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Career Choices That Fundamentally Change Your Fortune and Happiness

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When you become an adult, unless you come from old money, you will need a career. Most people face this challenge, and some do very well with it. You might find something that you love.

Maybe you have a passion that you follow, and it makes you money. You can find your own place in the world and also support yourself. For many, that is the dream life toward which you ll aspire.

The career choices you make can keep you happy and satisfied, but only if you land a job that pays the bills and keeps you fulfilled at the same time. Let us discuss some career choices that can make all the difference.

Companies with the Latest Coworking Spaces

You might look at companies with modern coworking spaces. Look at the Fish Creek coworking space as an example if you do not know this term.

Usually, these coworking spaces have an open-concept theme. They don t have tiny cubicles anymore. These cubicles can crush your spirit. If you work in a small box, typing away at your computer, you might experience depression or sadness before too long.

Instead, you may work for a company that has open-concept workspaces. You work alongside coworkers in a communal space, so you can constantly talk and update each other regarding your projects.

Often, these spaces have comfortable couches where you can lie down and rest if you ever need it. They may have foosball and ping-pong tables. Maybe they ll have full-size, retro video games you can play. You ll have TVs where you can watch sports or movies when the team needs a break.

Any company that has these options might make you happy. If you work for a business entity that has a staid, stuffy atmosphere, you probably won t like your job or career. You may need a change sooner rather than later.

Working from Home

You may also want a company that lets you do your work from home. Maybe they have an app where they can monitor what you re doing while you re on the clock. In return, the company lets you stay home, where you can enjoy working at your own pace.

You won t commute in the mornings. Maybe you can sleep in an extra hour that way. You won t spend money by taking public transportation. You will not drive to work and back, so you ll save gas money and avoid the morning traffic.

You can find these jobs easier now. The pandemic brought about more at-home work opportunities, and some employees won t go back. If you find a company that lets you do this, you might stay with them for years.

Try Freelance Work

You might also work as a freelancer rather than for just one company. Many workers these days, especially those in the Gen X, Millennial, and Gen Z generations, don t have much company loyalty. They know that businesses think they re expendable, so they regard companies the same way.

If you have job skills in a particular niche or industry, you might work as a freelancer rather than for just one company. This way, you can have several irons in the fire at one time. If one job doesn t work out, or the opportunities there end, you can just go with one of the other options.

Some freelancers work from home, while others commute to brick-and-mortar office locations. Either way, you can easily jump from a company if things there go sour or that entity no longer has what you need. This flexibility can help you since you can quickly and painlessly move on from one gig if it becomes untenable for any reason.

Work from Overseas

Digital nomad jobs might appeal as well. If you have skills and can do your work digitally, you might leave the US and travel the world. You may have working relationships with US-based companies, but you might work in Japan, India, England, or anywhere else that appeals.

When you do this, you probably won t get citizenship in another country, but you can gain real-world experience and travel while making money. It s challenging in some ways. Maybe you can t have pets, and you likely won t have a conventional relationship. If you have an adventurous spirit, though, you might enjoy this concept, especially when you re young and healthy.

Work options these days aren t what you had available ten or twenty years back. The world s interconnectedness can help your career and influence the choices you make.

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4 Signs You Should Leave Your Job
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4 Signs You Should Leave Your Job

We’ve all been there. We’ve experienced the feeling of dread, battling traffic as we drive to and from work. The lack of sleep Sunday night as your mind spins, thinking of ways to get out of work the next day. Constantly wishing you were doing something else, anything else, yet never feeling 100% clear that you’re meant to leave your job and find something else.

After all, other people at work seem happy. You earn a decent living, and you’ve got a roof over your head because of that job.

Now, I’m going to give you the four simple signs that you should get a better job. But first, here’s a bonus tell-tale sign: If you’re reading this article and got this far, you probably deserve a better job. The fact that you’re reading this tells me there’s some part of you that knows you can do better.

But, just for fun, let’s go through the four tell-tale signs you should get a better job:

1. You’re Doing What You “Should” Do

Woman thinks about leaving her job while working

Ever feel like you’re constantly doing things you “ought to do” instead of what you “want to do”? If the real reason you’re working is to appease your parents, impress your friends, or do what you think your great-great-grandfather would want you to do, then you’re not being true to yourself, and you’ll eventually snap. It’s time to tune into what you want in life and take steps today to pursue it.

2. You’re Incredibly Bored At Work

Young man looking bored at his desk and deciding whether he should get another job

There’s a difference between doing the occasional boring task during an otherwise enjoyable workweek and working an entire job that you’re bored with. If you’re daydreaming of better things to escape the mind-numbing boredom, then it’s time to make those dreams come true and find a job that’s fulfilling and plays to your strengths.

3. Your Co-Workers Bring You Down

Young professional upset at his desk while his coworker yells at him

People around us have a huge impact on our life, often much more than we realize. So, if you don’t get along with your team, find yourself picking up bad habits from your co-workers, or just can’t wait to get away from them, then that’s a pretty good sign the grass is greener elsewhere.

4. You Say “No” To This Question Too Many Days In A Row

Young professional woman looking stressed at her job, debating whether she should look for a new job

Here’s the really big, final, decisive sign. It’s from Steve Jobs’ famous Stanford commencement speech, and it goes like this:

“When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: ‘If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you’ll most certainly be right.’ It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: ‘If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?’ And whenever the answer has been ‘No’ for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.”

Powerful, isn’t it?

These tell-tale signs may have helped you come to terms with the fact that it’s time for a change. Yet, as you likely know, figuring that out is the easy part. The much more difficult part is gaining clarity on what to do, and having the courage to do it.

If you need help building the confidence to leave your current job, check out Work It Daily and all of our career resources. We’ll help you feel empowered in your job search so you can find the right job for you!

This article was originally published at an earlier date.

How To Answer “Why Should We Hire You?”
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How To Answer “Why Should We Hire You?”

Every time you interview, your main purpose is to convince the employer to hire you. The job search is a sales process. The hiring manager (your future boss) is the “customer,” and you are both the sales rep and the product. Why should they choose you over all the other “products” out there?

During the interview process, the hiring manager might ask you, “Why should we hire you?” Here are some tips for how you can effectively answer this tough interview question and stand out from other job candidates:

Focus On What You Can Do For The Employer

Job candidate explains why the employer should hire her in a job interview

This question is actually a fantastic opportunity for you to summarize why you’d be a great hire.

Always focus your answer on what benefits you bring, what problems you can solve, and what solutions you can provide. Never, ever say that they should hire you because you need the job or because you really want it—or anything remotely related to your reasons for wanting the job. This is your chance to connect the dots and help the employer see why you’re the best person for the job.

Think about things you know the hiring manager (interviewer) is looking for—skill sets, background, character traits, personal qualities, education, experience, or anything else that will make you successful in this role. Relate your answer to these things.

Give An Example

Job candidate answers "Why should we hire you?" in a job interview

Explain how you meet the employer’s needs and give an example to support your answer.

Your answer should be framed like this: “You should hire me because you’ve said you want someone with A, B, and C. I fit all of your requirements. I have A (say what that is), B (maybe give an example), and C (elaborate further).”

This will help you stand out from the other candidates and it gives the employer a reason to hire you.

Keep The Job Description (And Your Skills!) In Mind

Typically, this question will come toward the end of the interview, so you can refer to what you’ve already talked about, or mention something new that you know they’d be interested in. If it comes in the beginning, use the job description and your research to answer:

  • Will this job require long hours? Mention your work ethic.
  • Will this job need someone with great communication skills? Give an example of yours.
  • Will this job need someone who can learn on the fly? Tell them how you’re going to get up to speed quickly and how you’ve learned and adapted before.
  • Does this job need someone with a particular background? Mention yours.
  • Do you have the skill set they want? Talk about your skill set and how you have been successful with it.

Give them examples of what you have achieved in the past. If you haven’t done this job before, talk about similar things you’ve done or qualities you have that will make you successful in this new role.

It’s never easy to answer “Why should we hire you?” in a job interview. However, if you do these three things, you’ll be able to articulate your skills, experience, and qualifications with ease. And you’ll impress the hiring manager in the process!

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This article was originally published at an earlier date.

5 Common Teaching Mistakes That Stunt Student Growth
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5 Common Teaching Mistakes That Stunt Student Growth

As an education consultant observing instruction across content areas, grade bands, and schools, I have seen A LOT of instruction, both good and bad. While most teachers teach from a place of caring and compassion, the simple mistakes that I see teachers repeatedly making are undermining the overall impact that they could be having on learning especially when one considers the cumulative effect of poor teaching practices, across multiple teachers, on any one student.

Don’t get tangled up in this trap. Start upping your teaching game by canceling the following five teaching practices:

Using The Standard As The Lesson Objective

Student does his homework

I sometimes see teachers using specific Common Core State Standards as the learning objective for an entire unit of study. For example, I once saw a fourth-grade teacher use “Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meaning (CCSS ELA-LITERACY L.4.5)” as the learning objective across many days of learning. This is an academically rigorous standard to be sure. However, as there are many types of figurative language, how does the teacher know they are meeting the precise intent of this standard unless they break down this standard into its component parts? Could each part then be a lesson/daily objective?

To answer, I suggest teachers draw upon the work of Larry Ainsworth in unwrapping standards. In a nutshell, Ainsworth’s model for deconstructing standards has educators identifying each concept (nouns) and skill (verbs) embedded within each standard to ensure that the complete intent of the standard is understood. More about the model can be found here.

Dumbing Down Objectives

Math teacher lectures his students

My blood boiled over one day when a teacher told me that his students could not possibly meet learning objectives and/or success criteria that asked students to synthesize, evaluate, and/or create since his students were lower functioning. I have no doubt that this teacher was correct in saying that some of his students would, indeed, struggle in meeting higher-level success criteria. However, what then was this teacher doing to scaffold the learning so his lower-functioning students could succeed in meeting such objectives? First, develop lesson objectives with high achievement in mind so that high-performing students are not held back by low-performing students. Then, consider the scaffolds—such as one-on-one and small group direct instruction—that will be provided to lower-achieving students so they, too, can achieve rigorous objectives.

In developing rigorous learning objectives, those that place the cognitive lift on students, I recommend teachers use two tools—a Depth of Knowledge (DOK) Wheel and Hess’ Cognitive Rigor Matrix. The DOK Wheel will help educators to craft learning objectives inclusive of increasing levels of student challenge from a DOK Level One (Student Recall) through to a DOK Level Four (Extended Student Thinking). The Matrix will help teachers to compare their learning objectives, as currently written, to examples of those at varying levels of cognitive complexity so that these objectives may be rewritten to reflect higher levels of cognitive complexity. The Matrix is available for both humanities and math/science content areas.

Bonus Hack for Writing Objectives: When teachers write the learning objective into their guided practice slide decks, it is often only on the front slide. How can students refer to it/follow along if they can’t see it? Instead, include the objective on all slides or, better yet, write it on the class board.

Talking Non-Stop

Teacher leads a class discussion

Less is more. If a teacher’s guided practice drones on and on, as their coach, I sometimes ask if the teacher can call on a student to repeat and/or summarize what was said. Sometimes the student can but, other times, as the student begins to explain, they become confused. This is precisely why I ask this of teachers. If students are to retain information, research shows that there need to be breaks in long lectures. Chunk the learning. Allow a quick turn and talk so students can process learning before proceeding to ask students to repeat and/or summarize information.

On a related note, teachers should stop asking “Any questions?” as a matter of pro forma politeness before speeding along on the bullet train that is their lecture. Most students will not admit that they do not understand something unless it is teased from them. Instead, cold call and use other strategies such as polling, individual whiteboards, and signaling cards. And, when teachers do stop talking to ask questions of students, they can ensure that those questions are cognitively rigorous using this question stem tool.

Telling Students To Take Notes Instead Of Showing Them How

Student takes notes during class

If I had a quarter for each time I heard “take notes.” What does this mean? One of the practices in which I engage when observing classes is to look over at what students are doing and the notes they are taking; the level of detail and amount of relevant information can vary widely. Instead, a good practice is to adopt a standard note-taking format like Cornell Notes. In adopting a standard format, teachers can scaffold notes, build in essential questions, and have students summarize their learning—all best practices discussed in this article. Further, students can assess the quality of not only their notes but that of peers and use these notes in the development of student-generated study guides.

One scaffolding technique that I suggest teachers use with Cornell Notes is to include unit-related vocabulary with which students may be struggling and/or may not yet have been exposed. Often, when students leave questions blank on assessments, it can be because students do not understand what is being asked of them because of the vocabulary being used. In addition to highlighting key vocabulary on Cornell Notes, consider expanding a student’s knowledge of related vocabulary through the use of varied Vocabulary CODE activities as well as tiered vocabulary in each content area.

Taking Class Time To Have Students Complete Worksheets

Students complete a worksheet during class

A standard practice that I have seen, when teachers are afraid to release control, is for students to complete worksheets independently and silently in class. First, teachers should consider if work needs to be done in class or, after modeling one or two examples of what students are to do, the rest of the worksheet can be done at home so that class time can be used for discussion of the work. Learning together builds creativity, blends individual strengths, and enhances the sense of collective ownership.

However, teachers are wise in anticipating where learning can go wrong, and there can be many reasons why students may not be focused during student-to-student-based activities. Still, the solution for most attention problems resides with the teacher. If students are unfocused and discussing unrelated matters during group work, give them the questions to discuss up front. If students can’t engage in discussions with one another appropriately, give them discussion/accountable talking stems. If some students are doing all the work while their teammates stand about idly, assign individual roles within each group as well as have students self-assess their level of contribution as well as peer assess that of their teammates. Also, provide exemplars of quality work and allow students some choice in how they demonstrate proficiency (the product) beyond that of a worksheet. There are also varied discussion protocols that can be used to differentiate the process through which students talk collaboratively about the content.

Word To The Wise

Teacher helps a student with an assignment

These are, without a doubt, some of the most common mistakes that I have seen educators make regardless of the amount of time that they have been in the profession. I, myself, was not immune from making these same missteps in the classroom. Still, being forewarned is forearmed and hopefully an awareness of these common pratfalls, along with a knowledge of the tools that can be used to navigate around them, will help ensure that not a moment of class time is wasted to inefficiency.

Please feel free to reach out to the author at John Schembari, Ed.D. | LinkedIn.