Careers: The Workplace

Staying Is Not Always the Smartest Move People have been told for years that staying with one employer proves loyalty and that moving too often makes you look unstable. Sometimes that is true. But I have also seen people stay in the same job for years, doing more work, taking on more responsibility, and still

Qualified Does Not Always Mean Chosen You can be fully qualified for a job inside your own company and still never get a fair shot at it. That is one of those workplace realities people usually learn after they have been around long enough to see how organizations actually operate. On paper, internal hiring can

The Tradition of Giving Two Weeks’ Notice Most of us grew up hearing that when I decide to leave a job, the professional thing to do is give two weeks’ notice. The idea sounds simple and fair. I give my employer enough time to prepare for my departure. My supervisor can redistribute my responsibilities. The

The Telephone Call Many Employees Fear Leaving one job for another can bring a particular kind of anxiety. I may have completed the application, survived the interviews, and finally received the offer I wanted. Then someone tells me the new employer is going to verify my previous employment. Suddenly I begin wondering what my old

Hard Work and Advancement Are Not Always the Same Thing For much of my working life, I believed that if I worked hard, did a good job, and treated people fairly, my efforts would eventually be recognized. I trusted that doing my best would speak for itself. There is considerable wisdom in that approach, but

The Question That Sounds Simpler Than It Is Imagine sitting across from someone in Human Resources and hearing these words: “You have two choices. You can resign, or we can terminate you.” My first instinct might be to resign. Being able to say “I resigned” certainly sounds better than saying “I was fired.” It feels

Why a Strong First Interview Can Still Go Nowhere Sometimes you walk out of an interview knowing you did well and still never get invited back. That can leave you confused because you replay the conversation and cannot identify anything that went terribly wrong. You answered the questions, connected with the interviewer, explained your experience,

The Job Search Has Changed I keep hearing from people who have sent one hundred, two hundred, and sometimes even more applications and still cannot understand why nobody is calling. After enough rejection or silence, a person naturally begins thinking something must be wrong with them. Maybe they are too old, too experienced, underqualified, overqualified,

The First Reaction Is Usually Emotional If my boss comes to me and says, “It has been brought to my attention that you did X, Y, and Z,” my first instinct may be to defend myself immediately. That reaction is human because nobody likes being accused of something they believe they did not do. The