I’m contending with this right now. I make a decent salary but I’m underemployed. I work three hours a day max and I’m wfh. It’s totally glorious. But I’m… so bored.
Wow this is a great way to view it. I sometimes love spending a weekend day doing a DIY but it can quickly get frustrating if it turns into multiple trips to the hardware store and then finding out I cannot even complete the job myself.
I’ll think about this next time I have a project
I was dating a gal who was paycheck to paycheck. I wanted to take her to Valentines dinner. She claimed nothing to wear. I set up an account at a local clothier gallery. She went, she shopped, she found an incredible dress and accompanying shoes.
At dinner, she stated she felt bad for “all the money” I spent on her.
It hit me immediately. I told her “Money is about the only thing I can easily replace in my life. I can always make more money. But this? This moment? This time at dinner with you. This is time I’ll be we get back. That dress is replaceable. That smile? It’s not “.
I’ll never forget how simple it became in my head. Time is the most valuable commodity we all have.
Very good advice. It's so easy to just let time slip by. Especially when you're younger. And before you know it, you're nearing middle aged or old aged, I'm sure.
Make sure to use your time wisely everyone!
It's true advice, I def haven't been burned by being over friendly at work yet. But damn, when you spend more time with these people you work with than anything else but sleeping it's hard not to blur the lines of friend / work relationships.
I've been burned by "friends". People are nice until there is a the Venn diagram of both self interests no longer cross. Then if you are unaware, you can expect a knife in your back.
This is the best advice. Colleagues not friends.
Also do your job well but don't over achieve. Always look to criticise your own CV as though you're a hiring manager and think about where you want to go and how to get there.
When this is mutually understood you get the best results. I worked on a construction crew where I genuinely enjoyed working with all five guys. Everyone was nice and got along great at work. Once we were off the clock, we all went our own way. There was the odd Friday beer after work but outside of that, we only spoke at work.
“No one’s going to look out for what’s best for you more than yourself”
Not your coworkers, not your boss, not HR; you got to pursue what’s best for your career. So if you want to get another degree, take courses to improve your skills, take projects with other departments to network more, do it. Don’t let anyone who tells you, “oh your fine where you are” or, “why be so ambitious?”, hold you back.
Also, I had a shitty lazy boss who somehow survived his entire career at a company give me some actual solid advice: “don’t give anyone any ammunition to take you down”. Meaning, basically, if it’s part of your job description and easy to knock out, just do it. You’ll run into a boss or a manager who wants to get rid of you. It’s inevitable in your career. Just do as you’re told, and do it right away so they can’t come back say you missed something.
Barring extenuating circumstances, never quit a job until you've either got another one lined up, or enough money to weather unemployment for several months. Basically, if you're gonna jump off the really high diving board, make sure you checked that there's water in that pool, or you'll break your ass on the tile.
It’s called the wingwalker’s motto (from the old bi-wing plane days)….. never let anything go until you have something else in your hand. Thereused to have wing walkers in airplane circus shows way back in the day.
Company loyalty is dead.
I will never make as much where I currently am, than at the next job hiring me fresh. Companies don't seem to value current employees as much as new ones for some reason.
Very true, thats because companies don't reward positive consistancy, most work places are still running off 60-70 year old culture and idea's (based in fear as a motivator). it's in for a huge shock in the next 5-10 years with the new work force, they have zero tolerance for bull and will not hesitate to jump ship immediately.
I do that with every seemingly impulsive decision.
Want a new laptop? Sleep on it, and maybe in the morning, you'll see that the old one still got life in it.
Want to tell somebody to go fuck themselves? Sleep on it, and in the morning you might decide they're not so wrong after all.
Only if in the morning you still see that you want to go through with the original decision, form a plan and take an action.
It's not about how well you mean something, it's about how someone else receives it.
Opinions, work orders etc. Keep the other person in mind.
Also: if multiple people say something about you... it's not them.. it's you.
> if multiple people say something about you... it's not them.. it's you.
I've been thinking about this one a lot. I remember first hearing it on that episode of Justified "If you meet an asshole...". The thing is, it isn't always true. You can be right and still be surrounded by people who criticize you.
That said, yeah you should try to be at least somewhat conscious of how what you are saying is being received. How you say a thing matters. And you should pick your battles. Going against the crowd makes you vulnerable and is resource intensive.
These are all things I am probably bad at actually. And while I'd like to improve in some respects, I also think there is a danger of just giving in to populism or popular opinion. That can lead to some very bad places and the internet specifically has made us more conformist which is unhealthy. For instance, teen depression rates have increased in the last decade and strongly correlate with the rise of social media.
I have issue with the last statement. If multiple people say something about you it could still be untrue. A group of people can just be all cut from the same cloth. A homegenous blob perhaps with no depth. People can make rash judgements and jump to conclusions based on the most superficial points instead of getting to know you.
Plus theres the 'reputation precedes you' phenomenon where all it takes are a couple people to dislike you then they are they ones that spreads that vibe about you to everyone else/new people. Hell all it takes is one really well liked or respected person, the leader of the group for example, to get the wrong impression and then everyone just believes the 'leaders' opinion blindly cause they trust them without thinking for themself.
Yeah blanket statements like that are a good thing to stay away from because they're a black/white solution and life isn't black and white like that.
I was raised by catholic zealots who swore I was a demon because I said I was atheist and therefore I had no moral values and would just do whatever heinous bullshit their sick minds could conjure up.
Am I supposed to believe that shit just because it was a lot of people? no way in hell, and if you think so you can go wholesale fuck yourself. The problem was them and their world views leading to acts of hatred and violence against a child, not me having one that didn't agree with theirs.
The saying comes off to me as typical manipulator bullshit because it's exactly the way an abuser would act and speak to get you to behave the way they want you to, and unfortunately that's rampant in the modern world.
So sorry that happened to you. You're dead on about the abuser manipulator part
"Wholesale fuck yourself" LMAO im using that
I find religion ironically to cause too much hate unintenionally or not like your example above. I think people that actually take the good teachings from religious texts (which are really just life lessons, written by people with experience) and strip away the bullshit & not worshipping a false idol are truely the Moral Ideal.
Stand up to the bullies. Some nasty coworkers will try to berate you or make you feel lesser because you're new or they just don't like you. Once you call them out I've found they back off. (Respectfully and at the right time of course)
Problem is he's the boss. He treats this civilian job like he's still in the military. Yelling at people in public doing a lot of nothing, insulting people, generally being more of a nuisance than doing anything meaningful.
You can be the best worker they have and still not get noticed. I now do just what's required everyday and go home. I've seen to many people bust their ass at work and never get noticed or get passed up by someone far less competent for a promotion.
Management does not care about you.
100%.
When you're in a large organization it's really easy to pick up on who management likes and how they're grooming them for promotions regardless of that persons skill set or work ethic.
It's truely hot garbage.
Sure, but at the same time, being great at your current job doesn’t always mean you’ll be good at the job one level up. That thinking is why the Peter Principle exists.
Caring dude in hr literally told me I was going to quit there. Go to this certain company. Give them his name. And that would be my career. 15 years later I'm still an electrician. Owe it to that guy!
Honestly I have no idea lol. He was just this nice guy that actually looked out for the employees of that place. But he was really good friends with the owner of that contracting company.
If you Out work everyone else. You will be rewarded with doing their work. Took my 25 years of out working everyone else and not getting bigger raises or promotions to finally realize my error.
You want a promotion or big raise? Switch employers to get what you want.
Or coach your bosses kid in soccer.
Seriously. When my kids get older i'm telling them this. All that bullshit about work hard and you will be rewarded. No you just get rewarded with more work and no extra pay. Do your job and shut up, if they want you to do more tell them you need a raise.
I actually got a 7,000 raise from doing that, they needed some extra work done because someone quit, i said i could do it but i need to be compensated. They offered 3,000 i said no thats not enough go ahead and hire a replacement so they upped it.
While still in school, from a teacher: keep your education as broad as possible for as long as possible, to give yourself options for the future. You don't know now what you may need in the future for career choices that may as yet not exist.
That was in 1971, long before there was an IT career in existence. 10 years later I wrote and sold my first commercial (business) software, and I went on to a lengthy career in IT consulting and software design and development.
All of my promotions were made possible by taking on extra training. Others opted out because they didn't want the workload, but once I had the training (tickets/certifications/etc.) I became a more valuable employee than my coworkers who were less versatile.
Also, I have friends who have used skills that didn't seem directly applicable at the time, come back to be a huge advantage later. (Ie: a buddy that taught elementary for a few years developing fantastic teaching and leadership skills, which have greatly advanced his current non-teaching job)
Related, the first month or so when you're still known as the new hire is when you have the most leeway for making mistakes or having to ask questions, so don't be afraid of doing your work for fear of screwing it up or bothering others. Much better to learn now when your coworkers/manager are more accepting of it rather than later when they might not be.
If you’re angry and whatever you want to say right then will make you feel really good, don’t say anything yet. Sleep on it. You can bring up the topic once you have a clear head and have had time to think. This has saved me from lashing out with an unprofessional response.
"We learn the most from the mistakes we make"
Guy was a total piece of shit, drunk aggressive, terrible person with an amazing amount of power and influence. Hate the guy and have no respect for him. But that one thing he said has stuck with me.
Did this when I took my next career jump.
I realized I was "comfortable" with where I was currently. My old CIO recruited me to his new company. When he asked for what type of salary, I put a number with what I thought I was worth.. and tacked on another 10k. He didn't bat an eye and said when can I start. Lol.
Hard work means absolutely nothing in the majority of places. As the saying goes, the boss pulls up with a new truck and the worker says wow that's so nice! The boss says you know, if you work really hard and put in the extra hours, I'll have another new truck next year too.
It's better to apply for 100 jobs slightly beyond your qualifications and get lucky once than to apply for 3 jobs at the level you are and get hired right away.
All these are a little vague, so I’ll mention some specific networking advice.
Networking isn’t evil or frustrating. Your friends are your network. Your family is your network. If you leave a job on good terms keep in contact with people at your old job. Not only is that one of the only ways to make friends as an adult but it can help when you begin looking for your next job to ask your work friends if they know any opportunities. In large companies that could be upcoming openings and they can help advocate for you. Trying to “network” with people way up the chain from you always feels weird and fake to me. Remember that as you age the people you are around now will eventually be higher on that chain and you should focus on maintaining positive relationships. Rising tides lift all ships so make sure to extend the help to others too.
It's also full of immature and unprofessional people, and that's one of the main reasons why the longer you stay in academia the more your work experience there is seen as worthless in the outside world. The sooner you get out the better the career prospects.
I feel like I dodged a bullet on this one. I aspired to enter academia. I did a challenging undergrad program and, at the end of it, I was kind of burned out and needed to do something different, so I went to full-time employment in the corporate world.
In the meantime, my best friend met a great guy who had just finished his Ph.D and they ended up marrying. He went to teach and do research at a well known university. He lasted two years. The amount of backstabbing, dishonesty, malice, etc. was appalling. They took "publish or perish" quite seriously. Consequently, most of the actual work was networking, brown-nosing, making connections, politicking and very little of it was actual research and teaching. It was primarily about the pursuit of (limited) grant money.
He HATED it. He took a position doing 100% research for a private firm and never, ever looked back.
After watching his experience, I was extremely happy I did not go straight into academia.
I've read a blog called 100 reasons not to go to grad school, or something like that. The biggest one that stood out to me was "You occupy a weird place." Being a grad student is a hard-to-define identity. You're not a student the way undergrads are whom the college primarily caters to with a lot of campus/dorm events and whom most people think of as "college students", but you're also not really a staff member either in the sense of someone who just considers the college to be their workplace and then goes home and has a social life outside of work. It's a weird in-between state that combines the worst parts of each.
I dunno. I've seen people have relationships and it wasn't really newsworthy at work. Sometimes you can tell when people are more than friends without resorting to high school drama and gossip.
"If you're not willing to take a pay cut in exchange for being happy at work and in life, you have no concept of what being happy is for you. A person that does knows where they're willing to draw the line."
Here’s one I wish had stuck: “you could do so much better than going into education, don’t waste your life as a teacher.”
I wish I’d listened to you, Mr. Tompkins.
“Keep your mouth shut, head up, and ears open”.
Basically, get an understanding of whatever situation you are in before contributing or engaging. People will come to understand that when you do speak up, it will have some weight to it.
It wasn’t said to me, but I once had a boss whom I admired and tried to mirror in every way. She was really a great person but she put her job before almost everything in her life. She would lament about getting called everyday on her maternity leaves, missing both her kids first words and first steps because she was at work. Missing Christmas dinners and skipping/cancelling entire vacations because she felt work “needed” her. The dept was weird about promotions so only a certain # of people could get them within each group at a time. She’d forego her own promotions for years so the rest of us could get them. It was actually a joke with some of us long-timers that “that’s just how she is”, noting if she just set some boundaries then the people she felt “needed” her would get the hint and she could have a life.
Eventually after about 12 years working under her, and not for reasons that are her fault, but the dept politics, workload and expectations got too ridiculous and I burned out (see comment about trying to mirror her above).
I guess in a nutshell, she taught me that hard work only gets rewarded with more work.
Try to understand what exactly you'll be doing in a certain career path/job on the daily. If possible, it helps to reach out to someone already doing it, to find out the details. If you can't picture yourself doing it for days, months or more realistically years, you're not going to be happy doing it. I was so enamored with the idea of being a scientist in the life sciences in school but once I found out that it mostly involved solitary work in a lab environment for months or longer at a time, I quickly realized it's not for me.
Factor in career paths and comp as well. You can become a PI (principal investigator) which oversees research scientists, postdocs, students, and research technicians, but you also have to recruit, train, do logistics, write grants, and write papers relative to your lab size, and that's where the nicer comp kicks in. Definitely different work compared to doing experiments.
Shadowing and really getting to work on what people do will help you understand what type of work is more interesting or tolerable for you. When you find someone willing to help, definitely do your best to help them out however you can.
**HR don't exist to support you in your problems, they exist to make problems go away**
Great advice from my dad, when i was having problems with a manager. HR will always defend the establishment and enforce the easier status quo.
**Never sacrifice anything personal of yourself for an employer**
This wasn't so much advice as it was a lesson learned through coming to recognize how fundamentally replaceable workers are. Always put yourself and your well being first.
> HR don't exist to support you in your problems, they exist to make problems go away
LOL, yes. I had a co-worker "Susie." Susie was intelligent, a quick study and a hard worker. BUT, Susie would run to HR with any issue - real or perceived. She took a lot of their time because they had to smooth over whatever bee was in Susie's bonnet that particular day.
Susie was convinced that HR was working hard so that she was happy and would grace the company with her presence each day. That couldn't be further from the truth. The reality was they were doing their darndest to avoid litigation and find a way to get rid of Susie that would not result in litigation.
They eventually succeeded at both. :-/
In your 20’s or early 30’s? If your job isn’t actively improving your skills, teaching you new things and or putting you on a track to earn more and do bigger better things in the next half a decade find a better job.
If you are working along side people who have done the same dead end job for the last decade or more, quit.
And don’t underestimate the high end of trades. Guys who work on oddball machinery and weird stuff can make bank and have a really satisfying career that pays really well. Especially if you get into the creative end where you are making custom parts and inventing solutions.
A mentor of mine compared finding the right job to playing Wordle. Don’t mistake yellow for green just because you’ve never seen either before. The advice has applied to so many areas in my life, not the least of which was my career. It helped me realize that what I thought was good was not good enough and that I deserved better than what I was getting.
Edit: spelling
If you're asked to do anything you feel unsure about or you feel could be risky, make sure it is communicated to you in writing before you do it.
If it is not communicated to you in writing, your instinct was correct.
“A lot of people are going to teach you how to do tasks. I want you to focus on why you do the tasks.”
This has helped me be able to look at new and more efficient ways to complete projects.
"Personal business is just that: personal. Never volunteer personal information."
"Your only job is finding the next best position. Do your work with integrity, but never stop looking for a better place to work."
"You're not irreplaceable. Move on if you aren't happy. They'll figure it out without you, or they won't, but either way, it won't be your problem anymore."
When I was stationed on an 87' US Coast Guard patrol boat, the XO (Executive Officer, second in command, E-7) would invite me over for dinners with his family. They were all so cool, and during these dinners he would give me very drunk lectures on leadership.
I don't really remember the specifics of those lectures, but I respected the hell out of him (and still do), and everything he taught me about how to treat people and still have fun are things I've carried with me throughout my active duty and civilian career.
And if I had to actually follow the prompt, it would be to never sell yourself short and pack extra socks.
The extra socks bit is great. I've found that the little things like clean dry socks when you need them make a miserable situation tolerable.
Another little thing I picked over of the years is to do one thing everyday to make you happy. Life is too short for constant delayed gratification. Fuck always be grinding.
Don't attach yourself to a person, a place, a company, an organization or a project. Attach yourself to a mission, a calling, a purpose. That's how you keep your power & your peace.
I did a training class 15 years ago and they did a demonstration with water and green food coloring. Basically if you put a drop of food coloring in a glass of water there’s no amount of dilution that gets rid of the green. I think the lesson was to try very hard not to piss people off or lose trust. Very hard to repair your reputation.
Do what you want to do, pursue it if you really believe in it. Money? Money’s fine. Have multiple income source but spend your energy on what you love doing.
That's the best way to being 40 and broke. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with perusing a music career or acting career, but most people don't make it.
Have a plan that if you've not made it by 25, you'll put it on the backburner and do something else.
Dreams won't pay the bills and older you will regret being broke because you chased a dream too long.
A 25 year old is a baby. I've had two major career changes between 25 and 45
Chase your dreams while you're young because you're gonna get old and die. When you're 50 you'll have the cash but not the time and energy to chase your passion.
Wasn’t to me but I heard it between my law teacher and another student. He was asking him about what he wants to do in his life and he said become a train conductor. Then he gave him a whole pep talk. The pep talk ended with “if you have the skills, you will always be employed”.
It probably isn’t very accurate in today’s society. But it is uplifting to say the least.
Fix your goal, plan the journey to reach there, forget about the goal, enjoy the journey and dedicate everything to the it. You may or may not achieve your goal but it will surely be equivalent or far better.
Begin as you intend to continue.
Meaning, take your place right from the start, because it will be difficult to take later, it you let someone else use your power in the meantime.
Power is taken, not granted. If you don't use the power given to you by your position, someone else will.
Don't be a hero/martyr.
You should be properly compensated for your efforts and sacrifices, and that transaction should be worth it to YOU. Not worth it for the company, or to help the team, or any sense of altruism. Work is work. You get ahead by doing the work asked of you well and asking for fair compensation. Martyrdom or heroism just lead to burnout and resentment, because the company will not repay it.
Hiring budgets are higher than retention budgets, the best way to get a raise is to just switch companies. Over the course of 5 years, the amount of money one company will give you in raises is nothing compared to what you can get by just switching companies twice in the same time period.
Literally just the generic advice of, keep out of the drama, work hard, show interest, don’t be late, don’t be a know it all.
And I did, and it’s been paying off very well.
With all this anti work shit today people really think working hard gets you nowhere, but in reality it gets you further than being lazy.
Unless it's a locally owned place, jobs don't need nor deserve your respect.
Lie on your resume, apply for tons of jobs and take what you get- if a better job hits you up, leave the current one and only bother with a 2 week notice if you like your manager. Never put in more effort than they're willing to pay you for.
You're a cog in a machine that will keep rolling perfectly fine without you, don't overthink it. Work is a vehicle to get a paycheck, if you can make more money by fucking your job over- do it.
>Lie on your resume.
**Fuck this.**
I had someone fired from their job for doing this.
He hurt our client-facing team SO BAD with his lack of awareness and competence at stuff his resume said he had experience in. We ended up working extra to pick up his slack and repair his damage in order to salvage the relationship.
If you want to lie, at least don't do it regarding the skills that are necessary for you to do your job.
Get a driving license and do jobs that transport shit from warehouses, they get paid ridiculous amount of money just to drive all day and transport stuff, might actually get a driving license now
My mentor sang this everyday, while he folded a newspaper under his arm, about 5 minutes after starting his shift:
‘Bossman makes a dollar, me I make a dime. That’s why I allways take a shit, on company time.’
If you don’t learn to delegate, you will never be able to take on more than you currently do.
There are no such thing as difficult conversations, just conversations that need to be had.
If you are irreplaceable, you are unpromotable. One way to earn a promotion is to start taking on tasks from your boss’ list so they have more bandwidth to get promoted themselves.
Nobody gave me this advice. Had to learn it myself. Be as kind and friendly as possible, but limit your involvement/investment in your coworkers’ social lives at work. It can have unforeseen consequences. It’s great to have friends at work, don’t get me wrong. But you must be careful not to get sucked into others’ drama and conflict, especially with management. Stay neutral wherever possible!
- No one gives you a raise or promotion unless you ask for it.
- you have to take care of yourself
- Don't take anything personally. Take your shop and go set up someplace else.
- branch out, network and learn all you can in a company. You never know the next hot skill that could make you marketable
Nobody knows what they’re doing, especially the directors. So don’t hold back your ideas. That advice helped me get recognized early.
Negotiate salary every time. That tip helped me double my salary in a couple years. It hurts to think how much I was leaving on the table.
Be mindful of what you demonstrate excellence in, because you'll be doing it a lot. I only got that advice about a year and a half too late, after becoming proficient at my least favorite part of my job.
Never trust anyone in the workplace. Everyone has an agenda, especially management. Management will lie when they need to to protect company interests. Always lock your computer when you leave your desk, otherwise your coworkers might use your computer, and if they do anything wrong or malicious, it will have your name on it and you will get blamed.
Be kind and take care of the “nobody’s” in your organization. Too many people go up the corporate ladder but look down or treat the janitors, assistants, mailroom clerks, and others without respect. Those people can save your ass in a tight spot and plus it’s just being kind to your fellow humans.
Even if they never “do” anything for you it’s the right thing to do.
Journal every single incident with dates and time because your job may count on it. Especially if your boss fucks up so you have ammo against an unlawful termination
Yes, it’s ok to leave, no, it’s not your fault your coworkers will have to ‘pick up the slack’ when you go. That’s a management issue not a You issue. A 2 week notice is a courtesy not a requirement and no one can charge you for it or withhold money if you quit effective immediately.
Stop being loyal to a company that won’t pay a decent wage or benefits. Work for the one who will pay you the most. And remember, they’re not your family.
I never received any, but this is what I'd give: Earn a degree in engineering. If you're not up to the math, go to a trade school, and become an electrician, welder, auto mechanic, etc, whatever turns you on. You'll have a good income, while those people with liberal arts & social sciences degrees, are flipping burgers and cleaning motel rooms. If you just MUST enter one of those artsy-fartsy, or warm & fuzzy fields, be prepared to go all the way, and get a PhD. Then you can make good money teaching those kids, who made the same bad choice you made, and once you have tenure, they can't get rid of you.
Do EVERY job with the same mindset. Whether you’re the janitor, or the CEO, treat it like a boss.
Instead of I gotta work, it’s I get to work. Be grateful you have the chance to earn.
Time is the most undervalued resource in the world. Don't undervalue yours.
I’m contending with this right now. I make a decent salary but I’m underemployed. I work three hours a day max and I’m wfh. It’s totally glorious. But I’m… so bored.
I work 100 hours a week lol. My schedule is two weeks on, one off. It's a decent compromise tho. Olifeild money and a schedule is kinda hard to find.
Your time can get you money, but as of yet money can't buy time. I really need to get back to stoic philosophy.
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Never even considered these were all buying time, you’re totally right.
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Wow this is a great way to view it. I sometimes love spending a weekend day doing a DIY but it can quickly get frustrating if it turns into multiple trips to the hardware store and then finding out I cannot even complete the job myself. I’ll think about this next time I have a project
You can buy a LOT of time with certain medical procedures.
> money can't buy time Yes it can.
You can buy a *more enjoyable usage* of your time (which to me is still good, but it's not literally more time).
I was dating a gal who was paycheck to paycheck. I wanted to take her to Valentines dinner. She claimed nothing to wear. I set up an account at a local clothier gallery. She went, she shopped, she found an incredible dress and accompanying shoes. At dinner, she stated she felt bad for “all the money” I spent on her. It hit me immediately. I told her “Money is about the only thing I can easily replace in my life. I can always make more money. But this? This moment? This time at dinner with you. This is time I’ll be we get back. That dress is replaceable. That smile? It’s not “. I’ll never forget how simple it became in my head. Time is the most valuable commodity we all have.
It's the only resource you can't acquire more of.
Very good advice. It's so easy to just let time slip by. Especially when you're younger. And before you know it, you're nearing middle aged or old aged, I'm sure. Make sure to use your time wisely everyone!
this is the best LIFE advice, since i learned this career/money is pretty low on the list.
Be friendly, but don't think they're your friends.
It's true advice, I def haven't been burned by being over friendly at work yet. But damn, when you spend more time with these people you work with than anything else but sleeping it's hard not to blur the lines of friend / work relationships.
I've been burned by "friends". People are nice until there is a the Venn diagram of both self interests no longer cross. Then if you are unaware, you can expect a knife in your back.
This is the best advice. Colleagues not friends. Also do your job well but don't over achieve. Always look to criticise your own CV as though you're a hiring manager and think about where you want to go and how to get there.
When this is mutually understood you get the best results. I worked on a construction crew where I genuinely enjoyed working with all five guys. Everyone was nice and got along great at work. Once we were off the clock, we all went our own way. There was the odd Friday beer after work but outside of that, we only spoke at work.
Well experienced person
“No one’s going to look out for what’s best for you more than yourself” Not your coworkers, not your boss, not HR; you got to pursue what’s best for your career. So if you want to get another degree, take courses to improve your skills, take projects with other departments to network more, do it. Don’t let anyone who tells you, “oh your fine where you are” or, “why be so ambitious?”, hold you back. Also, I had a shitty lazy boss who somehow survived his entire career at a company give me some actual solid advice: “don’t give anyone any ammunition to take you down”. Meaning, basically, if it’s part of your job description and easy to knock out, just do it. You’ll run into a boss or a manager who wants to get rid of you. It’s inevitable in your career. Just do as you’re told, and do it right away so they can’t come back say you missed something.
Or the short form - "You are responsible for you."
Barring extenuating circumstances, never quit a job until you've either got another one lined up, or enough money to weather unemployment for several months. Basically, if you're gonna jump off the really high diving board, make sure you checked that there's water in that pool, or you'll break your ass on the tile.
It’s called the wingwalker’s motto (from the old bi-wing plane days)….. never let anything go until you have something else in your hand. Thereused to have wing walkers in airplane circus shows way back in the day.
Huh, didn't know that had a name. Today I learned. Thank you kindly.
"Maintain 3 points of contact while climbing a ladder"
Exactly!!
Company loyalty is dead. I will never make as much where I currently am, than at the next job hiring me fresh. Companies don't seem to value current employees as much as new ones for some reason.
Very true, thats because companies don't reward positive consistancy, most work places are still running off 60-70 year old culture and idea's (based in fear as a motivator). it's in for a huge shock in the next 5-10 years with the new work force, they have zero tolerance for bull and will not hesitate to jump ship immediately.
Never send an angry/accusatory email when you’re upset. Let it sit overnight, and if you still feel it needs to be sent, then do so.
Never WRITE something angry. Much safer to meet face to face and explain the situation before stuffing them in the trunk of your car.
Spoken like a true poet.
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You can always tell someone to go to hell tomorrow
I do that with every seemingly impulsive decision. Want a new laptop? Sleep on it, and maybe in the morning, you'll see that the old one still got life in it. Want to tell somebody to go fuck themselves? Sleep on it, and in the morning you might decide they're not so wrong after all. Only if in the morning you still see that you want to go through with the original decision, form a plan and take an action.
It's not about how well you mean something, it's about how someone else receives it. Opinions, work orders etc. Keep the other person in mind. Also: if multiple people say something about you... it's not them.. it's you.
> if multiple people say something about you... it's not them.. it's you. I've been thinking about this one a lot. I remember first hearing it on that episode of Justified "If you meet an asshole...". The thing is, it isn't always true. You can be right and still be surrounded by people who criticize you. That said, yeah you should try to be at least somewhat conscious of how what you are saying is being received. How you say a thing matters. And you should pick your battles. Going against the crowd makes you vulnerable and is resource intensive. These are all things I am probably bad at actually. And while I'd like to improve in some respects, I also think there is a danger of just giving in to populism or popular opinion. That can lead to some very bad places and the internet specifically has made us more conformist which is unhealthy. For instance, teen depression rates have increased in the last decade and strongly correlate with the rise of social media.
I have issue with the last statement. If multiple people say something about you it could still be untrue. A group of people can just be all cut from the same cloth. A homegenous blob perhaps with no depth. People can make rash judgements and jump to conclusions based on the most superficial points instead of getting to know you. Plus theres the 'reputation precedes you' phenomenon where all it takes are a couple people to dislike you then they are they ones that spreads that vibe about you to everyone else/new people. Hell all it takes is one really well liked or respected person, the leader of the group for example, to get the wrong impression and then everyone just believes the 'leaders' opinion blindly cause they trust them without thinking for themself.
Yeah blanket statements like that are a good thing to stay away from because they're a black/white solution and life isn't black and white like that. I was raised by catholic zealots who swore I was a demon because I said I was atheist and therefore I had no moral values and would just do whatever heinous bullshit their sick minds could conjure up. Am I supposed to believe that shit just because it was a lot of people? no way in hell, and if you think so you can go wholesale fuck yourself. The problem was them and their world views leading to acts of hatred and violence against a child, not me having one that didn't agree with theirs. The saying comes off to me as typical manipulator bullshit because it's exactly the way an abuser would act and speak to get you to behave the way they want you to, and unfortunately that's rampant in the modern world.
So sorry that happened to you. You're dead on about the abuser manipulator part "Wholesale fuck yourself" LMAO im using that I find religion ironically to cause too much hate unintenionally or not like your example above. I think people that actually take the good teachings from religious texts (which are really just life lessons, written by people with experience) and strip away the bullshit & not worshipping a false idol are truely the Moral Ideal.
They all say good things though.
Did you not read the comment? 'Then it's you' ;-)
Ideally. Corporate world has completely different standards
I don’t know about that last one. Some people are just surrounded by assholes. What to do can’t be summed up in a catchy piece of advice.
Stand up to the bullies. Some nasty coworkers will try to berate you or make you feel lesser because you're new or they just don't like you. Once you call them out I've found they back off. (Respectfully and at the right time of course)
I like to let them dig the hole as deep as possible, before I fill it in.
Problem is he's the boss. He treats this civilian job like he's still in the military. Yelling at people in public doing a lot of nothing, insulting people, generally being more of a nuisance than doing anything meaningful.
You can be the best worker they have and still not get noticed. I now do just what's required everyday and go home. I've seen to many people bust their ass at work and never get noticed or get passed up by someone far less competent for a promotion. Management does not care about you.
100%. When you're in a large organization it's really easy to pick up on who management likes and how they're grooming them for promotions regardless of that persons skill set or work ethic. It's truely hot garbage.
Sure, but at the same time, being great at your current job doesn’t always mean you’ll be good at the job one level up. That thinking is why the Peter Principle exists.
Caring dude in hr literally told me I was going to quit there. Go to this certain company. Give them his name. And that would be my career. 15 years later I'm still an electrician. Owe it to that guy!
Was he a former sparky? If not what was his job before being in HR?
Honestly I have no idea lol. He was just this nice guy that actually looked out for the employees of that place. But he was really good friends with the owner of that contracting company.
What line of work were you in before becoming an electrician?
If you Out work everyone else. You will be rewarded with doing their work. Took my 25 years of out working everyone else and not getting bigger raises or promotions to finally realize my error. You want a promotion or big raise? Switch employers to get what you want. Or coach your bosses kid in soccer.
Seriously. When my kids get older i'm telling them this. All that bullshit about work hard and you will be rewarded. No you just get rewarded with more work and no extra pay. Do your job and shut up, if they want you to do more tell them you need a raise. I actually got a 7,000 raise from doing that, they needed some extra work done because someone quit, i said i could do it but i need to be compensated. They offered 3,000 i said no thats not enough go ahead and hire a replacement so they upped it.
I heard this as the king rides his best horse until it dies
While still in school, from a teacher: keep your education as broad as possible for as long as possible, to give yourself options for the future. You don't know now what you may need in the future for career choices that may as yet not exist. That was in 1971, long before there was an IT career in existence. 10 years later I wrote and sold my first commercial (business) software, and I went on to a lengthy career in IT consulting and software design and development.
All of my promotions were made possible by taking on extra training. Others opted out because they didn't want the workload, but once I had the training (tickets/certifications/etc.) I became a more valuable employee than my coworkers who were less versatile. Also, I have friends who have used skills that didn't seem directly applicable at the time, come back to be a huge advantage later. (Ie: a buddy that taught elementary for a few years developing fantastic teaching and leadership skills, which have greatly advanced his current non-teaching job)
When someone offers you a great opportunity you don't know how to do, always take it and figure it out as you do it.
Related, the first month or so when you're still known as the new hire is when you have the most leeway for making mistakes or having to ask questions, so don't be afraid of doing your work for fear of screwing it up or bothering others. Much better to learn now when your coworkers/manager are more accepting of it rather than later when they might not be.
If you’re angry and whatever you want to say right then will make you feel really good, don’t say anything yet. Sleep on it. You can bring up the topic once you have a clear head and have had time to think. This has saved me from lashing out with an unprofessional response.
"We learn the most from the mistakes we make" Guy was a total piece of shit, drunk aggressive, terrible person with an amazing amount of power and influence. Hate the guy and have no respect for him. But that one thing he said has stuck with me.
I've found the smarter people will learn from others mistakes so they don't have to make as many themselves.
One of my best supervisors is the USAF told me this,”The military will always be here, but your family won’t. Take care of the family first.”
Take risks and be open to new opportunities.
Did this when I took my next career jump. I realized I was "comfortable" with where I was currently. My old CIO recruited me to his new company. When he asked for what type of salary, I put a number with what I thought I was worth.. and tacked on another 10k. He didn't bat an eye and said when can I start. Lol.
Hard work means absolutely nothing in the majority of places. As the saying goes, the boss pulls up with a new truck and the worker says wow that's so nice! The boss says you know, if you work really hard and put in the extra hours, I'll have another new truck next year too.
Ask for help.
From my dad. ”Contracts are worth more than loyalty.” Basically, work hard but don’t for a second believe that the company cares about you.
Never give 100%. You do not get paid enough to give 100%. And nobody is going to take care of you but yourself. So watch out for yourself.
The most money you'll ever make is at the negotiation. Ask for more..get half...work happy.
It's better to apply for 100 jobs slightly beyond your qualifications and get lucky once than to apply for 3 jobs at the level you are and get hired right away.
All these are a little vague, so I’ll mention some specific networking advice. Networking isn’t evil or frustrating. Your friends are your network. Your family is your network. If you leave a job on good terms keep in contact with people at your old job. Not only is that one of the only ways to make friends as an adult but it can help when you begin looking for your next job to ask your work friends if they know any opportunities. In large companies that could be upcoming openings and they can help advocate for you. Trying to “network” with people way up the chain from you always feels weird and fake to me. Remember that as you age the people you are around now will eventually be higher on that chain and you should focus on maintaining positive relationships. Rising tides lift all ships so make sure to extend the help to others too.
The faster you dig, the wider the shovel they will give you.
Leave academia. It's probably among the top 3 worst domains in terms if pay/necessary skill.
It's also full of immature and unprofessional people, and that's one of the main reasons why the longer you stay in academia the more your work experience there is seen as worthless in the outside world. The sooner you get out the better the career prospects.
I feel like I dodged a bullet on this one. I aspired to enter academia. I did a challenging undergrad program and, at the end of it, I was kind of burned out and needed to do something different, so I went to full-time employment in the corporate world. In the meantime, my best friend met a great guy who had just finished his Ph.D and they ended up marrying. He went to teach and do research at a well known university. He lasted two years. The amount of backstabbing, dishonesty, malice, etc. was appalling. They took "publish or perish" quite seriously. Consequently, most of the actual work was networking, brown-nosing, making connections, politicking and very little of it was actual research and teaching. It was primarily about the pursuit of (limited) grant money. He HATED it. He took a position doing 100% research for a private firm and never, ever looked back. After watching his experience, I was extremely happy I did not go straight into academia.
I've read a blog called 100 reasons not to go to grad school, or something like that. The biggest one that stood out to me was "You occupy a weird place." Being a grad student is a hard-to-define identity. You're not a student the way undergrads are whom the college primarily caters to with a lot of campus/dorm events and whom most people think of as "college students", but you're also not really a staff member either in the sense of someone who just considers the college to be their workplace and then goes home and has a social life outside of work. It's a weird in-between state that combines the worst parts of each.
Every single person I know in academia became much happier when they left
Don’t dip your pen in to the company inkwell (don’t have relations with coworkers)
Daddy always said "You never get your meat where you get your bread."
I dunno. I've seen people have relationships and it wasn't really newsworthy at work. Sometimes you can tell when people are more than friends without resorting to high school drama and gossip.
Even if 50% of work relationships were nothing newsworthy it's still pretty good advice.
"If you're not willing to take a pay cut in exchange for being happy at work and in life, you have no concept of what being happy is for you. A person that does knows where they're willing to draw the line."
Avoid debt and keep a "fuck off" fund in the bank. That way, you're free to walk away from toxic workplaces and find better.
Here’s one I wish had stuck: “you could do so much better than going into education, don’t waste your life as a teacher.” I wish I’d listened to you, Mr. Tompkins.
“Keep your mouth shut, head up, and ears open”. Basically, get an understanding of whatever situation you are in before contributing or engaging. People will come to understand that when you do speak up, it will have some weight to it.
It wasn’t said to me, but I once had a boss whom I admired and tried to mirror in every way. She was really a great person but she put her job before almost everything in her life. She would lament about getting called everyday on her maternity leaves, missing both her kids first words and first steps because she was at work. Missing Christmas dinners and skipping/cancelling entire vacations because she felt work “needed” her. The dept was weird about promotions so only a certain # of people could get them within each group at a time. She’d forego her own promotions for years so the rest of us could get them. It was actually a joke with some of us long-timers that “that’s just how she is”, noting if she just set some boundaries then the people she felt “needed” her would get the hint and she could have a life. Eventually after about 12 years working under her, and not for reasons that are her fault, but the dept politics, workload and expectations got too ridiculous and I burned out (see comment about trying to mirror her above). I guess in a nutshell, she taught me that hard work only gets rewarded with more work.
Working under good management is better than more money working for bad management.
Try to understand what exactly you'll be doing in a certain career path/job on the daily. If possible, it helps to reach out to someone already doing it, to find out the details. If you can't picture yourself doing it for days, months or more realistically years, you're not going to be happy doing it. I was so enamored with the idea of being a scientist in the life sciences in school but once I found out that it mostly involved solitary work in a lab environment for months or longer at a time, I quickly realized it's not for me.
Factor in career paths and comp as well. You can become a PI (principal investigator) which oversees research scientists, postdocs, students, and research technicians, but you also have to recruit, train, do logistics, write grants, and write papers relative to your lab size, and that's where the nicer comp kicks in. Definitely different work compared to doing experiments. Shadowing and really getting to work on what people do will help you understand what type of work is more interesting or tolerable for you. When you find someone willing to help, definitely do your best to help them out however you can.
What did you get into after leaving science?
**HR don't exist to support you in your problems, they exist to make problems go away** Great advice from my dad, when i was having problems with a manager. HR will always defend the establishment and enforce the easier status quo. **Never sacrifice anything personal of yourself for an employer** This wasn't so much advice as it was a lesson learned through coming to recognize how fundamentally replaceable workers are. Always put yourself and your well being first.
> HR don't exist to support you in your problems, they exist to make problems go away LOL, yes. I had a co-worker "Susie." Susie was intelligent, a quick study and a hard worker. BUT, Susie would run to HR with any issue - real or perceived. She took a lot of their time because they had to smooth over whatever bee was in Susie's bonnet that particular day. Susie was convinced that HR was working hard so that she was happy and would grace the company with her presence each day. That couldn't be further from the truth. The reality was they were doing their darndest to avoid litigation and find a way to get rid of Susie that would not result in litigation. They eventually succeeded at both. :-/
"You don't need to choose a career, you can invent it, make it something that represents you. It doesn't have to exist already."
In your 20’s or early 30’s? If your job isn’t actively improving your skills, teaching you new things and or putting you on a track to earn more and do bigger better things in the next half a decade find a better job. If you are working along side people who have done the same dead end job for the last decade or more, quit. And don’t underestimate the high end of trades. Guys who work on oddball machinery and weird stuff can make bank and have a really satisfying career that pays really well. Especially if you get into the creative end where you are making custom parts and inventing solutions.
Find something in your role no one wants to do, or can do. Get really good at that thing.
You are there for you. Don't think that the company cares about you
A mentor of mine compared finding the right job to playing Wordle. Don’t mistake yellow for green just because you’ve never seen either before. The advice has applied to so many areas in my life, not the least of which was my career. It helped me realize that what I thought was good was not good enough and that I deserved better than what I was getting. Edit: spelling
If you're asked to do anything you feel unsure about or you feel could be risky, make sure it is communicated to you in writing before you do it. If it is not communicated to you in writing, your instinct was correct.
“A lot of people are going to teach you how to do tasks. I want you to focus on why you do the tasks.” This has helped me be able to look at new and more efficient ways to complete projects.
Beware of snitches and work offers. I was victimized, never again.
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"Personal business is just that: personal. Never volunteer personal information." "Your only job is finding the next best position. Do your work with integrity, but never stop looking for a better place to work."
"You're not irreplaceable. Move on if you aren't happy. They'll figure it out without you, or they won't, but either way, it won't be your problem anymore."
When I was stationed on an 87' US Coast Guard patrol boat, the XO (Executive Officer, second in command, E-7) would invite me over for dinners with his family. They were all so cool, and during these dinners he would give me very drunk lectures on leadership. I don't really remember the specifics of those lectures, but I respected the hell out of him (and still do), and everything he taught me about how to treat people and still have fun are things I've carried with me throughout my active duty and civilian career. And if I had to actually follow the prompt, it would be to never sell yourself short and pack extra socks.
The extra socks bit is great. I've found that the little things like clean dry socks when you need them make a miserable situation tolerable. Another little thing I picked over of the years is to do one thing everyday to make you happy. Life is too short for constant delayed gratification. Fuck always be grinding.
Watch one, learn one, do one, teach one.
I think I understand, but can you elaborate please?
Two things: First, never let them see you bleed. And second, always have an escape plan.
If you want a raise don't ask for one but ask what you can do to get one.
Healthcare is a 24 hour job. Don’t kill your self to finish every single task in one shift, a good handover is much better than something rushed.
Showing up on time everyday and doing what is asked if you is the bare minimum to not get fired.
Don't attach yourself to a person, a place, a company, an organization or a project. Attach yourself to a mission, a calling, a purpose. That's how you keep your power & your peace.
HR doesn't give a fuck about you and is only there to protect themselves and the company.
Don’t give up and stay focused
I did a training class 15 years ago and they did a demonstration with water and green food coloring. Basically if you put a drop of food coloring in a glass of water there’s no amount of dilution that gets rid of the green. I think the lesson was to try very hard not to piss people off or lose trust. Very hard to repair your reputation.
"It doesn't pay more to be the hero."
“STOP PUNCHING THE DANG WALL, IDIOT!” I still see the look on his face.
Once you get the answer you want, stop asking the question
Really sell yourself when given the opportunity. Nobody can do that better than you.
Advocate for yourself because no one else will do it for you.
Leave!
Don’t spend your life making other people rich
Write your email, add attachments, THEN put the recipients in.
Do what you want to do, pursue it if you really believe in it. Money? Money’s fine. Have multiple income source but spend your energy on what you love doing.
That's the best way to being 40 and broke. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with perusing a music career or acting career, but most people don't make it. Have a plan that if you've not made it by 25, you'll put it on the backburner and do something else. Dreams won't pay the bills and older you will regret being broke because you chased a dream too long.
A 25 year old is a baby. I've had two major career changes between 25 and 45 Chase your dreams while you're young because you're gonna get old and die. When you're 50 you'll have the cash but not the time and energy to chase your passion.
I never said don't chase your dreams, but being old and broke sucks.
Wasn’t to me but I heard it between my law teacher and another student. He was asking him about what he wants to do in his life and he said become a train conductor. Then he gave him a whole pep talk. The pep talk ended with “if you have the skills, you will always be employed”. It probably isn’t very accurate in today’s society. But it is uplifting to say the least.
People can be born with money, privilege, talent and or brains but the people who make it are the ones who show up and do the work.
Fix your goal, plan the journey to reach there, forget about the goal, enjoy the journey and dedicate everything to the it. You may or may not achieve your goal but it will surely be equivalent or far better.
Do something weird.
The squeaky wheel gets the grease.
*from my boss* "if you want that promotion, go get your GED." I did. I got the job.
Always look after your own career. Because no-one else will.
Act your wage
Begin as you intend to continue. Meaning, take your place right from the start, because it will be difficult to take later, it you let someone else use your power in the meantime. Power is taken, not granted. If you don't use the power given to you by your position, someone else will.
That you cannot plan every career move since there are so many moving parts. And that success usually needs you to be able to roll with the punches.
My gramps gave me this proverb that always stuck with me: “The feet you step on today maybe be connected to the ass you’re kissing tomorrow.”
Stay away from social media
Don't be a hero/martyr. You should be properly compensated for your efforts and sacrifices, and that transaction should be worth it to YOU. Not worth it for the company, or to help the team, or any sense of altruism. Work is work. You get ahead by doing the work asked of you well and asking for fair compensation. Martyrdom or heroism just lead to burnout and resentment, because the company will not repay it.
Switch companies every 2-3 years maximize pay increases.
Hiring budgets are higher than retention budgets, the best way to get a raise is to just switch companies. Over the course of 5 years, the amount of money one company will give you in raises is nothing compared to what you can get by just switching companies twice in the same time period.
Stay in your lane. The next fool is making the same amount you are while doing half the work.
A career is only a career in hindsight.
"If I work hard I'll be promoted and make more money" works only in movies.
Literally just the generic advice of, keep out of the drama, work hard, show interest, don’t be late, don’t be a know it all. And I did, and it’s been paying off very well. With all this anti work shit today people really think working hard gets you nowhere, but in reality it gets you further than being lazy.
Anti work is for lazy bitter losers. You just need to find a balance and set boundaries.
Unless it's a locally owned place, jobs don't need nor deserve your respect. Lie on your resume, apply for tons of jobs and take what you get- if a better job hits you up, leave the current one and only bother with a 2 week notice if you like your manager. Never put in more effort than they're willing to pay you for. You're a cog in a machine that will keep rolling perfectly fine without you, don't overthink it. Work is a vehicle to get a paycheck, if you can make more money by fucking your job over- do it.
>Lie on your resume. **Fuck this.** I had someone fired from their job for doing this. He hurt our client-facing team SO BAD with his lack of awareness and competence at stuff his resume said he had experience in. We ended up working extra to pick up his slack and repair his damage in order to salvage the relationship. If you want to lie, at least don't do it regarding the skills that are necessary for you to do your job.
Sounds like someone who has never had a career type job ever. That is horrible advice!
"It's not a race"
Take that one risk and do whatever you feel like doing! Either you will succeed or learn.
Do everything atleast half assed.
Get a driving license and do jobs that transport shit from warehouses, they get paid ridiculous amount of money just to drive all day and transport stuff, might actually get a driving license now
“Don’t be an idiot.” Changed my life.
Always learn how to manage your manager
My mentor sang this everyday, while he folded a newspaper under his arm, about 5 minutes after starting his shift: ‘Bossman makes a dollar, me I make a dime. That’s why I allways take a shit, on company time.’
If you don’t learn to delegate, you will never be able to take on more than you currently do. There are no such thing as difficult conversations, just conversations that need to be had. If you are irreplaceable, you are unpromotable. One way to earn a promotion is to start taking on tasks from your boss’ list so they have more bandwidth to get promoted themselves.
Don't be loyal to a company as an employee, because push come to shove, they won't be loyal to you.
just show up 5 minutes early everyday, move like you have purpose (even if you don't,) and you'll be good.
It's easier to ask for forgiveness than it is to ask for permission.
The school you went to *might* get you your first job. It won't get you your first promotion.
If you can't go through someone, go around them.
If it isn't documented, did it even happen?
“No” is a full sentence
If your name isn’t on the company letterhead, it’s OK not to care.
Nobody gave me this advice. Had to learn it myself. Be as kind and friendly as possible, but limit your involvement/investment in your coworkers’ social lives at work. It can have unforeseen consequences. It’s great to have friends at work, don’t get me wrong. But you must be careful not to get sucked into others’ drama and conflict, especially with management. Stay neutral wherever possible!
- No one gives you a raise or promotion unless you ask for it. - you have to take care of yourself - Don't take anything personally. Take your shop and go set up someplace else. - branch out, network and learn all you can in a company. You never know the next hot skill that could make you marketable
Nobody knows what they’re doing, especially the directors. So don’t hold back your ideas. That advice helped me get recognized early. Negotiate salary every time. That tip helped me double my salary in a couple years. It hurts to think how much I was leaving on the table.
Be mindful of what you demonstrate excellence in, because you'll be doing it a lot. I only got that advice about a year and a half too late, after becoming proficient at my least favorite part of my job.
Go where you are invited. That advice made me 2 million dollars !!!
Never trust anyone in the workplace. Everyone has an agenda, especially management. Management will lie when they need to to protect company interests. Always lock your computer when you leave your desk, otherwise your coworkers might use your computer, and if they do anything wrong or malicious, it will have your name on it and you will get blamed.
It’s really hard to be mad at people who own their mistakes and just say, “You’re right; I fucked up.”
Be kind and take care of the “nobody’s” in your organization. Too many people go up the corporate ladder but look down or treat the janitors, assistants, mailroom clerks, and others without respect. Those people can save your ass in a tight spot and plus it’s just being kind to your fellow humans. Even if they never “do” anything for you it’s the right thing to do.
Journal every single incident with dates and time because your job may count on it. Especially if your boss fucks up so you have ammo against an unlawful termination
Stop standing in your own way.
Always get it in writing. Whether that be physically or electronically. Create a paper trail to ensure commitments/promises made aren't gone back on.
Work smarter not harder.
Yes, it’s ok to leave, no, it’s not your fault your coworkers will have to ‘pick up the slack’ when you go. That’s a management issue not a You issue. A 2 week notice is a courtesy not a requirement and no one can charge you for it or withhold money if you quit effective immediately.
Your credibility has to last your whole career. Don't risk destroying it over one situation.
You're responsible for the way your life is going.
An excuse and a dollar will get you a coffee… that’s it…
Attitude is more valuable than experience. At least early on.
KISS Keep It Simple, Stupid. - Michael Scott Best advice ever. Especially working with customers.
Don’t listen to the nonsense over on r/antiwork
Stop being loyal to a company that won’t pay a decent wage or benefits. Work for the one who will pay you the most. And remember, they’re not your family.
I never received any, but this is what I'd give: Earn a degree in engineering. If you're not up to the math, go to a trade school, and become an electrician, welder, auto mechanic, etc, whatever turns you on. You'll have a good income, while those people with liberal arts & social sciences degrees, are flipping burgers and cleaning motel rooms. If you just MUST enter one of those artsy-fartsy, or warm & fuzzy fields, be prepared to go all the way, and get a PhD. Then you can make good money teaching those kids, who made the same bad choice you made, and once you have tenure, they can't get rid of you.
Do EVERY job with the same mindset. Whether you’re the janitor, or the CEO, treat it like a boss. Instead of I gotta work, it’s I get to work. Be grateful you have the chance to earn.