Career

25
Aug
2022

How to Find Meaning in Your Work

Although there is no such thing as a meaningless job, there can be times when one’s job appears to have lost that spark. Why is your job not as fulfilling as the beginning? There is much more to it than just the nature of the job. Job hunters look for new opportunities for different reasons. Some candidates are ready for a new career move, some are always looking for a challenge and others are looking for a meaningful change.

If you are starting a role or feel like you lack a sense of purpose at work, here are some prompts to find meaning in what you do.

Keep your brain active

When our job duties are predictable and repetitive, our brains receive little stimulation. For those who are always looking for a challenge, once they have mastered a job, they might feel stuck. There may be a sense that they aren’t learning anymore, or just not growing professionally.

You must keep your brain active and be open to learning new techniques and learning from others. A good way to do this is to try reframing your job. Find potential improvements in current processes. Help others who started just like you. Try to expand your knowledge by talking to others in the industry. Look beyond your job duties.

Communicate your concerns

If your job is not what you expected, you are not alone. It is common for a job to mismatch your expectations over time. An open conversation with your recruiter or your supervisor can help you find ways to make you feel comfortable again. Communication is key. Your input is valuable, and it might not only help you find meaning in what you do, but help others as well.

Think bigger

Consider where a job might take you in the long term. Instant rewards tend to be easily forgotten, but good things take time.

It is also important to celebrate small wins, such as the projects you have completed. Think about that time when you helped a colleague, the deadlines you manage to meet, and how much you have grown. Give yourself the recognition you deserve.

Explore a full career change

It is important to identify what is making you feel like you are missing something. Is it the workplace? The job itself or personal matters? Take your time to explore your interest, core values, skills, and the work environments you enjoy.

 

Don’t be afraid to look for a new job if you’re lacking meaning in your career. Send out resumes, get in touch with recruiters, and reach out to your network. These actions can help you find potential jobs that can match your skills while giving you a fresh start or the opportunity to work in a company you’ve always dreamed of. How do you find meaning in your work? Let us know on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn.

Posted by Diana Macias Cholac in Career Advice
22
Mar
2022

Navigating a Multigenerational Workplace

For the first time in history, there are five generations interacting in the workplace. The workforce is now made up of employees from a combination of different milestone generations, each with different values, needs, motivators, career goals, and professional experience. And this is only the beginning – in the coming years, there could be up to six different generations working within organizations at one time, which is why learning to navigate and manage a multigenerational workforce now is so critical. With the median retirement age in Canada steadily increasing,  it’s inevitable that organizations will have to pivot to include the evolving priorities of newer generations while still accommodating older employees, and this shift won’t be easy. However, it’s important to remember that generational divide is a self-fulfilling prophecy, and there are steps that can be taken at all levels to ensure that you, your colleagues, and leaders are mutually benefitting and growing within this new generational environment.

What’s In a Year?

While it can be detrimental to categorize groups of people based on their generational group, there are certain elements and experiences that are universal to each generation.

Gen Z: Born between 1996 – 2014

  • Immersed in technology from birth, adapted to a technologically interconnected world
  • Experienced growing up with financial and social instability
  • Grew up during an economic downturn during major global events
  • High aptitude in digital communications

Millennials: Born between 1981 – 1996

  • Witnessed major technological advances within their lifetime
  • Experience finding work in difficult job markets
  • Witnessed wealth followed by economic downturn
  • Good balance of in-person and digital communication

Gen X: Born between 1965 – 1980

  • Experienced high divorce rates and disproportionately high single-family upbringings
  • Significant technological advancements during working years
  • Varied workplace experience and high adaptability
  • Combination of digital skills

Baby Boomers: Born between 1946 – 1964

  • Post-war upbringing
  • Not native to digital technology, but experience working throughout varied technological advancements
  • Experienced high job market accessibility
  • Tend to be less adept at utilizing digital technology

Traditionalists: Born between 1925 – 1945

  • Experienced the first wave of true technological innovation during their upbringing
  • Typically have limited experience with technology in the workplace

 

Industry Matters

Tech-centric environments are some of the most influenced by multiple generations of employees. It’s becoming increasingly necessary to hire younger employees to close the knowledge gap while still relying on older workers’ tenured experience, which can lead to conflict.

The methodologies in a technological environment are a huge contributor to this issue. While the fundamental career goals of many employees remain the same, including a need for financial security, desire for work-life balance, and overall commitment to their career, methodologies within a tech environment are one of the big differences seen when comparing older and younger generations. In general, rapidly changing technology influences the way that workers interact with each other, with certain environments facilitating a highly communicative and collaborative approach. This can exile older groups while leaving younger generations feeling unheard. Incorporating generational differences in training and mentoring can help, with an emphasis on understanding and integrating the preferred communication styles of all generations. Overall, the most important thing to remember is that the larger goals of the company should be the focus. A good strategy is identifying the areas of each generational group that can be of benefit to the bigger picture.

 

Lose the Labels

Generational stereotypes just aren’t accurate. It’s an oversimplification to box younger employees into a specific way of thinking and can lead to more division, and research shows that different generations tend to think that their older or younger counterparts have vastly different priorities than they actually do. When it comes down to it, it’s important for organizations to maintain a good idea of what all of their employees want, without making any assumptions. Anonymous company-wide surveys are a good way to monitor the success of different initiatives and gain an overall understanding of how your team is running from a cultural sense. In short, put in the time to find out what your workplace culture is and work together to build it as a team based on real metrics.

 

Meet People Where They Are

Every employee is going to have their own individual values within the workplace, no matter what age group or generation they’re a part of. The most important thing to remember is that generalizing an approach isn’t the most effective way to manage any team, and having a good understanding of your employees’ widespread goals is the best way to strategize your approach. Good corporate values, better communication, and the right amount of support are things that every employee can agree facilitate a positive working environment, and these are things that can be upheld by employees of any experience level or generational group. Focusing on the things that each person has in common is more productive than trying to generalize each specific concern, and creating an environment that supports good communication allows everyone to have a good understanding of workplace needs as a whole.

 

Moving Forward

Ready or not, the workplace is changing faster than many organizations can accommodate. On average, only 1 in 5 employers said that they felt “very confident” that their organizations were ready to manage the next generation of talent. To get ahead, prepare to leverage young talent to bridge the skills or culture gap that you might be experiencing. Hire based on skill, not experience, and remember that employer values can make or break a successful work environment. Keep on the pulse of the new generation while making room for your older, more experienced employees. Whether you’re an employer, employee, or brand new to the workforce, think about the things you can do to share your own knowledge with the people around you to build an inclusive and successful place of work, for the benefit of every generation.

Posted by Emily Couves in Best Practices, Career Advice
23
Jul
2021

How to Successfully Manage a Career Transition

With employment rates rising as public health restrictions ease, many Canadians are feeling the itch to find a new career path as economic conditions improve. Of the workers planning to change careers in the coming months, many cite concerns about career advancement as their primary reason for leaving. Others say the pandemic has caused them to shift their focus and analyze their skillsets. But while moving into a new role can sound tempting, there is plenty to consider and prepare for when making this decision. Planning a career transition of your own? Read on to learn the best ways to prepare so that when opportunity strikes, you’re ready.

1. Ask Yourself What You (Really) Want

When you start considering looking for a new job, it’s a clear sign that you need to be checking in with yourself about your priorities and longer term direction. Consider asking yourself what your personal requirements are when it comes to pay, schedule flexibility, remote working options, and growth potential. This way, you’ll know ahead of time what you aren’t willing to compromise on, and it’ll make your decisions easier down the road.

 

2. Set a Timeline

Once you’ve fully committed to starting your career transition, it’s time to hold yourself accountable. It’s easy to decide to find a new job “one day”, but without an idea of how your job search will look, it can be hard to put your plan into action. Once you have a good idea of the types of roles you’re open to and the things you want out of your new job, it’s always a good idea to give yourself a timeline to complete all of the things necessary to make your move. Need to brush up on some skills? Set aside a month or two to take a refresher course. Planning to shop around before you accept a job offer? It’s good to have a date range in mind that you can give potential employers should an opportunity arise.

3. Build Your Network

It’s a great time to start leveraging your connections and finding new additions to your network – recruiting efforts are ramping up and hiring managers and recruiters alike are on the hunt for talented people to join their teams. If you were quiet on LinkedIn before, try becoming a little more active and engaging with content that interests you. Check out local networking opportunities, in-person or online. You might even consider taking a part-time course or online program in your industry to keep your skills sharp and your connections fresh.

 

4. Prepare for Change

Despite the most careful planning, changing your career path can be jarring. When you’re getting ready to move into a new role, it can be tempting to place the majority of your focus on your professional life. But major life changes require mental preparation, too – that’s why it’s always a good idea to take an inventory of how you’re feeling, the impact of a new career on your day-to-day routine, and the way that a new schedule or focus may impact the rest of your life. Take some time before starting a new role to get in a mindset that will prepare you for what’s to come and keep you on the right track.

Posted by Emily Couves in Career Advice
28
May
2021

How to Make Your Job Search Work for You

When you’re looking for a job, it can feel like it’s all you have time to do. Between scrolling job boards, making calls, sending emails, preparing your resumes for dozens of applications, writing cover letters, interviewing….. the list goes on. But it doesn’t have to be like that. Keep reading to learn how to make your job search work for you (and not the other way around).

1. Generalize Your Resume

When you’re searching for specific roles, it may not make sense to pare your resume down to the basics. But it can be helpful – starting with a general resume featuring your skills, employment history, and profile will make it much easier to tailor it to your desired roles later on. All you’ll have to do is modify the details to fit the specifics of the job rather than starting from scratch every time.

2. Use Job Boards to Your Advantage

Once you have a resume that ticks all of the boxes, upload it to job sites like Monster or Indeed to let employers find you. Hiring managers often perform resume searches when they can’t find the right candidate, and having an up-to-date resume uploaded to popular job sites can be a huge advantage. This is especially true for passive job seekers – if you’re not on a time crunch, you can sit back and let potential employers find you.

3. Work with Recruiters

Recruiters and recruitment agencies can be huge assets to any job seeker, but they’re especially beneficial when you’re looking for someone to take the guesswork out of your job application. Recruiters can help you perfect your resume, brush up on the necessary technical skills you need to succeed, prepare for interviews, and present yourself to potential employers. Recruiters may find your profile through job boards or networking sites like LinkedIn, but a great first step is sending in an application to the agency (like ours! Reach us at info@stellar-recruitment.com). In many cases, your profile will even be added to a database to be contacted for future relevant opportunities.

4. Set Up Job Alerts

Plenty of the most popular online job boards feature job alerts that you can tailor to your exact specifications. Sites like ZipRecruiter, LinkedIn, and Indeed can be set up to send alerts to your email every time a relevant opportunity becomes available. You can even get weekly updates with a list of roles you might be interested in. Setting up job alerts combined with your uploaded resume can make applying for a job as easy as checking your inbox.

5. Make the Right Connections

Most professionals are used to using sites like LinkedIn to network with like-minded people in their industry. But it can be worth it to make connections on other social media such as Facebook, Twitter, and even Instagram. Letting a broader network of people (even your friends, family, and old colleagues) know that you’re on the hunt for new opportunities will open up plenty of new potential leads. Take a moment to send a few messages and emails letting others know that you’re on the market and make new professional connections.

 

Do you have any other tips and tricks that you use in your job search? Let us know in the comments below to be featured in future articles!

Posted by Emily Couves in Career Advice, 0 comments
14
May
2021

Best Websites for Job Hunters (And Who Should Use Them)

There’s no shortage of websites that claim to help job seekers in their search for employment. From local career pages to multinational job boards, you can spend a lot of time preparing resumes, messaging hiring managers, and taking skills assessment tests in the pursuit of a new work opportunity. But are all of these sites really worth the time? Keep reading to learn about our favorite online job boards, and how you can utilize them to their fullest potential in your job search.

1. LinkedIn

BEST FOR: Networking and working with recruiters

Launched in 2003, LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional networking platform. This multifunctional site is host to an entire suite of tools that can be helpful at any stage of your career, and virtually every user will benefit from creating a profile, setting up notifications for relevant opportunities, and interacting with like-minded people in their networks. However, LinkedIn is truly second-to-none for established, specialized professionals actively looking to advance their career in their respective industries.

There are a huge variety of open roles on LinkedIn, but the ones you’ll see most often are mid-to-senior level positions in marketing, information technology, HR, engineering, and administration. You can certainly benefit from applying to jobs on LinkedIn through open opportunities, but another great way to learn everything this site has to offer is by flexing your networking skills. Making connections (similar to sending a friend request on Facebook), posting updates on your page, and interacting with local recruiters and hiring managers can be extremely beneficial for advancing your career and learning about new opportunities. Another huge benefit that LinkedIn provides is how popular it is for recruiters – simply having an active profile with your resume information is a great way to attract recruiters to your profile and receive info about active jobs directly to your inbox.

No matter how you use it, utilizing LinkedIn and its features to the fullest potential will reward you with consistent opportunities for growth, plenty of new career prospects, and an amazing network of industry professionals.

 

2. Indeed

BEST FOR: Active job seekers with specific job requirements

With LinkedIn coming in at the top as the world’ largest professional networking platform, Indeed is in close competition as the world’s largest job website. Featuring 250 million monthly users and 10 new jobs being added per second, it’s no question that this site is a job seeker’s paradise.

Indeed features opportunities in every sector and industry, and works best for active job seekers with a great resume and employable skills. From part-time service industry jobs to opportunities for high-level corporate executives and everything in between, Indeed truly offers the greatest overall experience for those looking to make their job search faster and easier than ever. It’s intuitive interface allows for a streamlined process that will get you hired, and using this platform, you’ll be able to compare salaries, learn about different benefits, and tailor your job search to fit the exact opportunity you’re looking for.

 

4. Monster

BEST FOR: Active job seekers looking for an easy application process

Monster is the job site that started it all in 1994, and functions similarly to Indeed in that its services are free, easy to navigate, and offer many of the same functionalities. If you’re already using Indeed, it’s worth it to give Monster a try, too – it’s a great overall service that features a huge range of jobs in a variety of industries.

 

4. Company Career Pages

BEST FOR: Passive job seekers, or anyone hoping to work for a specific company

Company career pages tend to be looked at as the underdog in many a job search – but this doesn’t have to be the case.

You can find career pages on nearly every company site, and while this process can take slightly longer than uploading your resume to sites like Monster and Indeed, the payoff can be huge. One helpful hint is to double check the posting date that many sites will feature – this way, you’ll be able to tell how active the posting is and if it’s worth your time to apply. However, even if a posting is getting dated, you can be assured that your profile will likely be added ton a database that can provide opportunities for months and years to come. Check out Stellar Recruitment’s job board here.

 

5. Craigslist

BEST FOR: Contract or gig work, opportunities with local companies

Craigslist is an incredible tool for job seekers, and functions the most like a traditional job advertisement. Featuring gig work, full time opportunities, freelance work for those in a creative field, contract work, and manual labour, Craigslist allows job seekers to send emails directly to the poster, and offers such a huge variety of opportunities that it’s worth it for anyone in the midst of a job search to check out.

 

Posted by Emily Couves in Career Advice, 0 comments