About finding a job and being nice to people

A few weeks ago I started a new role and I really wanted to write more about how this has played out until now but I’ve really not had time. I feel great and so far, this is the best I’ve felt in a job.

I’m not stressed or anxious wondering what the people I work with are thinking, what their plans are, what they want from me. It took me a while to get to this decision, and I realised I could have made some that would have now left me very disappointed. People that could have hired me that have now left and so on.

In being hired, I realised how much I learned in case I ever find myself in the position of hiring someone at some point further down the line in life. It really is like a series of dates – some of them good, some bad. And just like when you go on a date with someone you don’t want them to be rude to the waiter, this is true of interviews too:

It’s a quote attributed to Malcolm Forbes of magazine empire fame. It’s everywhere on the internet and people love quoting it but rarely apply it or stop to think about it. Mum and dad believe in it, believe in giving everyone a chance, and drilled it into my head as I was growing up. They were so right.

There’s a level of politeness and niceness I give and expect in return but too many times it’s not been returned, particularly in the form of punctuality. And at least some honesty regarding the ability to honour a meeting (or not).

Funnily enough, all the other things I thought of writing about stem from there. Politeness and playing nice with others – because you can still let a quirky personality shine through, but if your character is to be rude to people then you’ve shot yourself in the foot. That ‘be the boss you’d like to work for’ thing isn’t helpful – it’s hard to think objectively about the dynamics of that relationship. Here’s a great question interviewers never ask themselves: if we were to switch roles for a second, would the interviewee want to hire me? And if no, why?

About these ads