Don’t Chase Money, Chase The Stretch

Don’t Chase Money, Chase The Stretch
June 16, 2016 UcheOfodile
In Inspire, Lead, Learn, Quote

Someone sent me a really good question this week. They asked me what I look for when I’m considering a new job or role. Of course it depends on where you are in your career but certainly as I was coming up the ladder it was all about how much the role was going to stretch me. I embrace challenging roles.

Surprised? Way way down on that list was money. Believe me. Don’t. Chase. Money. This is not to say you compromise your worth and value; that you sell your self short ( I recently spoke with someone about working for free. I had a few unpaid internships when I was younger but would not do that today) but it must not be the only deciding factor. I have counseled many people on this very point. Work hard and deliver. Be passionate. The money will come. When we make choices for our career based solely on the salary and benefits, we are prone to make decisions that may not be right for us.

I had a mentee who had a wonderful role with company A. He was learning a lot and was on track for a promotion but he became distracted by who was earning what and why was so and so earning more than he was. My advice? Deliver. Continue to do an amazing job. Perform. Be the best and the money will come. It was difficult to shut out all that noise but he did. He took on extra responsibilities and volunteered for new projects which allowed him to learn so much more. Today, he is a highly respected director in a leading (and different) company and he gets paid more than he imagined. When he signed up for the new job, he sent me an email thanking me. The email subject: The money came! Food for thought.

Have a great week.

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