This post originally appeared on Forbes.
Given the prevalence of turmoil and pressures in the world, it may be more important than ever for people to feel good about their work. Unfortunately, many people feel unhappy in jobs that don’t quite suit them—and yet they may not take steps to improve their current situations or find better prospects elsewhere.
Mary Olson-Menzel, author of What Lights You Up? Illuminate Your Path and Take the Next Big Step in Your Career, wants to “give people hope that there’s more out there than meets the eye.” She doesn’t believe people should grind away in unsatisfying jobs, and she shares multiple approaches to help you get the job you want and find opportunities to learn and thrive in your career and your life.
Prepare For Interviews
No matter what role you’re going for, it’s crucial to be able to demonstrate to your potential employer that you’ll be a valuable addition to the team, Olson-Menzel notes in a recent interview. “Employers want people who can overcome, “who can bring the solutions to the table, who are resilient and who want to be the best they can be.”
The best way to demonstrate your resilience and problem-solving ability to potential employers is to prepare for behavioral interviewing, she suggests. By practicing specific situational examples, you’ll have a better chance of showing you have the skills and experience that employers value.
“I always tell clients not only to practice, but to think about three situations for every job,” Olson-Menzel says. “So if you’ve had five jobs, you have to think about 15 situations where you’ve made an impact and be prepared to discuss them, because those behavioral interviews are a looking glass into how you’re going to respond in real time when it happens to you at that company. So give an example of how you overcame something. Give an example of the thing you’re most proud of. Give an example of where you dealt with a difficult person and made the team work.”
Connect With Your Colleagues
“The first 30, 60, 90 days are imperative for setting the tone for the rest of your career,” Olson-Menzel says, and getting off on the right foot with both your direct supervisor and the organization is crucial. “Take in the culture and learn as much as you can about the people and what is needed in that organization, and then get really clear with your boss on what is expected of you and what are the milestones that you can hit at every stage.”
No matter what level you come in at, she encourages “really becoming a sponge, getting to know as many people as you can, getting to know people at all levels, too.” This includes your boss and team members, of course, and even the CEO, if possible.
Olson-Menzel also suggests learning about your new teammates’ career journeys in order to strengthen your early relationships. For example, you can show your commitment to both your colleagues and the organization by asking, “What can I do to help this organization be better? And then take it another step: ‘What can we do together to help both of our teams and the organization be better?’”
Stay Fresh After Settling In
Be purposeful about your career and personal growth even after you’re settled into your responsibilities because if you want to thrive, it’s important not to lose sight of these goals. “I want you to get comfortable in the job,” Olson-Menzel says, “but I want you to continue to look for ways to learn and look for ways to not only enhance your skill set so that you can get promoted, potentially, but also to make sure that you’re growing as a professional.”
Seeking enrichment and growth is up to you, whether your boss—or the organization—provides advancement or not. “The one thing that people forget is that your career is in your own hands,” she cautions. “It’s not in the hands of your boss, it’s not in the hands of the organization—it is in your hands. So if the company is not giving you the resources for growth and upward trajectory, ask, ‘What can I do to grow? What can I do to get better? What can I do to take my career to the next level?’ And if the company doesn’t have answers for you, then there are plenty of resources outside that you can look to.”
Manage Situations That Aren’t Ideal
Even if you and your new boss don’t see your participation in the same way, or your boss seems less than thrilled about your unique combination of skills and styles, the kind of energy you put out shapes the results you get back, so it’s important to manage your mindset and look for the good. “I’ve had clients who come in and they’re lost, and they’re like, ‘This sucks! I hate my job. I don’t even know where to go from here,’” Olson-Menzel says. “Well, then, my advice is ‘Okay, well, let’s start from where you are.’”
So look for wins, and appreciate them when they happen: “What are the moments in your day that have given you joy, hope, the things that you’re grateful for? Those are your blessings. What are your commitments to doing more of that?”
Not feeling completely thrilled with your job is normal, Olson-Menzel says, but you can still identify “‘the little pieces of this job that I really do like.’ How do you start to incorporate more of that into your day-to-day life? If you’re lucky enough to have a boss who listens, talk. Have a very valid and open and raw conversation with that boss, and say, ‘You know what? Here are the things that I want to do more of. Is there an opportunity for that?’”
If that’s not an option, but you’re in a company that you believe in, “look across platforms, look across departments, and say, ‘Well, is there something else that I might like to do somewhere else?’” Don’t be so turned off by lack of support from your individual boss that you let yourself get stuck and languish. Instead, “find somebody—if you don’t have a boss who’s going to help you or challenge you to grow, then find a mentor who will.”
Always Give Your Best
Employees must be pragmatic and think independently. “There are moments that you might have to put one foot in front of the other and take it day by day,” Olson-Menzel admits. “But you are in charge of your career. So if somebody is telling you, ‘You can’t do it,’ I’d advise you not to always listen to that.”
Instead, she suggests “flipping the narrative and saying, ‘How can I help?’” Because “when you’re interested in what you’re doing, it becomes interesting. And then you can put your own natural, authentic spin on your work.”
By intentionally choosing to be proactive, and continuing to bring your best self to both your job and your relationships, you can give yourself the best chance of finding work that “lights you up” and enjoy a meaningful career.
Onward and upward—
LK