Please forgive the slightly strange analogy and stay with me on this one - I might be a genius or absolutely insane (I don't need to know which one you think! teehee). It seems fitting I am talking about composting as we enter into the harvest season which is typically focused on gratitude for the earth and setting the foundation for next years growth.
We’ve just got a hot composter and I am loving it. It’s basically a composter which creates its own heat which means the compost gets produced quicker. Here’s a few reasons we decided to buy:
· I love me a new project
· It makes me feel good knowing we are re-using waste for another means and not putting more stuff in landfill
· We spend a sh*t ton on compost each year
Now, how on earth can a hot composter be related to your career I hear you ask?! Well here we go:
You have to drip feed your waste = career progression involves small improvements over time
Rather than adding huge amounts of waste in one go, the composter does better by being fed little and often with your waste.
With career progression it can sometimes seem like it’s the big events whether that’s promotions, or changes or further studying – that make all the difference. Whilst those things are great and definitely aid progression if they are aligned correctly with your goals; it’s the small, consistent changes and habits that can see your career take off. This could be setting yourself a goal of having a coffee chat with someone new (whether in your organisation or externally) to help expand your network or creating a weekly habit of blocking out the last 30mins in your week to reflect on your achievements (big and small) and to plan your 3 priority must do’s for the start of the next week.
Multiple materials need to be added to your hot composter to create optimal compost = your unique experience is your USP
It’s not just one type of waste (veg cuttings, leftovers etc) that is needed to make good compost, you also need to add paper and woodchips.
Often when reflecting on our careers – we shy away from experience that differs from the ‘norm’. Feeling it takes away from where we are in our careers. On the contrary – it’s precisely our unique experience and skills garnered along the way that make us an asset to an organisation. Spend some time reflecting on all the jobs or activities/volunteering you have had so far in your career – noting down the 3 top skills you learnt and how that has shaped your career today. I’m sure you will be surprised with how much of a solid foundation these different things gave you. Even more so if they were experiences you struggled with or didn’t enjoy – quite often that is when we see the biggest growth and development.
I did a placement year as part of my university degree and spent that working for a travel company in their long haul department. Not only did this help me understand the industry for when I worked as a tech director in this space later on in my career, it also taught me resilience. I worked there in 2009 and the travel industry was really suffering the recession, so our hours and pay were cut. I had to be creative and inventive for ways we could increase sales and indirectly lead more experienced team members through projects.
Good compost takes time = career progression takes time
Although quicker than normal composting, hot composting takes time to become optimal and there is definitely some trial and error when making your first batch!
As a society it is drilled into us to want to progress throughout our careers constantly. This can also be driven by us feeling like we aren't at the stage of our career that we think we should be and comparing ourselves to others. If we aren’t on to the next thing we can often feel like a failure but what we all need reminding (me included) is that the right progression takes time.
Make sure you have clear goals and aspirations, as well as action plans to how you are going to get there. Fitting small tasks into your weekly to do’s makes things manageable and brings you sustainably closer to reaching your goals. Sometimes with career progression it’s about trusting the process – knowing you are doing everything you need to do, staying true to the path you are on and trusting that what is meant for you will happen.
So I hope in this newsletter armed you with some tips regarding career progression and that you are now a hot composter advocate and jumping on to google to order yours (LOLS).
I’d love to know in the comments what your favourite progression tip was?