Antoni TAPIES – Nocturn matinal (bk. w/25 works) , 1970 – gravure sur papier, 47 x 34 cm
In an article published in 2015, Time highlighted the fact it’s time to looking for another job because hiring is way up, because open positions are way up as well and because employees are feeling more confident about quitting.
On the other hand, Forbes claimed 5 reasons why you should always be looking for another job: loyalty doesn’t pay, things can change quickly, it keeps you top of mind, every conversation is worthwhile and it will help clarify what you want and… what you don’t wat.
True, and what about the personal reasons to quit? John Rampton presents 18 very pertinent reasons you should start looking for another job.
1. You’re always bored.
2. You’re constantly left out in the cold.
3. The work doesn’t come naturally.
4. Feeling frustrated over your personal goals.
5. You aren’t being utilized properly.
6. You get the cold shoulder from your boss.
7. You receive poor feedback.
8. The company doesn’t « jibe with your life’s goals and values » (and we can add: people you respect are fired, people are no longer valued)
9. Less work is coming down the pipeline (and also retention and development programs are cut, previous advancement opportunities are blocked)
10. You don’t fit in.
11. You’re not that desperate for a paycheck.
12. You’ve got a horrible boss or he doesn’t understand the business
13. You’re easily overwhelmed.
14. You don’t talk about your job or company.
15. Your work-life balance is off (and this includes the location)
16. You don’t feel challenged.
17. You can’t be authentic.
18. You can’t envision yourself here any longer than a year.
« The existence, the physical universe is basically playful. There is no necessity for whatsoever. It isn’t going anywhere. It doesn’t have a destination that it ought to arrive at. But it is best understood by analogy with music. Because music, as an art form, is essentially playful. We say you play the piano, you don’t work the piano. Why? Music differs from, say, travel. When you travel you’re trying to get somewhere. In music, though, one doesn’t make the end of the composition. The point of the composition. If so, the best conductors would be those who played fastest. And there would be composers who only wrote finales. People would go to a concert just to hear one crackling chord because that’s the end. Same way with dancing. You don’t aim at a particular spot in the room because that’s where you will arrive. The whole point of dancing is the dance.
But we don’t see that as something brought by our education into our everyday conduct. We have a system of schooling which gives a completely different impression. It’s all graded and what we do is to put the child into the corridor of this grade system with a kind of, « Come on, kitty, kitty, » and you go to kindergarten and that’s a great thing because when you finish that you get into first grade… and then come on first grade leads to second grade and so on and then you get out of grade school you got high school and it’s revving up, the thing is coming, then you’re going to go to college. And then graduate school, and when you’re through with graduate school you go out to join the world. Then you go into some racket where you’re selling insurance, and they’ve got that quota to make, and you’re gonna make that. And all the time that « thing » is coming. It’s coming, it’s coming. That great « thing ». The success you’re working for. Then you wake up one day about 40 years old and you say « My god, I’ve arrived. I’m there. » And you don’t feel very different from what you’ve always felt.
Look at the people who live to retire, to put those savings away. And then when they’re 65 they don’t have any energy left. They’re more or less impotent and they go and rotten in some senior citizens community. Because we simply cheated ourselves the whole way down the line. We thought of life by analogy with a journey, with a pilgrimage, which had a serious purpose at the end. And the thing was to get to that end. Success or whatever it is, or maybe heaven after you’re dead. But we missed the point the whole way along. It was a musical thing, and you were supposed to sing, or to dance while the music was being played. »
Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema – The Roses Of Heliogabalus, 1888 – Huile sur toile, 132.1 x 213.9 cm
LinkedIn Talent Solutions developed a very useful guide for HR interviewers to screen candidates in terms of soft skills… Why not using this list to get prepared?
These are the most popular questions:
Adaptability: Tell me about a time when you were asked to do something you had never done before. How did you react? What did you learn?
Culture fit: What are the three things that are most important to you in a job?
Collaboration: Give an example of when you had to work with someone who was difficult to get along with. How did you handle interactions with that person?
Leadership: Tell me about the last time something significant didn’t go according to plan at work. What was your role? What was the outcome?
Growth potential: Recall a time when your manager was unavailable when a problem arose. How did you handle the situation? With whom did you consult?
Prioritisation: Tell me about a time when you had to juggle several projects at the same time. How did you organize your time? What was the result?
Click here to download the full document including 30+ questions.
Video by Matteo Frittelli – Anish Kapoor | Descension for Galleria Continua, 2015
In this interview realised for a recent solo show in Italy, the British artist Anish Kapoor presents his views on what art and artists are. He draws a parallel with a journey « to discover something » which has to provoke a reflection through (maybe unconsciously) philosophical questions, inducing poetry and beyond.
Interestingly, he also makes a distinction between artworks and what those works really are, the same way our own identity cannot be simply resumed in the body we live in.
« If you think of ourselves, our bodies as an object, we occupy ourselves but I know I’m not just this. I think the same is true of all these things that we reflect upon as art. It’s a very special condition but in art there is this possibility of the object being something else. » ― Anish Kapoor
This refers to concepts such as identity, ego and the fundamental question of who we are, as explored by several generations of philosophers and psychologists. I will not initiate a never ending lecture that will cause more confusion than clarification. I will just repeat what the writer Eckhart Tolle wrote in one of his recent works, offering a very contemporary and accessible synthesis of Eastern spiritual teaching and old traditions…
“You can only lose something that you have, but you cannot lose something that you are.” ― Eckhart Tolle, A New Earth: Awakening To Your Life’s Purpose
Anish Kapoor – video still from the movie directed by matteo Frittelli, 2015
René MAGRITTE – Le prêtre marié, 1961 – Huile sur toile, 46 x 55 cm
Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, Professor of Business Psychology at University College London, and a faculty member at Columbia University developed for Harvard Business Review a tool to quickly assess your curiosity, based on a more sophisticated survey by Hogan Assessments.
It will stack up against other test takers in three key areas: unconventionality, intellectual hunger, and experiential curiosity. It will also suggest creativity exercises, readings about agility and advices to get out of your comfort zone.
For the ones of you who want to explore the much more complex concept of creativity in function of the context (measuring the individual, assessing the origin or influences of a work, using a strict program or assessing the cultural value of a work), you can read this very good synthesis.
If you want to know what your drivers are – according to the theory of transactional analysis – take the test here.
Piero FORNASETTI – Variations sur le thème du portrait de Lina Cavalieri (dans le sens des aiguilles d’une montre : 93, 363, 154 et 116) – Assiettes en porcelaine, 26 cm
Obstacle ― Ce qui arrête, s’oppose.
« Votre entreprise est trop belle pour ne pas éprouver des obstacles. » Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Peur ― Sentiment d’angoisse éprouvé en présence ou à la pensée d’un danger, réel ou supposé, d’une menace ; cette émotion éprouvée dans certaines situations.
« La malveillance et la colère lui étaient inconnues, comme l’était cette peur de l’autre qui change la plupart d’entre nous en bêtes. » Tim Willocks
Solution ― Réponse à un problème, à une question. Ce qui peut résoudre une difficulté, dénouer une situation complexe.
« Un problème sans solution est un problème mal posé. » Albert Einstein
Action ― Fait ou faculté d’agir, de manifester sa volonté, en accomplissant quelque chose. Manifestation concrète de l’activité de quelqu’un, d’un groupe.
« Ne t’endors jamais en pensant qu’une action est impossible à réaliser car tu pourrais être réveillé par le bruit que fais quelqu’un occupé à la faire. » Jean-Paul Buvat
Coaching ― Le coaching est l’art d’aider une personne à trouver ses propres solutions.
« No one learns as much about a subject as one who is forced to teach it. » Peter F. Drucker
Source : Larousse, Le métier de coach (François Delivré).
Pablo PICASSO – Violon et feuille de musique, 1912 – Papiers et partition musicale collés sur carton, gouache, 78 x 65 cm
Conductor of The Boston Philharmonic Orchestra, teacher and speaker, Benjamin Zander gave this energising talk about the transformative power of classical music.
Video in English, sous-titres français.
Beyond these views, I caught two brilliant quotes that explains what leadership is and also how careful we should use words:
« I realized my job was to awaken possibility in other people.And of course, I wanted to know whether I was doing that.How do you find out?You look at their eyes.If their eyes are shining, you know you’re doing it. »
« I learned this from a woman who survived Auschwitz,one of the rare survivors. She went to Auschwitz when she was 15 years old.And …And her brother was eight,and the parents were lost.And she told me this, she said,« We were in the train going to Auschwitz,and I looked down and saw my brother’s shoes were missing.I said, ‘Why are you so stupid, can’t you keep your things togetherfor goodness’ sake?' »The way an elder sister might speak to a younger brother.Unfortunately, it was the last thing she ever said to him,because she never saw him again.He did not survive.And so when she came out of Auschwitz, she made a vow.She told me this.She said, « I walked out of Auschwitz into lifeand I made a vow.And the vow was, ‘I will never say anything that couldn’t stand as the last thing I ever say.’Now, can we do that? No.And we’ll make ourselves wrong and others wrong. But it is a possibility to live into. »
Gérard GAROUSTE – Balaam, 2005 – Huile sur toile, 270 x 320 cm
Comme exposé dans un précédent article, décider qui vous voulez être et embrasser ce choix est l’approche la plus seine pour développer le prisme au travers duquel vous observerez les situations conflictuelles et les choix difficiles auxquels vous ferez face. Ce processus est complexe, requiert temps et volonté mais une fois ancré en vous, il fera partie intégrante de votre ADN comportemental. Mais en attendant, que faire lorsqu’un choix vous semble impossible et que comparer Pros and Cons semble inefficace?
Celui qui a le choix a aussi le tourment, disent les Allemands (« Wer hat die Wahl, hat die Qual »). Essayons de les contredire ! Le Power Posing augmente la confiance en soi et la propension au risque. C’est une piste, mais encore?
Des recherches ont montré que le sommeil peut faciliter le processus décisionnel, impactant la façon de saisir et de traiter l’information. Elles ont aussi montré que le sommeil nous ferait davantage regarder le côté positif des choses. Dormir – mieux ou davantage – est donc une piste à explorer sans pour autant apporter la moindre garantie. Et donc?
Dans les cas beaucoup plus fréquents où hésitation et incertitude deviennent avant tout handicapantes, vous retrouvant coincé entre passion et raison, le recours à une approche pragmatique, simple et directe est souhaitable, que ce soit pour vous-même ou, lorsqu’en tant que manager, vous adoptez la posture coach.
Le protocole de décision décrit ci-dessous ne requiert pas beaucoup de temps. Il est logique, cartésien, intègre vos propres valeurs au travers de l’identification de vos désirs et vous aidera à prendre une décision assez rapidement.
Réflexion en cinq étapes focalisée sur l’impact du choix entre deux options (comme par exemple agir/ne pas agir, changer/ne pas changer, choisir l’option A ou l’option B etc.), ce protocole fait écho au concept de P&L (profit and loss) si cher aux entreprises mais aussi à Jean-Paul Sartre lorsqu’il écrit que “Choix et conscience sont une seule et même chose.”
Commencez par choisir une des deux options, celle éventuellement pour laquelle vous avez une légère préférence. Ensuite, répondez à ces questions:
1+ Qu’est-ce que vous gagnez (ou pourriez gagner) si vous choisissez cette option ?
2– Qu’est-ce que vous perdez (ou risquez de perdre) si vous choisissez cette option ?
3– Qu’est-ce que vous perdez en choisissant l’option alternative ?
Une fois que vous avez répondu à ces trois questions, liez vos réponses à vos valeurs en vous demandant « en quoi c’est important pour vous, maintenant, de… ».
Le bilan affectif lié à chaque option étant dressé, ce sont les compensations palliant aux risques possibles qui vous permettront de trouver la solution la plus écologique pour vous:
4+ Comment compenser ce que vous perdez si vous choisissez cette option et si vous choisissez l’autre option ?
5 Lequel des deux scénarios de compensation vous semble le plus pertinent ? Peut-être une nouvelle option émerge-t-elle ?
Prenons un exemple: recruter ou non un nouveau collaborateur?
1+ Qu’est-ce que je gagnerais en recrutant un collaborateur? Davantage de flexibilité, pouvoir répondre plus vite aux clients, pouvoir accepter de nouveaux contrats, devoir travailler moins tard le soir, accroître mon importance au sein de la société, donner des responsabilités managériales à un ancien membre de mon équipe etc. Valeurs : service, efficacité, image, équilibre vie privée-vie professionnelle, ambition, carrière, leadership, développement de mon équipe.
2- Qu’est-ce que je risque de perdre si je recrute un collaborateur? Perte de cohésion dans l’équipe dans un premier temps, une moins bonne ambiance que celle d’aujourd’hui, consacrer du temps au processus de recrutement, devoir négocier un budget avec mon N+1, justifier mon dossier auprès des RH, risquer de perdre ma crédibilité, consacrer du temps à la formation du nouveau venu etc. Valeurs : team spirit, équilibre vie privée-vie professionnelle, image.
3– Qu’est-ce que je pourrais perdre si je ne recrute personne ? Risque de burn-out au sein de l’équipe, clients insatisfaits, perte de clients, critique du management, fusion avec un autre département voire mon propre licenciement etc. Valeurs : efficacité, service, équilibre vie privée-vie professionnelle, team spirit, carrière, sécurité.
4+ Comment compenser ce que je perdrais si je recrute quelqu’un (1) et si je ne recrute personne (2) ? (1) Déléguer le recrutement, inclure mon équipe dans le processus de recrutement et la formation du nouveau venu, préparer un business-case. (2) Chercher une autre fonction au sein de la même société, changer d’entreprise
5 Lequel des deux scénarios de compensation me semble le plus pertinent ? A vous de répondre !
