AKA How to Move Beyond a Crappy Job

A lot of us get frustrated when we want to do work on a level of 10 (while we’re stuck doing work at a level of 1).  In this video I give you a suggestion I’ve learned from experience about how to make that level 1 work suck less.

(This is a guest post by Kristi Daeda. Enjoy!)

It could be, but only if you keep an eye on where the field is moving rather than where it’s been.

When I made the move to HR, I did it because I wanted to make the organization more effective from its foundation — the people and practices that made up the company. I did it because I believed that stronger management, clearer communication, and better employee support would make for a better place to work and stronger business results.

I didn’t do it so that I could organize the holiday party, or photocopy employee benefit enrollment packets, or do the management work–discipline, coaching, recognition–that the managers didn’t want to do. Continue Reading

Today I have a ranty post inspired by an email from an anonymous reader. Let’s call him Ranty to preserve his current position (sad as it may be).

Update: Krista Francis of Optimistic Workplace has written a helpful set of posts for Ranty. Part 1 is here and Part 2 is here. Be sure to check them out!

The Life of a Flunkie

My job is horrible. I took a job with the expectation that I would move up to more responsibility within a few months. My supervisor originally made it clear that he wants to make sure my talents and skills are utilized to build up the company and our department. It’s been almost a year now, and I still come in every day and do the same sucky stuff as always.

Most of my time is spent sorting, organizing, and filing papers. Yes, I know it needs to be done, but I have a degree. I have ideas and the enthusiasm to pursue them. Well, I had the enthusiasm to pursue them. When I started this job, I worked on little improvements left and right. I spent time outside work thinking of ways to help my office and my organization to get better. Continue Reading

I’ve been pondering a post on interns by Matt Cholerton from Everyone Hates HR, and I have some questions. I am very curious about the use of HR interns. I’m relatively young in my HR career, and I often think back and wish I had some sort of experience as an HR intern. I’d like to delve into the topic of HR interns and HR internships, but I’d like to know a bit more about your experience.

In my (totally unqualified) opinion, I think that established pros should be actively seeking relationships with HR students and entry level HR professionals in order to provide job opportunities through internships. This might be absolutely crazy, but I can still remember my job search. It was Continue Reading

If you’re a fan of Fistful of Talent (I made it into the top 1 zillion blogs over there at some point or another. Boo-ya!), then you may have seen the recent FOTV video where Kris Dunn, AKA the HR Capitalist, gave his rules for new HR professionals to succeed. While he had to be succinct in the video, I had the opportunity to discuss it with him in person recently. He reiterated his points and made sure that I understood completely where he was coming from. His main ideas are in bold, and my own commentary follows each point.

Know HR and Execute

If you’re going to build some credibility as a new HR professional, then you’re going to have to prove that you know your stuff. If you are a dunce when it comes to HR matters, then no amount of passion or people skills will get people to follow your lead. If you have to take some classes, get your certification, or just do more in the area of career development, don’t let anything stand in your way from being knowledgeable in the HR arena.

Have an opinion. (passion=credibility)

Too many HR professionals are afraid to put their foot down and stick to their guns. If you want to show people that you’re a wishy-washy, spineless drone, then don’t ever take a stand on anything. And let me know how that goes for you. Probably not well.

Another point that he made in the video was that passion equals credibility. It was a quick comment mentioned in passing, but it was the phrase that struck me the hardest. Passion equals credibility. Is that really true for a new HR professional? If I’m passionate about something, does that mean that I’m automatically credible? I can’t say that it will always be true, but I could make the case that if you’re sufficiently passionate about a certain topic (HR, perhaps?), then you would certainly be credible as well.

Communicate in multiple ways

All too many of my generational brethren are completely incapable of expressing themselves. Whether it’s face-to-face, written, or just verbal communication, each has a definite impact on your ability to succeed as a new HR professional. Know how to express yourself verbally, nonverbally, and in the written form. It will make an amazing difference. I’ve always written fairly well, but once I started writing on a daily basis, I realized just how much better my overall communication skills had become.

So, if you’re a new HR professional, and you’re looking for some tips on how to be successful, then I think you should be focusing on these items at the very least. I think you’d be surprised at how much of a difference it will make in your own career. And if you have another rule for new HR professionals, then please drop it in the comments below. I’m collecting these for an upcoming project, and I’d love to have more input.