You hate your job. There’s nothing worse than spending 40-plus hours a week doing something that you really hate. Before you plan a change, evaluate the situation. Do you loathe the work itself, or is your overbearing boss too much to take? Are you really unhappy because of the work itself, or do you wish you could wave a magic wand and send your annoying co-workers up in a cloud of smoke?

Statistics show that people tend to leave positions not because of bad jobs, but to flee bad bosses. Make sure you aren’t allowing a difficult supervisor or co-worker to dictate your career trajectory. Think about how you can improve your relationship with your boss. Unfortunately, you are likely to encounter unsavory colleagues and employers in any field.

Your hours are too long. You yearn for flexibility, but your employer demands 24/7 dedication. It would seem that a career change may be the answer, but unfortunately, you may find that starting over in a new career puts you at the bottom of the proverbial food chain. As the “new guy,” you could be tasked with weekends on call and long hours. Most employers expect longer hours from their workers due to layoffs and a need to produce more with less. While a shift may help avoid certain unfavorable characteristics of your current career, make sure you aren’t jumping from the frying pan into the fire. Research new options carefully to be sure you won’t be trading one problem for another.

You can’t get a raise or a promotion. It’s tempting to plan to throw in the towel on an entire career if you’ve hit the earning ceiling or if the money and recognition aren’t worth the effort. Is a new career really the answer, or might some key changes in your current job put you in a position to win the praise and raise you seek? Have you been coasting along while new team members push ahead with new ideas? It’s probably a lot easier to shift your attitude and work ethic than it is to carve out an entire new career. Make sure you think carefully before trading in what you have for something new.

You crave predictability and consistency at work. It can be unsettling when new requirements, policies and procedures come down the pike every other week. If you hate uncertainty, it’s tempting to dream about a career where you can do your job and the rules don’t change, but it’s not realistic.

You think a new career could be more exciting. You’ve been doing the same thing for years; wouldn’t making a change put a new spring in your step? It might. However, many career changers are disappointed to learn that they bring many of the same negative feelings about work to their new careers. Even a new career becomes old in time. Before planning your career shift, make sure you think about what you need to change in your life and consider the various opportunities to incite that change. For example, if your job isn’t challenging, maybe you could spend your extra energy creating a freelance business to bring in extra money on the side. Or, if you’re not entrepreneurial, identify some activities you’ve always wanted to try and join a club with other aficionados.

Work isn’t the only place where you can make changes in your life. Before you jump over the fence to walk on the greener grass, be sure to consider other alternatives and clarify your expectations. You don’t want to be surprised to learn that every lawn has some weeds, or the pot of gold isn’t always at the end of the rainbow.

Have you decided a new job or career is in order? Get my free white paper: 5 Mistakes Preventing You From Landing a Job This Week 

Looking for more info about how to decide if a career pivot is good for you? Join me for a Mashable Twitter chat TODAY – August 10th – at 2 pm Eastern time, 11 am Pacific. Follow @MashBusiness and join in using the hashtag #BizChats.

Other experts on the chat include: Adam Smiley Poswolsky, millennial career expert, author of The Quarter-Life Breakthrough; Jenny Blake, career and business coach, author of PIVOT: The Only Move That Matters is Your Next One (Sept. 2016); Marc Miller, career pivot expert, author of Repurpose Your Career: A Practical Guide for Baby Boomers; and Ryan Rhoten, business leader, product manager, and host of The BRAND New You podcast.

Follow @MashBusiness and join in using the hashtag #BizChats. We look forward to hearing your questions.

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How can you find a role that is a good fit for you and your personality? With the advice to “do what you love” and “follow your passion” abounding online, many strive to match their vocations with their personal interests in an effort to be happier at work. Conventional wisdom suggests that people who are good at and enjoy what they do – while they may be in the minority – are happier and more successful in their jobs.

How can you be one of those people? Philip Hardin is the CEO of YouScience, a scientific, online profile that measures aptitudes and interests and helps students set a direction for their educations and careers. He believes the key to taking control of your career path is finding a career at the intersection of what youâ€re good at (aptitudes), what you love to do (interests) and what the market needs you to do (opportunity). These are his tips to help identify your path:

1. Understand your aptitudes. Hardin defines aptitudes as the foundation for skill development. He asks: “Have you noticed how easy it is for you to acquire skills in certain areas, while in others – no matter how hard you try – you end up average?” Understanding your natural aptitudes allows you to play to your strengths and focus on those areas that will give you a true competitive advantage. “Everyone could use a competitive advantage in this tight job market, but every career requires a different blend of natural aptitudes.

Itâ€s easy to assess your basic skills. For example, are you a strong communicator, or are you good at math? Read job descriptions carefully and map your skills to what the employers want. Some skills are a little less obvious. Do you think in 3D? (What are your spatial relations skills?) How quickly can you diagnose and critique a problem? (Do you have inductive reasoning capabilities?) Knowing your unique portfolio of aptitudes provides you with a foundation to help target your education, skill development and career.

2. Identify your interests. Wouldnâ€t it be ideal if you could do what you love at work? Challenges to this proposition, which include not being very good at what you love and there being few prospects in the field you love, can make it tough to accomplish this goal. Hardin notes: “Doing what you love is one important piece of the career puzzle, but your interests are relative to your experience. Your interests evolve over time as you gain life experiences. They are important when considering a career, because they influence your choices and should direct how you apply your natural aptitudes.”

3. Find the opportunities. The marketplace is constantly changing on an international, national and local level. Whether you are 18 or 50, before you focus on a particular career, itâ€s a good idea to assess the landscape and opportunities. “Is the tide coming in or out for a particular industry or occupation? You have a set of natural aptitudes and interests; it is your job to find out how best to apply them,” Hardin says. “The job market is a moving target. If you are stagnant, it will hurt you.”

Get my free white paper: 5 Mistakes Preventing You From Landing a Job This Week 

Donâ€t worry, you donâ€t need to get out your crystal ball or hone clairvoyant abilities to succeed. However, you do need to recognize when the world is changing. When you plan to invest in a career, take a long-term view. What does the job growth look like for a career 10 years from now, and what skills are required to compete? Keep your eyes open to trends, and read news in your industry. Ask people in fields that interest you what they believe to be the trends that will affect the industry and work.

Hardin suggests: “When doing your research, be sure to think globally, and try to understand how changing demographics and technology might affect your industry.” Position yourself to take advantage of opportunities as a result of new technology.

Awareness is a big step in the right career direction. Focus on your skills and how they fit the market that interests you, and youâ€ll be on a quicker path to job search success.

Originally appeared on U.S. News & World Report

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The reality is, in many workplaces, “thank you” is not automatic, and cannot be expected. In the cut-throat environment where many people toil away every day, it takes a lot more than a job well done to attain the acknowledgement or reward you’d like to see.

Here are tips to get the recognition you deserve when you feel underappreciated at work. (Tweet this thought.)

Identify the stars at your organization and follow their leads. 

Once you figure out who’s doing a great job getting recognition at your workplace, you can leverage that knowledge for your own benefit. Did someone get a huge shout out at the last staff meeting?

Why?

Identify key factors that often lead to recognition. For example, what accomplishment led to the appreciation? Perhaps the organization has more of a tendency to appreciate extra effort; is going above and beyond the call of duty needed to attract appreciation? Is someone appreciated in your office because he or she is a really helpful person to have around in a crisis?

Different organizations value different characteristics at work. Once you see where the bar is set in your organization for recognition, you know what you need to strive to achieve.

Offer insights instead of complaining. 

No one likes a complainer. Like it or not, if you have a reputation for always being a downer at work, it’s going to be difficult to achieve much in the way of recognition. That’s not to say you necessarily have to be a “yes man or woman,” either. Be aware of your attitude and keep it in check if you have a tendency to spout off about every single thing that annoys you. That includes comments on social media, especially if you are connected in any way to anyone connected to your workplace.

Keep in mind: your privacy settings are only as good as your least loose-lipped friend.

Be a problem solver. 

What’s the biggest problem your organization or team faces right now? If you can help take major steps to help solve the problem, or come up with a way to solve it altogether, you will earn recognition. If you still don’t feel appreciated, you may be in the wrong job.

Network in and outside of the office. 

Sometimes, appreciation comes hand-in-hand with relationships. If you’ve been skipping team nights out or prefer to lunch alone, maybe it’s time to make a change and to try to get to know some of the people at work. If you’re not a social person, consider it research instead of socializing. Make it your business to determine what’s most important (in and outside of the office) to your colleagues – and your boss, if possible. You may be surprised to find that a few well-placed lunch appointments can yield interesting information that may help you attract the appreciation you deserve.

Get my free white paper: 5 Mistakes Preventing You From Landing a Job This Week 

Join professional or volunteer organizations. 

While it may not specifically land you appreciation AT work, when you volunteer for your professional association, it’s very likely you’ll have an opportunity to receive some kudos and the “thank you’s” you want at work. A side benefit, you’ll have the opportunity to network with people who can get to know you and your work ethic. Those contacts are key when it’s time to find a new job.

Ask for it. 

While it’s not ideal, perhaps you need to ask for recognition in your workplace. That includes requesting a promotion, a raise or other benefits when appropriate. (Such as after a huge win.) If you don’t get any feedback at all from your boss, request a review. Create a list of your accomplishments and ask for what you want.

It’s possible that you work in a place where the culture is to believe providing a paycheck is thank you enough. If that’s not a good fit for you, after you’ve taken these steps and still aren’t satisfied, it’s time to find a new job where you’ll feel more appreciated.

Originally appeared on AOLJobs.com. 

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As an employee, whether or not your company incorporates being thankful into its mission, do you feel appreciated? Do you believe you should expect more than a paycheck?

Bryan Miles, CEO and co-founder of eaHELP, a provider of virtual executive assistants, knew he wanted “gratitude” to be featured prominently in his companyâ€s values. Here are his suggestions for all leaders and employees to consider this week and all year long:

1. Donâ€t wait to be grateful. Regardless of your position in an organization, cultivate gratitude as a core part of your work. “Donâ€t wait until youâ€re leading a team, a division or a company to become a grateful leader,” Miles says. “If you do, when you start telling people youâ€re grateful for them once youâ€re in the position you want, people wonâ€t buy it.” He suggests you make sure those around you right now understand that youâ€re grateful for the many ways they help you each and every day.

2. Be humble. Miles believes that if youâ€re a leader, you know down in your gut that what youâ€re leading doesnâ€t have much to do with you. He suggests you acknowledge that youâ€ve achieved your role, in part, because your team works hard and takes advantage of market opportunities. “Your team looks to you for leadership and for guidance, but when it comes down to the day-to-day wins and losses that actually make up your business, you need to know that those donâ€t have much to do with you,” Miles says. “You need to be grateful for the team that powers the engine of your business.” Similarly, as a team member, recognize your role in ensuring your team continues to move forward. Be grateful for everyone around you, and donâ€t be shy about expressing appreciation.

3. Acknowledge that your success depends on others. Being a grateful employee will make you a smarter employee. Admitting that you donâ€t know everything and that everything youâ€ve ever learned thatâ€s made you successful has come from someone or something else helps improve your standing in a team. “Being grateful for those from whom youâ€ve learned is essential if you want to stay humble and teachable and will actually propel you forward in your career,” Miles says.

4. Be sincere. In many cases, being grateful can be disarming. As a leader or a team member, when you are thankful and express it – sincerely and frequently – it will often make people stop in their tracks. “Genuine gratitude is pretty rare in todayâ€s society, which is a shame, but expressing real gratitude sets people apart,” Miles says. If you lead a team, your employees will know when your gratitude is genuine, and they are more likely to put in extra effort. “Grateful leaders have stronger, more effective, more loyal teams,” he says. As an employee, demonstrating gratitude can help set you apart from others in your organization.

Consider how being appreciative at work and expressing those feelings to all team members can help make your organization more successful. When you do, you give the people who work with you even more reasons to be thankful.

Miles says this approach has helped contribute to the success of his organization. He believes his success could very well end, should he fail to incorporate gratitude for those around him. “Gratitude is the only lasting motivator of change,” he says. “Itâ€s the only thing that will propel you to change in the future, if youâ€re grateful for what you have now.”

This post originally appeared in U.S. News & World Reports.

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Are you ready to be appreciated? Perhaps you’re expecting lunch out with the boss or a mug full of candy? Or, maybe you’re pretty sure no one appreciates you at all. (Perhaps it’s time for a new job, no?) Have you stopped to think about what you’re doing at work that should be earning you some major kudos?

Whether you’re employed in a traditional position, serving as a temporary worker or even volunteering while seeking your next full-time gig, keep the following tips in mind to inspire people to to consider you appreciation worthy:

Demonstrate initiative. Itâ€s no surprise that this tops the list. We all prefer to work with people who raise their hands to offer to pitch in. Donâ€t spend key meetings looking around the room hoping someone else will take on the new project. When you step up to the plate and take on additional responsibilities, youâ€ll gain favor with bosses and colleagues and win a chance to enhance your credentials.

Admit when you make a mistake. Isnâ€t it refreshing when someone says, “I made a mistake; let me fix it?” Unfortunately, many people in the workplace prefer to pass blame along or lay low until everyone forgets about the problem. Those who try to pass the buck risk being the victim of workplace gossip that could prevent them from getting a new job down the road. Of course, ideally, you wonâ€t make a lot of mistakes that youâ€ll need to admit, but you can win points in many cases by taking responsibility and making a point to correct the situation.

Learn new things. If youâ€ve been at the job for many years, but havenâ€t made a point to continue your education and attend conferences and trainings, you probably are falling behind your less experienced colleagues. When you want a new job or itâ€s time to start a business, youâ€ll be missing mandatory skills. The best employees always seek opportunities to learn new things, even when theyâ€re otherwise occupied keeping up with the day-to-day tasks. Itâ€s a challenge, but it makes a difference between a good employee and a great one.

Do what you say you will do. Do you follow through and complete promised projects? We all have had colleagues who raise their hand at meetings, but spend the rest of the week avoiding the work they agreed to do. Donâ€t be that person.

Share credit. Rarely do we accomplish big projects at work without someone elseâ€s help. Colleagues who share credit when credit is due generally have better rapport than their more selfish colleagues. Nice guys really can finish first, so look for ways to share the glory.

Know what battles to pick. Itâ€s a rare person who always likes every decision that higher-ups make that affects his or her job. Usually, thereâ€s plenty to disagree about, and lots of big and small battles to wage at work. Successful employees make it a point to keep quiet and not complain until it really matters. If youâ€re the employee who is generally agreeable, it is much more likely that someone will take notice if you have a major concern or complaint. Like the boy who cried wolf, if youâ€re always railing against the rules, most people will stop listening.

Be ready for work. If you need to spend the first hour of your day checking social media and updating your status on Facebook, do that before you get into the office. You need to be ready for work when you get there. You harm your reputation when you donâ€t start your day along with everyone else.

Do the work. It sounds easy, right? Just get the work done. However, itâ€s not always so obvious to everyone that getting the work done is half the battle. Amazing employees find a way to get the work done, even when it means sometimes putting aside their own pet projects or favorite things in order to accomplish a big goal.

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Dan Campbell, 2014 chairman of the American Staffing Association and CEO of Hire Dynamics – a staffing company often recognized on Best Places to Work lists – suggests the following tips to help decide if an organization will appreciate you.

Does the company make it its priority to not only attract, but also retain its talent for the long haul?

Is it pretty clear that the organization is a revolving door, where employees seem to come and go frequently? How can you tell? If most people you meet when networking or interviewing donâ€t have much experience at the organization, it may be a tip-off. You can certainly make a point to ask about the tenure of the typical employee.

“When searching for the right career, no longer are immediate opportunities the top consideration as continued growth has become increasingly more important,” Campbell says. Make it your business to find out if the organizationâ€s culture supports promoting from within. Is there an internal job board? Do people move up the corporate ladder? Do managers support individual career goals? While you donâ€t want to engage with a supervisor by asking how long it will be until you can do something different, if you can get a sense of whether people tend to stay with the organization or not youâ€ll have at least part of your answer about if employees feel appreciated.

Identify if the organization is flexible.

Campbell points to a 2013 global generational study by PwC that discovered millennials believe “enhancing workplace flexibility and equity between work and home is one of the keys to improving job satisfaction.” Most people would likely agree that they feel more appreciated and valued when their organization provides at least some version of flexible work, whether itâ€s on a regular basis or during critical situations. Again, you shouldn’t go into an interview asking about how often you can work from home, but you can ascertain the company culture generally to determine if you would feel valued.

Facilitating a strong sense of teamwork is another way an organization can help its employees believe they’re valued. “A strong, cohesive, team-oriented workplace culture and opportunities for interesting work are important,” Campbell says.

Do benefits go beyond your salary?

“Companies like DreamWorks offer recreational learning opportunities to employees including painting, karate and sculpting,” Campbell explains. “Google, Zappos and Procter & Gamble have designated nap rooms where employees can take 30 minutes to reboot.” While these companies have pioneered the way, Campbell says, “more businesses across a broad range of industries are now warming up to these ideas.” If you like hands-on appreciation, youâ€ll want to find out the type of rewards the organization offers. In the application process you can usually tell if a company offers such rewards – like team contests for restaurant gift cards or a chance to win a half-day Friday – because the company will tell you. These perks give the impression that the organization appreciates its employees.

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Look online.

Online reviews on a website like Glassdoor.com will help you assess how good an organization is when it comes to showing appreciation for its employees. Seek lists of “best places to work,” as many of those companies likely do a good job recognizing its employees for jobs well done.

Originally appeared on U.S. News & World Report.

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After waiting for awhile in a brightly orange-painted room, the interviewer calls my name and sits me down at a desk.

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What do you need to have on hand so you can confidently interview for your targeted jobs at the drop of a hat?

Your “what to wear” kit. Do you have your interview attire clean and ready to wear? If someone calls, you should be able to get dressed and go. If you’re not ready, now is the time to get organized.

Your marketing materials and pitch. It’s your job to come in with a clear understanding of what the organization needs and to raise those points during your conversation with the hiring manager.

Answers for questions you don’t want to address. Were you fired? Be prepared to discuss it. Did you hate your last boss? Have a good answer if and when the topic comes up. Is there a skill the employer wants that you don’t have? Plan what you will say when it surfaces. Smile, give an answer that helps him or her feel confident that you’re not the type of person to blabber on about negative topics, and move on.

Questions for your interviewer.  Your interviewer hopes you’re smart and capable, so ask questions proving you have both of those qualities.

Your follow-up plan. Another often overlooked aspect of the interview process: Most job seekers don’t send a thank you note, nor do they follow up with their interviewers. Be sure you have the complete names, titles, and contact information for everyone you meet; it makes following up so much easier.

Read the entire post on my column on the U.S. News & World Report site.

photo by calsidyrose

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This was my reply:

I attended an event hosted by iRelaunch, and a panel of hiring managers and recruiters discussed this question. Most agreed they liked to know why people changed from job to job; if the candidate appeared to be a job-hopper, the employers wanted to know why. For example, they suggested explaining if a company was acquired by a different organization, if you were laid off, or if you moved for family reasons. Even a talented job-seeker with exactly the skills necessary for a job should be prepared to discuss his or her work history and provide reasons for multiple job changes.

It’s best to present the situation in the most positive light as possible. (There is no need to expand on the personality conflict you had with a supervisor inspiring you to ditch the job as soon as you found something better.) Highlight where you took advantage of opportunities for new challenges, explain if organizations were restructuring, and you left for another opportunity, and note if you needed to relocate for family reasons. At the same time, address the employer’s underlying question: “Will you be willing and able to stay at this job?” Describe why you know you are a good fit, focus on your interest in staying and growing with the company, and quell the interviewer’s fear that if you join their organization, you would leave at the first opportunity.

Read my colleagues’ responses here.

photo by Carol Browne

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I recently participated in SHRM Atlanta, which I attended as a specially invited blogger and tweeter! (You can still view tweets from the conference via the hashtag, #SHRMATL11.)

A few lessons from:

Management Makeover-30 Days to a New Leader | Speaker: Marjorie Treu, PHR, Team Fusion

The session summary: Managers are often not provided with practical tools to consistently build high functioning teams. These struggling managers unconsciously create teams with low employee morale, high turnover, and increased employee relation issues. Team Fusion shares the 30-Day Management Makeover Plan to steer floundering managers back on course!

Marjorie Treu reminded participants of an important lesson for job seekers and all careerists: People perform better when the job requirements are a strong match for their natural skills. She explained, “Employee satisfaction + customer satisfaction = organization satisfaction. Keep this in mind if you are looking for a job; it’s a reminder that employers are looking for people who have exactly the skills they need to do the job; they’re less interested (in general) in your unrelated accomplishments. Their goal is to identify a solid connection between what you’ve done and what they want you to do.

Treu’s talk covered a variety of areas having to do with leadership and management. She believes the biggest manager mistakes are: 1. Being too egotistical. 2. Micromanaging and 3. Being the “missing” or absent manager.

She believes emotional intelligence is a key skill for a manager and reminded us, “55% of your communication is non verbal, most of it is in your face.”

She touched on good listening skills, stages of team building (form, storm, norm, perform) and culture issues.

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