The Coaching Corner with Michael Riegel: Do You Have a Good Job?

This can be a really hard question to answer. I want to distinguish a good job from one that provides the basics. In Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, the bottom levels upon which the triangle is built are about basic needs – food, shelter, safety. Without those basic needs met, it is impossible to rise to wants, desires, personal achievement. In a comparative way, this question is not about whether your current job meets the lowest level needs of getting paid an honest day’s pay for an honest day’s work in a timely manner. That as the price of admission to the movie but that does not include your popcorn, soda, or box of Junior Mints.

The real challenge? We all have different perspectives and outlooks on what a “good” job entails. For some, it might be about security. You want stability above all other factors. For others it might be health insurance at the cost of a higher salary. Even others may rank location and proximity to family as part of what would allow them to think of themselves in a good job. And another group may think of a good job as one that has a defined career path. I’m sure you could come up with any number of definitions of what “good” actually means.

According to data from the ADP Research Institute, several factors define “a good job.” In addition to the definitions we have explored and being seen for the work that you do (recognition is important to motivation from and Organizational Behavior approach), here are three other criteria to consider:

• Make sure you’re part of a team with a leader you trust. For me, trust centers on predictability, consistency, and approachability. As a leader, I have always tried to model those attributes. As some might say, I strive to be comfortably boring. My teams knew me to be even-keeled, level-headed, and helpful. What they saw was what they got, no surprises.
• Some level of stress is good. The kind of stress you might feel when you are “in the zone” and highly engaged in the task at hand. Not the hair on fire, “I’m so stressed” frenzy but the stress that gets you moving. Try to distinguish the good from the bad in the same way that excitement and nervousness often produce the same physical response. Same physiological symptoms, much different emotions.
• When you have a job in which you love at least some of the tasks, and you can do them daily, you are 3.8 times more likely to be more resilient and 1.5 times less likely to experience discrimination. Beware, as a manager and leader, having tasks you love also leads to a resistance to delegation.

By these standards, I have more than just a movie ticket. I have enough for all my snacks and then some.

How about you? What makes your job good (or great?)

You can reach me at MRiegel@AECBusinessStrategies.com.

Michael Riegel