SoC #61: Making Big Career Decisions With Intention

I'm Lisa 👋 Welcome to this week's edition of Stream of Consciousness!

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I recently had to make a big career decision and I felt overwhelmed.

I have a clear idea of what my North Star is and have thought a lot about this.

I know what my values are.

I know the kind of people I want to surround myself with.

Yet when you are faced with decisions that put all of your framing to the test, it can still feel daunting.

Then, a friend shared this Twitter thread with me from Romeen Sheth:

I like his definition of “fit” that he describes in detail:

• Company-Market Fit: Will the company “win” in the market? Is this a good investment for you to make?

• Person-Company Fit: Are you in a position to succeed in the ways that you have defined what success looks like specifically for you?

• Person-Problem Fit: Is this a problem you care enough about to want to invest your time and energy in?

Another set of elements I think that are important to consider include:

• Team (this goes under Person-Company fit): Do you feel like your direct team includes smart people who share similar values and will help you feel psychologically safe and also able to grow? Will you be supported in your role?

• Health: In what ways will your health be impacted with your decision? i.e. Will X option require a long commute and lots of sitting and less sleep? Will Y option require very long hours and dealing with ambiguity most of the time? How will these things impact your overall physical and mental health?

• Finances: Do your financial boxes get ticked in this role? You could look at this over the short-term and the long-term - are your immediate essential expenses going to be covered? Will you be able to save? What does this actually look like, tangibly for you? Do growth opportunities mean that this could improve over time or would you feel stuck?

• Life Impacts: How will this impact your life holistically? Will you have to relocate and build a new support system in a new city? Do the benefits offered give you psychological piece of mind? Do the hours suit the way that you want to organize your life? How much flexibility is there when unexpected things come up (i.e. sick kids, dentist appointments, needing to fix your car, etc.)?

I’ve written more on how to validate decisions proactively before making a transition, how to conduct research on different roles you are considering, how to define your own personal guardrails, and more, but I’d love to hear your take on this.

What factors do you consider when making big career decisions?

Let me know!

Conscious Bytes 📰

THE FUTURE OF COMPUTING?: Humane, an “AI-powered” company founded by two former Apple employees that has received significant funding, recently released a TED talk that features a demo of the product they have been building to create the next wearable computing device that’s not a phone and also not on your face, but rather projected from your pocket. My initial reaction to this was that the intent is great but the execution feels dystopian and not inherently “human”. While we’ve got tons of people trying to solve these kinds of problems right now, I believe the pendulum will continue to swing in favour of tech that works with both our basic human needs and our core physiology. Anything that doesn’t won’t stick. What do you think about this demo?

DIGITAL SAFETY 101: My friend Clo S is hosting a live workshop on digital safety on May 17th that you can register for here that will cover everything from encryption to 2FA to dealing with data leaks and breaches.

Soulwork 💜

• ✨ What are you prioritizing in your life? I really like this post from Co.Lab Co-Founder Sefunmi Osinaike where he talks about his decision to focus on experience over grades in school and the specific outcomes of this.

Thanks for Reading!

If you're looking to improve as a conscious product leader and achieve outcomes in your career and the products you are building more intentionally, I’d love to help you through my courses, resources, and coaching.

Have a great week!

-Lisa ✨

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