Job Doctor

Advice for those short in the tooth on the job scene from those long in the tooth on the job scene

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Dear Job Doctor….how do I know which health insurance to choose? 

Dear Seeking-An-Answer-On-Health-Insurance: After you read all the promotional literature provided by the different health insurance companies thoroughly and after you attend the health fair and the sessions organized by HR, here's my suggestion: Put all the choices on a dartboard and toss a dart.  Insurances are all the same. Every year your premiums will go up, every year you will fight for brands vs generics, your insurance will become completely unaffordable when you are unemployed (and need it most), and you will not be able to fathom a medical bill even if you have a double PhD in science and mathematics.

P.S.  If you are currently unemployed or self-employed and are looking at the different health insurance options available to you, my post Jobless or Self-Employed in California? might be of help.

Dear Job Doctor…. what are Casual Fridays all about?

Dear What-are-Casual-Fridays-All-About: Good question – Casual Fridays originated as a way for suits to let their hair down one day of the work week.  In Silicon Valley, Casual Fridays have spilled over from Friday to Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Out here - in Silicon Valley - one might even make a case for instituting ‘Formal Mondays’. One day of the week when men look as spiffy as they did on their wedding day and women look as spiffy as they did on interview day. 

If you are enchanted by the Casual Friday perk, some of the professions you should not be considering are: Limo Driver, Maitre d' or Basketball Coach (in these professions, every day you will feel like you are going to your wedding). Don't think about becoming a doctor (like several members of my family) either. You will not be able to take off your white coat on any day of the week.

P.S. If you are still trying to figure out what job would be right for you, read my post “Can a Book about Job Hunting show You the Path Back to Yourself? ” And if you need resume help, you’ll find useful advice in my post “ Resume Tips from Fortune 500 companies”

Dear Job Doctor…..Is the CEO the most important person in the company?

Dear Clueless-About-The-Most-Important-Person-In-The-Company:  The most important person in the company is the one whom you report to, your boss woman or boss man.  Of all the advice in this column, this may be the most important to take note of and remember.

Dear Job Doctor….I would like to join a company or organization where I can work at for the rest of my life.  Is that possible? 

Dear Hoping-for Lifelong-Tenure: There was a time when I might have advised you to seek certain professions where this was the norm.  But based on what’s currently happening to the U.S. Postal Service, my confidence is shaken and I don't feel comfortable steering you in any particular direction.  If you want to join a company or organization where you can be at for the rest of your life, the best thing for you to do is to start one.  Become an entrepreneur.  When you don’t have kids and financial obligations is the best time to start.  But even if you do have kids and financial obligations, don’t let that stop you.  You can always bootstrap and seek angel investors.  If you have been between jobs more than once, and each time this has happened, you’ve thought about striking out on your own, give it a shot.

My post 6 Steps to Launching a Successful Business might help you with both information and inspiration.  And if you need to get your confidence up, playing the game suggested in my post How to Feel Good About Your Accomplishments When the Chips Are Down? might give you the needed shot in the arm.

Dear Job Doctor…..what should I expect at a performance review?

Dear What-Should-I-Expect-At-A-Performance-Review:  I asked someone who recently had both a kidney stone and a performance review which was less painful and he said “the kidney stone”  There you have it. Performance Reviews truthfully should be called Corporate Torture and if there’s one thing that should be done away with this minute in every single company on the face of the earth, it’s this practice.Do you reply e-mails too fast? Do you talk too loud?  Do you do not say bye at the end of the telephone call? Do you munch baby carrots loudly in your cube during the day?  Any of these things may come up at your performance review. Ouch! 

P.S. You cannot control what comes at you. You can only control how you respond to it.  Which is why I wrote the post Change Your Thinking Change Your Life.  And a year and a half ago, I also successfully learned to meditate.  Meditation slowly but steadily bullet-proofs your mind for all tough situations. Including situations that can do critical damage to your self-worth if you let them  - like the dreaded ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REVIEW. So you should toughen up with meditation before your first one or next one.

Want more advice from Job Doctor….ask away. The Job Doctor is here to answer.

P.S.  As always thanks for reading and wishing you a satisfying personal and professional 2012. May you grow not just in skills and experience, but learn new skills and tools to survive and thrive, those that will increase your store of wisdom and peace of mind.