Five Areas to Be Grateful for in Your Career

As we approach Thanksgiving Day it’s good to think about our career and the parts of our work lives that we’re grateful for. We’d also recommend a daily gratitude practice but that is a story for another time.

There are many aspects of our career that we might be thankful for but for now let’s focus on the following five areas.

The opportunity to do work that benefits your community and the world, while utilizing your strengths, talents, skills, and interests. It’s fulfilling to find work that interests you and enables you to use your strengths and skills to make the world a better place through your company’s products or services.

Working with good people. You’re fortunate when you work with a competent and dedicated team that you enjoy working with toward a common goal. You earn bonus points when there is one or two co-workers you consider a friend or enjoy socializing with outside of work.

Flexible work arrangements. Be grateful for opportunities you to work from home, leave work early to attend to family matters, or benefit from a four-day work-week.

A mentor. We should always be thankful for those people who have taught, guided, and mentored us along the way in our lives, education, and in our jobs. A good mentor should not be taken for granted, and he or she likely played an important role in where you are now in your life and career.

The occasion to advance in your career and to develop your skills. A great workplace enables you to gain new knowledge, enhance your skills, and provides opportunities for advancement. Be grateful for these opportunities at work.

These five areas can offer you the chance to reflect on your current job, be thankful for the positive aspects of your work, and can help you consider whether a change in scenery might be better for your career.

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: Networking and Getting the Most Out of a Conference

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share them so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

© Bellemedia | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos

• How to Get the Most Out of a Conference: "Perhaps one-on-one meetings are better for you or small group settings. If so ... mak(e) a reservation at a local restaurant for about eight people before the conference. Then invite people from your wish list."


• Become a Networking Beast: "Avoid rambling off the reasons why your product or service is the best. Instead, ask everyone whom you speak with if there is anything you can do to help their business."


• Mika Brzezinski on Leadership and Knowing Your Worth: "Don't ever say that you will walk if you won't, but if you get to the point where you can no longer do your job knowing that you are not getting what you are worth, it might be time to take that drastic step. Plan ahead for future employment if you find yourself in a place where you have to make demands."


• 6 Interviewing Mistakes: "As with the elevator pitch, it’s best to have a smart, genuine question prepared before the interview. All too often, people to go into the interview with the expectation that a brilliant question will materialize somewhere between the hellos and the wind-down, but it just doesn’t work that way."


• 3 Steps to Mapping Your Career Path: "Your values, strengths, interests and compensation are building blocks that make up the cornerstone of fulfillment in your career."

High 5 Weekly Career Transitions Roundup: More Networking and Entrepreneurial Tips

This is our weekly roundup of some of the best career-related articles, interviews, blogs, etc., we've read during the week. We share these every weekend so you have some great resources to prepare you for the coming week. Enjoy!

© Bellemedia | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos

• Don't Work For Your Boss, Work For Your Company: "Go the extra mile for your company. Use your special interests to make your company better from the inside out."

• 7 Things I'd Do Differently If I Started My Small Business Today: "One of the best ways to get noticed fast is by building relationships with influencers in your industry. In the times of social media this has become easier than ever."                                                      
• Winning New Networking Contacts in 6 Steps: "Success comes to people who are always seeking new knowledge and perspectives that will make them more well-rounded people, better thinkers and ultimately better employees."


• The Art of Accidental Networking: "When it comes to accidental networking, knowing exactly what kind of job you want is the first step in the right direction — even if you don’t have the experience in a particular line of work."


• 6 Things You Should Quit Doing To Be More Successful: "Delaying or procrastinating around something that you think is important means one of two things. You’re either scared to start because it means your life will change or you want it for the wrong reasons."

Overlooking Skills Gained Outside of Work

During a job search, it may be easy to identify and communicate skills you have gained in the workplace, but what about skills you’ve gained outside of work. Many people overlook everyday-life skills they’ve developed at home or through participation in hobbies, clubs and organizations, or volunteer work.

Whether you’re currently employed, looking to change jobs, or re-entering the workforce, it is a good idea to broaden your scope when creating your skills inventory. This inventory should be something you can easily reference when needed, for example, when updating your resume or interviewing for a job.

Below are a few common scenarios and highlighted skills that may apply to the workplace.

Stay-at-home Parenting

If you’ve been a stay-at-home parent and never given a second thought to the skills you’re gaining, think again. Raising children translates to caregiver. Managing your family’s budget develops general accounting and budget management skills. Handling several tasks successfully on any given day, and often simultaneously, demonstrates time management and multitasking abilities.

Volunteer Work

Volunteer work is a great way to use existing skills and learn new ones. For example, if you volunteer your time tutoring children, you are developing teaching skills. By working with a non-profit organization to build homes, you cultivate construction skills. Raising money for your local church or school provides fundraising experience.

Hobbies or Interests

Writing your own blog posts hones communication skills. Similarly, if you find yourself answering technology questions and fixing computers for friends and family, you may have a technical aptitude that is highly sought in the workplace.

These ideas provide a starting point. Now make time to think about and professionally position the invaluable skills you have gained outside the workplace.