager, that I'll know where he stands and what he wants to do to grow.

"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke