Week 9 - What Color Is Your Parachute

Richard Nelson Boles is the author of "What Color Is Your Parachute?". Back in the 1970s, Richard Bolles became interested in work and vocation after losing his job as a pastor. He and his friends were feeling the pinch of tight budgets, and Boles saw many of them quickly needing to find other jobs. With a young family to raise, going back to school for more training is often not an option. Needing a different way forward, Boles began doing research on his friend's behalf, contacting labor experts and asking two specific questions: How to change careers without going back to school, and when traditional resume and classified ad methods didn't work. How to find work when not working. Bolles wrote up his findings and presented them to a group of church leaders. The information was so helpful that the church gave him a grant to continue his studies and share what he learned. 

There are 5 takeaways from this book:

1. Who precedes what

As someone who has experienced unemployment firsthand, Boles understands the fear. But he also knows that the resulting decisions can lead to job misfits, poor job performance, and more cycles of unemployment. It takes more than needs to find a good job. Boles said it's about understanding who we are before deciding what we do for a living. This is what Boles meant by "beginning": starting with our form and understanding it. As long as we have the space and reason to design, we have the opportunity to do so. This could be through a seminar at school, an unexpected job change, or our retirement event. A person who puts "what" before "who" may one day find that their entire career trajectory has been for someone who is not them. After doing a lot of work, they may find that it never resonates. Instead, putting the “who” before the “what” gives us the opportunity to find the working function our particular design follows. In this case, we can deeply discover the work we enjoy because the nature of the work is consistent with our nature.

2. Be Conversant in Your Skills

If someone asked us what our skills are, many of us would probably answer what we do at work. But our questioner might gently insist: “I want to know your skills, not what tasks you do.” It is important that we understand that our skills are natural and enjoyable abilities. We may spend a whole day doing something at work, and of course, with practice we develop ability, but that doesn't mean it's a skill for us. A good way to identify activities that we enjoy and find natural is to look at the list of skills given in this linked book called "LifeKeys". This activity helps express our areas of genius. We can write them down or talk about them with friends. The ability to understand and talk about our skills makes us attractive to good jobs. What color is your parachute? Boles points out in the book that jobs often go not to the person who is most qualified for the job, but to the person who best knows how to be hired.

3. You Are Not a Job Beggar

Sometimes we may feel like working beggars. Maybe we are constantly looking for a job and we just want someone to have something to offer us. Over time, we may even adopt a job beggar mentality, believing that we have nothing to offer, that all the power lies with the employer, and that we should gratefully jump into any job we are offered. Contrast this perspective with that of someone who sees themselves as a resource to help potential employers solve problems.

There is a world of difference between these two methods. We are all resources, but not always. Sometimes we doubt ourselves and give up the power we rightfully have. One way to take it back is to simply recognize what is happening. We find that we have given up what is ours and learned to do things differently. Another approach is to increase our confidence in the products we offer. Maybe we review our skills, learn to highlight the successful work we do, or receive more training to support our briefs. Job beggars initially feel relaxed and happy if they are offered a job, but over time this feeling sours if the job pays poorly and is below their abilities. Resource people are relaxed during interviews because they have nothing to prove and mainly want to see if they can help. If they can, they point this out to see what value their support is to the employer.

4. Study What You’ve Loved

Many of us go through long and difficult work experiences that we neglect the joy of work. We can become cynical and suspicious of anyone who claims to love their job. But anyway, updates are possible. This can be achieved by reconnecting with the things we love. All of us, at some point in our lives, have been involved in something we really enjoyed. It doesn’t have to be work-related. It can be any project, adventure or idea you follow, whether at home, as a hobby or as a volunteer.

5. Approach By Steps

There are those wonderful moments in life when the curtains part and we see something mesmerizing. When it comes to our work, such moments might include seeing work we love, or seeing someone living their life in a way we admire and want. 

Once we see the image we want, the next step is to think about how to achieve it. In this consultant's case, he spent several years building up experience and expertise. He works with all kinds of people and situations. He is confident in the service he provides and his ability to communicate effectively. If I started applying tomorrow for the kind of job he does, it wouldn't work. He spent a lot of time building everything he brought to the table. He didn't get there step by step. It took a lot of people. Maybe you have a similar situation. You've seen what you want, but it's not something you can start doing tomorrow. Achieving this goal takes time and growth. If we don’t go straight into our dream job, that’s okay. The fact that we can't might even be a good sign, meaning the job will require us to move beyond where we currently are. All we can do is take it step by step. We put ourselves in positions to gain the skills and experience we need. We work in jobs that, while not our dreams, help us move in that direction.