When it comes to looking for a job, college graduates shouldn’t just focus on salary, benefits and perks.
What matters most are the answers to two basic questions:
Is there someone who encourages my development? And do I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day?
Gallup research, after decades of studying workplace satisfaction and personal well-being, has concluded that the secret to success at work and in life comes down to those two key elements.
Of course, money is important, but it doesn’t determine a person’s emotional well-being, at least not after they make $75,000 a year.
For college graduates looking for work or a graduate school program, a priority should be who your manager or mentor will be. It’s not the name of the company or school, or what your salary or financial aid package will be. It’s who will support you and help you achieve your goals.
Seeking out the right manager or mentor should take time and careful consideration. The right person should be caring and have a history of developing people’s careers. He or she should ask you what you do best.
Working for the wrong manager or choosing the wrong mentor can have disastrous results. Gallup research has shown that people don’t leave companies, they leave managers.
The best mentors and managers focus on growing and developing the people they work with. They place people in roles that use their skills most effectively. They want you to succeed and give you the right tools to make that happen. Employees don’t just want to be “satisfied’’ in their jobs, Gallup has discovered, they want to grow and develop.
Talent, according to Gallup, is like a fingerprint. Every person’s talent is unique, and the key is to focus on your strengths to become the best you can be.
Don’t focus on your weaknesses, which everyone have. Unlike strengths which can grow into greatness, weaknesses will never develop into anything more than average.
While taking this approach seems simplistic, it’s not always achievable. Only about 30% of Americans strongly agree that they have the opportunity to do what they do best every day.
To be truly happy and successful at work and in life, the rest need to take action to do the same.
