Bloggers Unite for Human Rights Today

I try not to stray too far away from the core topics behind the Alchemy of Soulful Work (though maybe I should be a little more lax with this), but I’m compelled to write today as a part of the Bloggers Unite for Human Rights event. For me, the reason is simple: without basic human rights and freedoms I would not be able to write about workplace issues. And the very notion of employee engagement and joyful work is only possible if our foundational liberties are taken care of. I know I sometimes take this for granted and am thankful for the opportunity to be a part of this movement today.

There are places in this world where sitting and writing ideas like I’m doing at this moment would likely land me in jail. China is one such place which continues to not hesitate to send journalists and dissidents to prison for speaking out against injustice and censorship. And the sad fact is that some of the companies we support turn a blind eye to this…or in the case of Yahoo! agree to cooperate with this gestapo behavior. One action you can take today is send an email to Yahoo! and let them know you think they need to change their actions on human rights abuses.

And lest you think I might let my own country off the hook, I’m also taking the United States to task for it’s hypocritical use of the Guantanamo Bay facility for illegal detentions. It’s very existence and what actually occurs there makes a mockery of every proud ideal this country was founded upon. I hope you’ll join me in the initiative to Tear it Down.

If you’re able to freely read this post, write about it, and talk about it to your neighbors and friends then know that there are individuals out there who have no voice and are invisible. We can stand for them and speak for them. This is our freedom.

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Focusing On What We Are Rather Than What We Are Not (My Confession)

Last night, I was paid a visit from my blogging gremlin who goes by the name of “You’ve-Been-Doing-This-For-How-Long-And-You’re-Still-Not-Semifamous” though I prefer call him Boris (as in Boris Badenov). He entered quietly through the back door and whispered very persuasively in my ear about all the things I’m not and all the things that the Alchemy of Soulful Work blog is not and all the things that Bailey WorkPlay is not. This dark little fiend can be extremely effective in sucking the joy and purpose from my work. As you can imagine he’s not a very welcome visitor but always manages to pop up and hang around longer than necessary.

Fortunately, I had some help from my friends on Twitter who helped me crank up the light and usher his black evil soul out the door (thank you tweeps!).

Once Boris and his joy-sucking presence was gone, I went in search of some help to at least address the still-lingering blogging doubts. When I need blog help, one of my favorite sources of inspiration and a good old kick in the pants is Darren Rowse and his Problogger blog. And once again, he came through for me with flying colors with a terrific and well-timed post called What You Say Is What You Are - The Problem of Blogger Inferiority Complex.

The three keys Darren listed are:

• Identify what you have.
• Build upon what you do have.
• Build upon what you’ve already built.

It’s that first bullet that really hit close to home for me. It’s built around the question: Are You Focusing More Upon What You’re Not than What You Are as a Blogger? Wow! I’m not sure I was prepared for the truth behind that question but the continuous learner in me recognizes that I’ve allowed myself to get pulled into a way of thinking that is focused more on deficiencies than strengths, failings rather than gifts. If this sounds familiar to you too, don’t worry…we have company (read the comments to both of Darren’s blogposts).

So, let’s figure this one out together. Let’s aim to get reacquainted with our greater self. Let’s commit to creating great work and a life where our passions burn bright. Let’s move forward in the knowledge that we’re never in this alone. Let’s start a dialogue and share what we need to be spectacular in who we are and what we do.

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In The Middle Of A Job Change? It’s The Perfect Time To Enhance Your Portfolio

Regardless of what the popular press might have you believe, not everyone who is job hunting is living in a crappy work situation. There are other reasons to want to leave a job besides being miserable. You could be wanting to learn more, become a cardcarrying member of management, try new challenging projects, or move to a different city (to name just a few options).

If this sounds like you, you may also note a strange limbo-like feeling where you’re standing in two different worlds. It’s a peculiar window of time that starts when you’re thinking seriously about changing jobs and the time you actually make the jump. It can drive some folks nuts. But it’s in this window that opportunities continue to appear if we’re open to seeing them. The problem is that we focus so much on that next great gig, we often don’t see them. These can be important stepping stones we can use to continue building our professional portfolios.

Here are a few springboard questions to ask:
Is there a gap in my resume or portfolio that I can work on now?
If you’ve started putting feelers out there for a new job (in particular if you’ve had some interviews), you’ve likely started getting ideas on areas where you can add a little extra meat to your portfolio (or extra tofu if you’re of the vegetarian persuasion). I’m a firm believer that a portfolio can always be enhanced so look for opportunities to improve your marketable expertise and results.

Is there a network or contact relationship that I can cultivate?
Don’t discount your internal contacts now. Just because you’re thinking of leaving a workplace doesn’t mean you have to stop making professional connections. If anything, this is a prime time to keep meeting and talking and learning from people. Oh…and those external networks are pretty good ones to continue to cultivate, too.

It could be that you’ve tapped out all of your opportunities. If that’s the case, then it’s definitely time to move on quickly. But if you recognize that there’s still something left in the tank, take some time to step back and reflect on what you can do right now to build a stronger portfolio rather than dwell exclusively on a future yet to come.

Any other road-tested wisdom out there from folks in job change limbo?

Also posted at Career Hub…read more articles at the #1 HR Blog according to HR World.

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