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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Fachliteratur
- Sprache: Englisch
The best investment you can make is in yourself and your career
Sort Your Career Out: And Make More Money is your go-to guide for building a career that you love. Dream jobs don't just come along: you need to make them happen. And this is the book that will show you how, from creating the ultimate career strategy to getting paid what you're really worth. (Hint: It's not just about changing the font on your resume!) With tips and guidance from two of today's top money and career experts, you'll learn how to change jobs, secure a promotion, ask for a pay rise and much, much more.
Whether you're preparing for a job interview or you're looking to make a radical change, Sort Your Career Out has the smart advice you need for earning more and winning at work. Inside you'll find practical activities that will help boost your bankability and take you further, faster. Along the way, you'll also follow diverse case studies from real employees: people who have been there, done that, and figured out the way forward.
Sort Your Career Out: And Make More Money unpacks everything you need to:
- Establish your career mindset: define your purpose and unlock your skills and strengths
- Set concrete goals and create new opportunities for yourself
- Upskill with essential tips and templates for resumes, cover letters, interviews, networking, and more
- Know when to take risks and how to handle setbacks like burnout and unemployment
It's time to discover more career flexibility and achieve your long-term goals. With this must-read handbook, you'll be ready to move up, move on, and feel more fulfilled with what you do every day.
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Seitenzahl: 480
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023
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Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
how to read this book
The career car
Part I: Planning your career road trip
Part II: Hitting the road
Part III: Reaching the end of the road
Apply now
Stories from the community
Downloads and resources
So what next?
planning your career road trip
1 values: where it all begins
Sorting your career out starts with your values
Values keep you on the right career road
Uncovering your values
What are values?
Putting your values to work
How do I deal with a values conflict?
2 what's all this talk about mindset?
What is mindset?
Childhood will never leave you
My two apprenticeships
My own ‘rich dad’ experience
The value of a mentor
Mindset mentor
So what does it all mean?
3 more on mindset… this is not a tacky motivational seminar
My mindset categories
The four mindsets
My mindset hacks
4 strength and skills: harder, better, faster, stronger
Strengths and skills: The fuel in your career
Oh, give me strength!
Why do strengths and skills matter, and what are they?
Discover your strengths
How to talk about your strengths at work
Okay, but what about weaknesses?
The passion pit
Skilling it!
Stand out by building a unique mix of skills
From the standard to the stand out
Develop new skills
5 career risks: let's go offroad!
Risk in practice
Why you need to think like an investor
Risk and investing for beginners
Assessing your career risk
Risks, values, strengths and skills, and goals
My career risk spectrum
Keeping things tight
Career risks: The good, the bad and the ugly
hitting the road
6 i'll make my own opportunities, thanks
Do you own your career or does it own you?
Ten career habits that bring opportunities to your door
Creating career opportunities in a new industry
7 success and goals on your terms
Rethinking career goal‐setting
Success on your own terms
Your definition of success
Create your career goals
So, what's your goal?
8 how to nail your resume, interview and networking drinks
Cover letter and resume
The interview
Networking and LinkedIn
Landing that promotion
9 make more money (your new favourite hobby)
Is your income a result of market forces?
My advanced income quadrant
Blending parts of the advanced income quadrant
Side hustles
Let's talk about pay, baby!
10 could anything else go wrong in my career right now?
Coming to a career crossroads
Career crossroads 1: Changing careers
Career crossroads 2: Career crisis
Five steps to navigating a career crisis
Career crossroads 3: Burnout
Career crossroads 4: Redundancy and unexpected employment endings
reaching the end of the road
11 at the roundabout, leave your job (because it sucks)
You need an exit strategy
Have open discussions with your manager
Stay or go?
Resigning with grace
Mindset. Ahh, that ol’ chestnut
Reasons for leaving
Beware the counter offer
Think about the wins
The resignation process
where to from here?
A thank you
Index
End User License Agreement
List of Tables
Chapter 3
Table 3.1: examples of career cost–benefit analyses
Table 3.2: example of the impacts of a career change
Table 3.3: assess career‐based opportunities using a ‘fixed’ vs ‘growth’ min...
Chapter 4
Table 4.1: various core skills and their meanings
Table 4.2: building skills that make you stand out
Chapter 6
Table 6.1: career scenario planning
List of Illustrations
Chapter 3
Figure 3.1: my sound financial house
Chapter 4
Figure 4.1: the relationship between strengths, talent and skills
Figure 4.2: the 70‐20‐10 learning model as developed by the Center for Creat...
Chapter 5
Figure 5.1: a basic investing risk reward spectrum
Figure 5.2: the basic risk reward spectrum for blended portfolios
Figure 5.3: a typical example of investment risk being reduced as you age. T...
Figure 5.4: example of a risk spectrum
Figure 5.5: your career diving board
Figure 5.6: my career risk spectrum matrix
Figure 5.7: a career risk line
Chapter 9
Figure 9.1: Glen's advanced income quadrant
Figure 9.2: the advanced income quadrant compared to a typical award‐based r...
Figure 9.3: the pay rise request continuum
Chapter 10
Figure 10.1: the career crisis Wheel of Fortune
Guide
Cover
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Job Advertisement
how to read this book
Begin Reading
where to from here?
A thank you
Index
End User License Agreement
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First published in 2023 by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd
Level 1, 155 Cremorne St, Richmond Vic 3121
© Michelle Johnson and UrbanGhetto Pty Ltd 2023
The moral rights of the authors have been asserted
ISBN: 978‐1‐119‐89955‐6
All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the Australian Copyright Act 1968 (for example, a fair dealing for the purposes of study, research, criticism or review), no part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, communicated or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission. All inquiries should be made to the publisher at the address above.
Cover design by Jess Pearson
Cover design concept by www.askjasonknight.com
Back cover and candidate portrait photos: Caitlin Schokker
Front cover and internal image (money in the air): © Cammeraydave/Dreamstime.com
Car boot image: © DreamStockIcons/Shutterstock
P227: Live Laugh Love image: © Christal Steele/Shutterstock
Disclaimer
The material in this publication is of the nature of general comment only, and does not represent professional advice. It is not intended to provide specific guidance for particular circumstances and it should not be relied on as the basis for any decision to take action or not take action on any matter which it covers. Readers should obtain professional advice where appropriate, before making any such decision. To the maximum extent permitted by law, the authors and publisher disclaim all responsibility and liability to any person, arising directly or indirectly from any person taking or not taking action based on the information in this publication.
We acknowledge the Awabakal people, Traditional Custodians of the land on which we build our careers, and pay respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.
We extend that respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples who may read this book.
JOB ADVERTISEMENT
Career Book Authors — 2 positions vacant
Location: flexible
Pay: blood, sweat, tears and a packet of Tim Tams
Must be able to:
write lots of words
not
bore people to death with human resources (HR) jargon
help people maximise their career opportunities
use their (extensive) experience to deal with messy career problems, like how to work out if it’s just a bad day or if it’s a bad boss, or if it's a complete career crisis and it's time to make a big change, to go and study something new, to change industries, or maybe it’s time to go on a holiday to Tahiti *breathe*
help readers build a career they love
focus on practical over theory.
how to read this book
Well, we got the job! Guess we'd better write all those words now (hehe).
If you read the HR memo on the previous page, you know we're here to help you build a career you love.
So, let's do just that.
Glen in the driver's seat
Think of this book as your career handbook. It's just as much for career newbies as it is for those looking to optimise their current career situation. The system we've created is applicable to all career situations because it's driven by strategy first, and practical activities second. At the beginning of each chapter we've included a TL;DR (too long; didn't read) to provide a summary of what to expect in the chapter so you'll know before you dive in.
I write this as a business owner, an employer of people, someone who has had to change their own mindset and break away from societal norms. As Shell lives and breathes all things careers, has managed plenty of people of all ages and has almost seen it all, she will offer her own strategic and practical insights that will enable you to apply what you learn right away.
In my book, Sort Your Money Out & Get Invested (I will refer to it as SYMO moving forward), I shared an illustration of building your financial life like a house: starting with solid foundations before you worry about the walls like your lifestyle goals or investing. While SYMO could be read in any order, it is highly recommended that you read this book in chapter order.
I honestly believe this book is the prequel to SYMO as the best investment you can ever make is in yourself. That's investing into your mindset, your confidence, your health, your relationships and of course your career (the list does go on .… can you think of anything else?). The best investment return you'll likely make will be in your own career and ability to earn an income.
It is also so important that you're moving in the direction of a career you love. We all have bad days, so ask yourself: on balance, do you like your work or career? Whatever the answer is, this book will help you. If you love your career or job, you will be able to learn strategies and one percenters that will take you further, faster. If you love your career but hate your job, you will get the tools to make that move. If you have just left school or commenced university, this book will equip you with setting things up in the right order.
To get the most out of this, lean into the exercises, challenge your own thinking and write all over it. It's a workbook and a space for you to brain dump. Only feel guilty about writing all over this book if you have borrowed it from the library!
And, just as we have here, we will make it clear at the start of each chapter or section who is writing.
Shell in the driver's seat
This book was born out of a career crisis .… mine.
I'd worked in human resources (HR) for over a decade, mainly in large, not‐for‐profit organisations. After having my second baby, Bowie, I decided to quit my full‐time role leading an HR team, and start a new job as an HR specialist in a small business. Despite being in the same industry, it was a very different role from anything I'd done previously.
It was about 4 months in when I realised the job wasn't right for me. I'd always been such a confident and decisive person when it came to work. I was hosting a successful careers podcast. I was the person who solved everyone else's weird work problems. And yet here I was completely lost, stuck and confused.
I had no idea what the heck I was doing with my career. But I knew I couldn't stay where I was. So I quit my job.
No job lined up. No plan of where‐to next. No cards up my sleeve.
Well, except for one. I called my friend Glen James.
Shell: Hey, I quit my job.
Glen: Yeah right. What are you going to do now?
Shell: I'm winging it. I have no idea. I'll probably take a few months off to figure it out. Maybe do my own thing, freelance. Who knows?
Glen: *long pause* .… I've got an idea .… Let's write a book.
Shell: On what?
Glen: On careers. We'll call it Sort Your Career Out. The prequel to SYMO.
Shell: Hahaha. But, I'm unemployed and having a complete career meltdown right now.
Glen: Perfect time to write it.
Glen was right. It was the perfect time to write this book.
It was born out of a real‐life career crisis. I was the first beneficiary of the book. Through the process, I sorted my own career out. I can't wait for you to do the same.
Maybe you've picked up this book because you've got a career problem you're trying to solve right now. You want to land a promotion, need to earn more money or you're looking for a totally new career. Wherever you're at, we'll help you sort it out.
Over the years working in HR, and through the my millennial career podcast, I've helped thousands of people win at work and build a career they love.
This book is your career guide. Each chapter is jam‐packed with practical advice to help you clarify your strengths, brainstorm your goals and map out your next move. It isn't about finding a job that doesn't suck — we've got big goals — it's about building a career you love.
I'm excited to be a part of your journey as you Sort Your Career Out. Forget what everyone else is doing: this is about you, your life, your goals, your version of success.
The career car
Glen in the driver's seat
Many of us are visual learners and the educators out there understand this all too well. That is why I developed the ‘sound financial house’ to illustrate the importance of doing things in the right order. There is no point investing if you have not paid off your personal loan, nor if you have some goals in the short term that you need money for, as investments should be for the long term. Therefore, foundations are things like being consumer debt free.
Shell and I wanted to do a similar type of illustration for our careers and the best way to think about it is the concept of the ‘career car’. You park your career car next to your sound financial house. And just like you journey your way through your career, you head out on a career road trip. Driving off into your career is also what provides you with the money to bring back home to your sound financial house.
The best road trips require some planning. There are foundational parts to your career road trip you need to prepare for before you hit the road. You need to pack your bags, find your route, service your car and make sure you've got fuel ready to go.
This is part I of our approach: the strategic decisions you need to work through. What do you value? What's your mindset? What are your strengths and skills? What risks are you prepared for?
Once this stage is complete, we hit the road. This is part II of our approach: the tactical aspects of building your careers. We can drive forward, left, right, around the roundabout, backtrack, re‐route, u‐turn — there are so many directions we can go. These practical things are centred around building career opportunities, goal setting, mastery in resumes, interviews and networking. And getting that pay rise! But we also talk about tackling the more difficult aspects of your career journey, like career changes, career crises, burnout and redundancy. Learning how to process what's happened, get the car towed to a mechanic for repairs and get back on the road.
Then, in part III, Shell will walk you through how to know if it's time to leave where you are, and do it well.
The book is sectioned into these three parts, and it's best to read them in that order.
The importance of the sound financial house and the career car is that the logic can work at any age or in any situation. This isn't just for Millennials: this is for everyone who wants a career they love.
Here's a run‐down on the three parts.
Part I: Planning your career road trip
Preparing for your road trip is where any great journey begins — we have to start with your career strategy. By skipping this step we risk just changing the font on your resume and ending up in yet another job or career you hate. If your strategy isn't set to the right route, you'll end up in the middle of the desert. Again. These areas are the preparation you need to know yourself. Know what you're looking for in a career and have your career car refuelled and ready to go.
Values
Your values influence the way you like to work. They are a crucial aspect of building a career you love (and are hugely beneficial to understanding life outside of work too!). When we are not aligned with our values, our life and career can quickly get out of sync.
In chapter 1, you'll figure out your own values and reflect on your job, workplace and career to see how they align (and potentially change course, if needed). This may be the first time you have heard or considered values as part of your employment. Your values guide how you work, whether you are aware of them or not. They can help you make great career moves, and avoid the bad ones. We'll walk you through a step‐by‐step process to define your values.
Mindset
Nailing the mindset piece to your life and specifically your career and career goals will honestly change your life. In chapters 2 and 3, I will share some of my experiences and challenge you to assess your own mindset, and how it could be affecting your career. Mindset is the origin of a lot of our career problems.
Strengths and skills
Working to your strengths and building your skills means your chances of performing better in a role are much higher — you'll be aligned to the right kinds of careers and roles. Working to your strengths makes your job more engaging and energising, but often people don't know their unique strengths. By discovering them, you'll find your genius zone where you perform best. We'll also share how to build skills that make you stand out.
In chapter 4, Shell will help you uncover your strengths and develop your skills, so you can hit your goals.
Risk
Taking risks is an inherent part of your career journey. And maybe it's the reason you aren't where you would like to be in your career: the fear of risk. Usually our minds associate risk with loss — that taking a risk means that loss could occur. Either financially, physically, emotionally or in any other area you can think of. However, this isn't always true, and we'll highlight that with risk comes the reward you've been hoping for.
In chapter 5, Shell and I will help you prevent the risks of owning too much real estate in your head, and we'll help you reframe how you assess risks (whether they're ‘good risks’ or ‘bad risks’). We'll look at taking a risk with your career because it's a muscle that many people seldom use, and it could be the only thing preventing you from finding a career you love.
Part II: Hitting the road
Once we've nailed your strategy in part I it's time to hit the road! We get super practical here and focus on the things you can do to make your career journey meet your definition of success.
Creating career opportunities
Want big career opportunities to come to you? Here we talk about the habits that create career opportunities. It's the practices you do on repeat that bring opportunities to you. In chapter 6, Shell will outline the key habits that act as an opportunity magnet. Do these things and watch the doors swing open.
Success and career goals
So many people measure their own career success based on what other people think. This is a sure way to end up in a career you hate. You need to define what success means in your life, and it may not mean always moving ‘up’. And that's okay. In fact, that's perfect. We don't want you living your life according to someone else's goals. Your life and career goals need to be yours and yours alone. This is your journey, not someone else's.
In chapter 7, Shell will help you tease out what on earth your goals actually are! She digs deep and prompts you to own your career with both hands on the wheel.
Resumes, interviews and LinkedIn
In chapter 8, Shell will outline exactly what you need to include in your resume, and everything you need to save for the script of your biopic (no life stories please). She will explain the recruitment process, what to expect and how to prepare and practise now. And she'll highlight why networking is a thing, what it achieves for you and others, and how to master it (in person and online using LinkedIn).
Making more money
Doesn't everyone want a pay rise?! In chapter 9, I will highlight the key ways you can make more money by increasing your earnings, and how to approach your manager for the pay rise you have earned with your performance track record. I'll also spend a bit of time talking about negotiation from a macro level and Shell will share her top tips for how to ask for a pay rise.
Career crises, career changes, burnout and redundancy
The number of people who listen to our podcasts and have hit one of these speed bumps in their career is huge. If you've hit one of these, then take heart: listeners of the my millennial money and my millennial career podcast community are right there with you. Shell explains what to do if you find yourself on the side of the road, waiting for the career tow truck to turn up, along with some great community testimonies which show you that you are not alone and you will find a way forward.
Part III: Reaching the end of the road
So you've reached the end of the road in your job. It happens. Sometimes it's a toxic workplace or it's just not the place you feel is right for you, right now. Shell will walk you through how to know whether it is in fact time to leave your job, and how you can develop an exit strategy that allows you to depart on the best possible terms.
Apply now
Shell in the driver's seat
In each chapter you'll see some ‘Apply now’ sections. These are designed as points of reflection and exercises for getting super practical and taking charge of your career. It's all well and good to listen to what we have to say, but it means nothing without action. So warm up your muscles, turn your brain on and prepare to workshop your own situation.
Stories from the community
We've also harnessed the power of the my millennial money and my millennial career communities by including first‐person accounts from listeners of the shows. People who have been in your shoes and found a way forward. We love our community, and they love us back by sharing their experience, guidance and advice. So please enjoy what they also have to share! We will also make comments on these stories.
Downloads and resources
Throughout the book we'll provide some additional content that you can download by visiting links connected by QR codes at the end of some chapters. There are templates, further reading and links that can help you journey through the stages of this book.
So what next?
With the help of the words we've written, and the experience of the my millennial money community, we want you to be able to prepare your career strategy, before mastering the practical things that will help you craft a career that you'll not only love, but thrive in — and give you the best shot to make more money, if this is a goal of yours!
Get in. Buckle up. And hold on.
Let's go!
planning your career road trip
1values: where it all begins
tl;dr
Determining what you
value
is critical to building a career you love.
Often if something feels ‘off’ at work, it's a values issue.
You need your values and career to align: if things are out of alignment, it gets painful, quickly.
In some cases, communicating a values issue with your manager or boss can prevent the need to look for a new job altogether.
We provide a long list of values to help you decide which are relevant to you and your career.
Shell in the driver's seat
I hate small talk. The label ‘chit‐chat’ captures the drudgery of the act perfectly and it doesn't help that I'm woeful at these conversations. I forget to ask the socially acceptable ‘ease‐in’ questions. The truth is, I don't care what you're watching on Netflix. And I'm sure as hell not interested in your weekend workout routine. Zero care factor. I want to know the deep things in life. What are your big regrets? When do you feel most energised? Oh, and are you still using those breathing exercises your therapist gave you?
Any job where I have to make small talk for extended periods of time is probably not going to work well for me.
I was at my friend's engagement party a few months back and, like at most parties, it's customary to engage in tedious small talk for hours on end. I checked the time. Ugh! It was only 7.30 pm. I'd already exhausted my repertoire of go‐to questions. It was time to park myself at the grazing table. No‐one will expect me to talk with a mouth full of camembert, right? Or at least, that was my plan, until I spotted my friend Beck breezing through the door. I saw my moment. She was my escape from monotony. I made a beeline for her.
Beck and I hadn't seen each other in months. And just as she went to say hello, I jumped in with a banger: ‘Hey, I heard you burnt out and quit your job. What happened?’
Beck's eyes went wide. She laughed, which sounded more like a choked kind of cough. Yeah. Not the best lead‐in. But within minutes, we were into a full‐on deep and meaningful about how her desire for achievement led to fatigue, exhaustion and, ultimately, burnout. She shared her story of recovery and told me about the boundaries she's put in place to rebuild her health.
Deep, authentic conversations are the ones that really matter to me. They're the ones we remember. They peel back the facade, exposing the raw truth and insight hidden beneath. I guess that's why I'm drawn to them. Why waste time on shallow small talk when you can go deep?
In the same way conversations can skim the surface, our careers can hover in superficiality. I've seen many people stay in the shallow end. They focus on the external aspects of their career. The job titles, the money, the qualifications. Of course, these things matter, but they're just the surface — the exterior. It's easy to linger here, in the shallows where it's comfortable. But in choosing to do so we risk missing out on the deep things within us that we actually want in our lives. The deep end is where the real action is. So that's where we begin.
In this chapter, we'll dive into the deep end of your career. Instead of focusing on what you do for work (another cringeworthy small‐talk go‐to), we'll focus on who you are and what you value.
These values are the beliefs that guide and inform you in your life. We'll align these values with the other key aspects of your career road trip planning as we continue through this book. Screw surface. Dive in!
Sorting your career out starts with your values
It's Monday morning and you're driving to work. You've downed two coffees already, but there's zero buzz to speak of. To say that you're dreading your day would be a huge understatement. Your boss freaks you out with their fake smiles, whisper‐shouting and passive‐aggressive feedback.
Your teammates are as miserable as you, and no amount of happy hour beers can improve the vibe. To top it all off, the ‘just checking to see where this is up to?’ emails in your inbox have you considering throwing a u‐turn and driving home to bed.
Except you don't, because you have no idea what you want to do with your career. So you keep driving and keep hoping that this week will be different.
Sound familiar? We've all been there.
Tick the boxes that apply:
You're in a job where you're not challenged or growing but you don't know what to do next.
You've spent $40 000+ on study only to end up in a career you hate.
You work in a toxic culture but you're afraid to put yourself out there for another role.
You've seen a role advertised that really excites you, but you're not quite sure if you have what it takes to do it.
You work for a terrifying boss who could star in their very own true‐crime podcast.
You're fresh out of uni or college and have zero idea what to do now.
You've returned from parental leave and realised you want a change.
You know you need a new challenge, but you're afraid of rejection and clam up in interviews.
You desperately need a change, but you're scared out of your mind to make a change.
First, I want you to feel validated. These are common problems people face in their career. But just because they're common, doesn't mean you should accept them.
You deserve a career you love. I'm going to repeat that in case you skim read that sentence:
You deserve a career you love.
And no, we're not saying your career will be easy. Any good career has its challenges, its share of highs and lows. But overall, your career should be energising, fulfilling and meaningful. Unfortunately, many people settle for less.
Values keep you on the right career road
I looked down at my phone. There were three missed calls from Hayley and a text message: ‘Shell, I just quit my job. I need to talk to you. Call me when you're free.’
Hayley, one of my clients, was running a large communications team in a fast‐growing business. She's a confident, high‐energy, vibrant person. But her work seemed to drain her spark. She was feeling unmotivated, depleted and frustrated. After years of ignoring how her job was impacting her life, it finally caught up with her.
I called her back and she answered the call on the first ring. ‘Hey Shell, I don't have much time, but I'd love your advice. I have to start applying for jobs ASAP. Could you review my LinkedIn and resume for me?’
My answer? ‘No.’
Hayley was in a tough situation. She'd quit her job without having lined up the next gig. And in high‐pressure situations like these, it's tempting to go straight to quick fixes. We look for the easiest solution (i.e. getting a new job ASAP), but it's not always the right one.
When you're facing career problems, you might feel the urge to jump straight onto LinkedIn and find your next opportunity. You start googling how much you can be paid elsewhere, hoping that if you get more money, you will magically feel happier at work. Maybe you distract yourself from the underlying problems that got you here by finding a new course to study.
Let's be clear: these are not bad things. I mean, who doesn't want more money or to learn new things? The problem occurs when we look for quick fixes without doing the deep work first.
When Hayley reached out, she was in crisis mode. She was focused on the immediate problem and finding a short‐term solution. While she was in that headspace, she wasn't able to look at her career strategically. It was like she had her destination in mind: get another job. But no clue how to get there.
She needed to take time to slow down. To breathe and go back to her career strategy. Before she started applying for new jobs, she needed to take time to reflect on what wasn't working for her in her current role, so she could avoid it in her next role.
On your career road trip, you need a map of where you want to go. It's a direction you can follow time and time again whenever you want to change things up or need to remind yourself of where you want to be heading. If you've started to turn off course, a map will bring you back.
That's what our values do for us: they're the key element that brings us back on track with what we really want.
Uncovering your values
Knowing your values sounds simple in theory, but many people struggle to identify their values. Sometimes we don't realise what our values are until they are challenged, or aren't being met.
Think about a tough situation you've gone through at work. And no, I'm not talking about the annoying things that happen in every workplace, like when Joel parked in your favourite car park again (but also, please stop that immediately, Joel). I'm talking about the critical moments. Often, there's a ‘values conflict’ at the heart of our challenging career experiences. And it's in these moments that you figure out your values.
Here's an example.
Luke got a big promotion into a director of accounting role. He'd worked his butt off to get to this point. The new role came with some decent perks. He got a $45 000 salary increase, big bonuses and some exciting new responsibilities. It was all the things he was looking for. There was just one catch. It came with a new manager, Abbie. And *spoiler alert*, Abbie was going to become a big problem.
At first, Abbie seemed like a pretty cool boss. She was dynamic, had a fun sense of humour and had loads of experience. In the interview, she spoke about the endless career opportunities at Luke's fingertips. It sounded like the dream job. Luke jumped at the offer.
But five months into the role, Luke wasn't sleeping. He was working late every night and most weekends. And he couldn't switch off from work.
In the early days, it seemed like the ultimate career move. So how did Luke end up here?
In the first month of starting, Luke noticed strange dynamics in his and Abbie's working relationship. Abbie would express her complete trust in Luke, but then closely scrutinise each decision Luke made. A few months in, Luke overheard Abbie criticising his work to other team members. But Abbie wouldn't share her feedback with him directly. Luke was already irritated, but it only got worse when he watched her take credit for the team's wins in front of other leaders.
Within a matter of months, Luke's confidence had completely deteriorated. He was constantly worried about what Abbie would think of his work. The lack of trust caused him to question every decision he made. It was a painful but important experience. It's where Luke uncovered his values. He learned the non‐negotiables needed for him to thrive at work.
Luke's first value was ‘trust’. It was not enough to simply be told by a manager ‘I trust you’. Luke needed to experience trust through action. He wanted independence and autonomy to deliver his work as he saw fit. Abbie's controlling style and failure to provide direct feedback was a breach of trust for Luke.
The second value for Luke was ‘recognition’. Luke wanted the team to be recognised for the work they delivered. He wanted his team's creativity, wins and progress to be acknowledged and respected. Each time Abbie took credit for their work, he felt devalued, undermined and sidelined.
What we see in Luke's story is a values conflict. Luke's values were not met because of Abbie's management style. And when there is a clash of values, problems follow.
So what did Luke do from here?
Luke identified the gap between his values and his work environment. Once he clarified what wasn't working for him he met with Abbie to share his values and communicate what wasn't working for him in the role. He articulated the changes he needed to thrive at work.
Ultimately, he was evaluating whether the values conflict could be resolved before making any decisions, like resigning.
Communicating honestly about your values is essential. While it's daunting to have this kind of conversation with your manager, it can be a catalyst for positive change, or help you to determine if it's time to move on.
What can we learn from Luke's story? As Luke began to understand his values, he was able to articulate what wasn't working for him and identify the changes that needed to occur.
What are values?
Now that we know why values matter, let's clarify what we mean by career ‘values’. There are a lot of definitions out there. But to keep it simple, we think of values as the ‘non‐negotiables’ to you in your life. They are deeply held ideals, or the beliefs that matter to you personally. They shape how you live and how you work, and influence the type of work you love doing.
My four values are:
Growth
.
I need to be continually growing and learning at work. I want to feel challenged and stretched in my job. If I'm not challenged, I get bored quickly and become disengaged in the job or work I'm doing. My value of growth has meant that taking a step back into a role with less responsibility or less challenge doesn't work for me.
Autonomy
.
Over time, I've realised how important autonomy is to me. I want to work when I want, where I want, how I want. My family is my priority and so having autonomy enables me to do school pick‐ups and be at important family events. Learning this about myself has been very helpful in my career decision making. It led me to start my own consulting business because my version of autonomy was better suited to self‐employment.
Fun
.
When work is boring, I feel like I am dying a slow and painful death. That means fun at work is non‐negotiable. Fun fact: HR is hilarious because people are weird. It's a career filled with fun, drama and stranger‐than‐fiction moments. My desire for fun and a bit of weirdness is what drew me to this industry, and it's what's kept me here.
Authenticity
.
I have an amazing BS radar. That means I want my workplace to keep it real, say it straight and tell the truth. At times, when I've worked in a team that has felt fake or inauthentic, it has caused me to feel anxious or unsettled. If I haven't been able to resolve the clash of values, I've ended up opting out.
Glen's comments on values
Values are hugely personal and I'd imagine every single person has their own values based on where they grew up, how they grew up, their influences, their exposure to basic life needs and their chemical makeup.
In my own life I am acutely aware that in the scheme of the universe I am not here but for the blink of an eye, if that. So given this fact, why would I want to put up with rubbish, toxic middle management (hi), being told what to do all the time or not having a sense of my own destiny? Sure, there is a bit of a control freak in me and for those who also live in their heads — like I do — it might be easy to fall into these deep thought patterns.
But ultimately for me, my values are really a reflection of who I am. I say what I mean and mean what I say. Let me build my own life and destiny my way. With this comes risk, which I am accustomed to, and that's why when we talk about values, risk may be part of this discussion and is so important to acknowledge.
In my book Sort Your Money Out, I talked about LOOT (life on own terms) as a differentiation from a money movement out of the United States called FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early). I challenged the notion of working at a job you don't love for a long period of time, grinding away to amass wealth to then retire early from that job. I believe we can live life on our own terms now. By ‘now’, I mean applying the teachings and thought starters in this book and putting a plan in place to get you moving.
Living LOOT does not mean you need to be self‐employed or an entrepreneur. It is just being aware that you are in fact intentional with your life, career and vocation, ensuring these things align with your values. If you value security, a 9‐to‐5 government job could in fact be like living in heaven for you, whereas when I compare that against my own value set it is more like living in hell. The key here is to be aware of who you are and what you value, and then work out what you want to do. Wherever you land on the value or risk matrix of life, you still need to be in the driver's seat and not a passenger.
My top four values:
Autonomy.
I work best when I'm in control: my personality is one that needs to be in the driver's seat. I see an opportunity and I feel the need to go hard at it. That's part of the reason I chose to become a business owner: I operate best when I can make the calls. I guess you can say LOOT for me!
Flexibility.
I work best when I have the power to control how, when and where I work. Sometimes it's in a café over breakfast and a coffee; sometimes it's at home in the evenings. I need to be in a settled headspace to work effectively and those times of feeling settled for me aren't at a consistent time of day or place: I need the power to choose when I drop into the deep work zone.
Honesty.
I am a truth seeker — always. Honesty helps me understand where everything and everyone stands so as a team I know for sure we're moving forward in the right direction. This is also a weakness of mine. In fact, in the past (a steep learning curve) during some business negotiations, people have said certain things that have not been true, and I've walked away disappointed. Not everyone says something and means it — I can't assume everyone is like me on this. So to protect this weakness of people not dealing in the same value currency as me, I need to make sure things are in writing (which is best practice anyway!).
Communication.
I'm a strong believer that communication is often the problem and solution. It's one of the most useful tools to keep going at goals at a good pace, so for me, clear and concise communication is a critical aspect of my business and my team. ‘Just tell me how it is!’
apply now
Now that you know why values are important, and how they work in your career, it's time to choose your own values. Here, you'll work out what you value most from your job, workplace and career.
There are over 100 values in the list that follows for you to choose from. We know it can be overwhelming to pick your values when you're looking at a long list. You might be thinking ‘all of them are important’. Yeah, they are, but not all of them are important to you.
Look for words that jump out at you. Think about what is non‐negotiable for you to thrive at work. Look for those ‘must‐haves’ in your life, work and career.
Values
Achievement
Adventure
Ambition
Authenticity
Autonomy
Balance
Beauty
Boldness
Bravery
Care
Career
Challenge
Change
Clarity
Collaboration
Commitment
Communication
Community
Compassion
Confidence
Connection
Consistency
Courage
Creativity
Curiosity
Determination
Discipline
Drive
Empathy
Encouragement
Entrepreneurship
Equality
Excellence
Execution
Fairness
Faith
Family
Financial security
Flexibility
Forgiveness
Freedom
Friendship
Fun
Generosity
Grace
Gratitude
Grit
Growth
Happiness
Harmony
Health
Home
Honesty
Hope
Humility
Humour
Inclusion
Independence
Individualism
Influence
Initiative
Innovation
Integrity
Intuition
Job security
Joy
Justice
Kindness
Knowledge
Leadership
Learning
Legacy
Lifestyle
Love
Loyalty
Minimalism
Money
Openness
Optimism
Patience
Peace
Perseverance
Pleasure
Poise
Popularity
Positivity
Power
Presence
Quality
Recognition
Relationship
Reliability
Reputation
Respect
Responsibility
Risk‐taking
Safety
Service
Simplicity
Speed
Spiritualism
Status
Strategy
Strength
Structure
Success
Team
Tenacity
Time
Trust
Understanding
Vision
Wealth
Wellbeing
Willingness
Wisdom
List eight values that you feel resonate with you. These are the things you want to have in your career and job.
Would you rather …
Now, let's start to narrow it down. It's time to play a game of ‘Would you rather … ’. This will help you to shortlist your values and select your final four career values.
How to play:
Review the eight values you've listed; group similar values next to each other to help you compare them.
From there, you can narrow it down by picking which one is more important to you.
It's important to reduce the number of values as it helps you clarify the things that are essential. Your job or career won't always be able to meet every value, but you want to be clear on the most crucial ones, in order to have them met.
Would you rather …
e.g. Authenticity
e.g. Integrity
My final four values
Now list your final values and outline why they matter to you, or what each value looks like when it's being met.
Example
Influence: to me, this means that I get to influence and contribute to key decisions and help shape the direction of the team, business or strategy. I'm listened to and heard by the organisation I work in, and my input is valued and brings about change.
Putting your values to work
If you love your job, employer and career, you've found a values match. This is worth celebrating. If you are looking for a change or a new opportunity, or you're not loving your current job, this is where your values become crucial.
Your values will guide you and lead you down the right path. But before you make any decisions or pursue a change, you need to weigh up the opportunity against your values. This isn't just true for the big decisions, like ‘should I leave physiotherapy to become an engineer?’ Our values matter in both the big changes and the small changes.
Maybe you've been offered a 3‐month higher duties role while your manager is on extended leave. Or a 12‐month temporary role has come up in a different department and your manager thinks you should go for it. Before you say yes, stop and consider the opportunity. Weigh it against your values. Even when it seems like an easy or natural decision, it's important to evaluate the opportunity against your values to check for any potential conflicts.
Before accepting a new job
Use these simple steps to weigh up a new opportunity:
Review the job advertisement, core duties and any information available about the business
.
Ask yourself:
How do the duties in this job match my values?
What areas in the job don't align with my values?
What parts of the job will energise me?
What parts of the job will drain my energy?
How does the business brand or values align with my values?
What areas might be a deal‐breaker for me?
During an interview, ask the interviewer questions that relate to your values
.
Here are some examples that may help you design your questions:
One of my values is learning. That means I love to try new things so that I can be continually growing and challenging myself. What are the learning and development opportunities in this role?
I love spending time with my family. What does flexible work look like for employees here?
Being trusted in a role is important to me. It helps me to thrive at work. Can you tell me what trust looks like in this role?
Having autonomy helps me do my best work. What level of discretion will I have over my goals and work?
I thrive at work when I get to have an influence over the strategic direction and goals. What level of influence does this role have in the strategic activities?
Will my values change over time?
The short answer is yes. Your values do change over time. Life changes can cause your values to shift. However, I'd argue they don't change very often. For me, between the ages of 18 to 28 years my values were fairly consistent and aligned with being in the early part of my career. They were ‘growth’, ‘fun’, ‘authenticity’ and ‘achievement’.
After having kids, my values changed. Achievement became less important. Instead, I wanted more autonomy. The need to have ownership over how I worked became essential to me. I wanted complete autonomy so I could work in a way that suited my family.
So, it's worthwhile reviewing the list of values every few years and reflecting on them when you're considering making a change.
Asher, 31
Central Coast, NSW
I left school and found myself in the general workforce, just doing the things that I thought everyone did. I ended up getting a job with a national company in their head office and was doing a 3‐hour total commute each day. Soon enough, early rises, constant travelling and consistent late nights became normal and I slowly entered the rat race.
I worked my way through the ranks, finally ending up in a well‐paid people management role. The money was amazing, but I soon realised that it came at a cost. The role and the environment that surrounded it were not something I could learn to enjoy — even after 12 months of trying. As a result, I began experiencing anxiety and increasingly felt that I wasn't where I wanted to be.
I knew I needed to get out, so I made the decision to leave that world and do something completely different. I needed to spend more time doing things I loved and one thing that's always been important in my life is music — I'm a bass player. So I found a job in a local music shop, a complete shift in the kind of work I'd been doing, but one where my responsibilities weren't suffocating me. I was close to home and I was doing something I cared about.
Changing to a role that offers far less money might not make much sense to many, but I now look forward to work each day and I get to spend more time at home with my family.
I decided that my quality of life is more important than money and have not regretted my decision since.
Asher knew something was up. He was experiencing a clash in values. With a bit of time and assessment he figured out his non‐negotiables and the values that truly mattered to him in his life (not just his work), and he took proactive steps to build his career around those values.
How do you know if you have a values conflict?
Not every work conflict and problem relates to your values. It's important to work out whether you're dealing with a clash of values or if it's one of those normal (albeit irritating) work issues found in every workplace.
The following examples will help to demonstrate the types of values conflicts you might experience:
Annoying work issue:
Josh is playing his Foo Fighters Greatest Hits playlist without headphones because he thinks it helps the whole team get into a state of flow (ummm, sorry Josh, it's not working for me).
Values conflict:
you value flexibility and choice in where, when and how you work. You want the option to work from home or a café or the train. And, you want to work hours that suit your personal life. But your workplace has just announced that all employees have to work from the office 80 per cent of the week.
Annoying work issue:
your manager is slow to respond to your queries and emails, and sometimes forgets to get back to you.
Values conflict:
you value inclusion and want all team members to feel they belong. But your team is cliquey and the boss fosters an ‘us vs them’ culture, pitting team members against each other.
Annoying work issue:
your teammate is a loud talker, louder typer and even louder eater and it's equal parts irritating and gross.
Values conflict:
you value kindness and care, but the organisation you're working in tolerates bullying, gossip and cutthroat behaviour from its employees.
The difference between an ‘annoying work issue’ and a ‘values conflict’ is defined by impact. Is the problem something you can address, work through or compartmentalise? Or is it pervasive and systemic — that is, an issue that's not easily resolved? Is it the type of problem that impacts your health? Does it keep you up at night or cause your engagement, performance and motivation to decline?
