A new job is like a new marriage
September 19th 2008 01:03
I remember my career adviser at uni used to compare job searching to dating, and that starting a new job is like starting a new marriage.
Maybe that's why I am a little afraid of getting married.
If you think about it, it makes sense. The first day at your job is exciting but scary. You are finally somebody, with a title, like "Support Engineer" or "Registered Nurse" just like getting the Mrs in front of your name (ok, so not as much impact on guys here) and you finally have a responsibility. You still have lots to learn and often learn things by trial and error and getting into bit trouble first before you learn your lesson.
You have this relationship with your boss where you still don't know where the water gets too deep, and also need to test out the personalities of your colleagues. Will you get along with them? Who is the nice one in the pack and who might just back stab you one day?
The honeymoon period is almost always the happiest yet the hardest. You are not quite yourself, but as everything is new and interesting, you take it all on with enthusiasm.
Then you kind of get over it and everything seems normal, and you can do everything without asking. You've eased into the swing of things and become quite content, but start to take things for granted.
Then, something major happens that might have upset you, and you go through a period of anxiety and major stress, wondering what you have just done with your life and why you didn't take the other offer instead. You begin to look else where, and start to lose concentration at your job.
A turn of events will happen that will temporarily bring you back on your feet, sort of like having a baby after a long initial period of marriage. You get promoted, or you get a new boss that seem to be better than the previous. You feel like you can give this another go. And the cycle starts again. Some people stay in the same job to the end of their working lives, others change jobs frequently in the hope to find something that they eventually want.
Yep. Sort of like relationship and marriages. So I guess the remedy for troubled or failing marriages might also work on a troubled or failing career?
Maybe that's why I am a little afraid of getting married.
If you think about it, it makes sense. The first day at your job is exciting but scary. You are finally somebody, with a title, like "Support Engineer" or "Registered Nurse" just like getting the Mrs in front of your name (ok, so not as much impact on guys here) and you finally have a responsibility. You still have lots to learn and often learn things by trial and error and getting into bit trouble first before you learn your lesson.
You have this relationship with your boss where you still don't know where the water gets too deep, and also need to test out the personalities of your colleagues. Will you get along with them? Who is the nice one in the pack and who might just back stab you one day?
The honeymoon period is almost always the happiest yet the hardest. You are not quite yourself, but as everything is new and interesting, you take it all on with enthusiasm.
Then you kind of get over it and everything seems normal, and you can do everything without asking. You've eased into the swing of things and become quite content, but start to take things for granted.
Then, something major happens that might have upset you, and you go through a period of anxiety and major stress, wondering what you have just done with your life and why you didn't take the other offer instead. You begin to look else where, and start to lose concentration at your job.
A turn of events will happen that will temporarily bring you back on your feet, sort of like having a baby after a long initial period of marriage. You get promoted, or you get a new boss that seem to be better than the previous. You feel like you can give this another go. And the cycle starts again. Some people stay in the same job to the end of their working lives, others change jobs frequently in the hope to find something that they eventually want.
Yep. Sort of like relationship and marriages. So I guess the remedy for troubled or failing marriages might also work on a troubled or failing career?
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