Job Satisfaction

Most of last year I was feeling super burnt out about my job. I took over a location from the previous manager who had been there over 40 years. To say that they have a certain way of doing things is an understatement. All really solid people who want to do a good job, but only had ever done it one way. Unfortunately that one way was just do whatever the previous guy told them to do. Not much in the way of delegation, just do what he said. I am skilled in my field, but don't have all of those years of experience with these particular products. So, I've been working to get the managers and supervisors to be more self reliant and willing to make decisions, use their experience, etc. I had a key guy leave mid year that hurt (he told me that the reason he had the courage to leave was because I had spent time the last six months developing him), and it just kept being tough after that.

In November, I was approached about a role at another company doing something I was very familiar and mostly comfortable with. It was a small increase in money, but likely a lot easier and less stressful in the long run. I ended up accepting. After I accepted, my current company made a fairly significant counter that I turned down.

After turning down the counter and relieving myself of the stress of staying, it really let me reflect on why I was leaving and what was my role and the role of others in creating a situation that I felt I wanted to get away from. Having that stress free clarity of thought and reflection, I realized that I didn't really want to leave all that much. While we have a lot of challenges, I also had a lot of positive momentum and I do think my team is changing and getting stronger. I thought about what it would take for me to stay in the job and be able to be healthy mentally and physically. So, I went back to them and accepted the counter, but also got them to agree to let me work from home at least one day a week and made them understand that my intent in the role is to transition towards a more strategic mindset.

My company is full of a bunch of "doers" but not a lot of think ahead folks. We do the old "Ready, Shoot, Aim" quite a bit. My goal is to reverse that trend and get out ahead of our difficulties. I think the time away each week, knowing this is what I need to do (and my bosses knowing it, too), and feeling like I'm starting to get my managers to think like this, too.

But what I've realized from all of this is that I do need to figure out how to clear my head and cut myself loose from the day to day, on occasion. That freedom from the grinding stress is what empowers me to see the big picture and effect positive change (or at least that is what I'm telling myself). So, I am all in back at the old company any, probably naively, expecting good things.

P.S. - the employee who left last summer dropped by this week to ask if he could come back. Working on getting him back now, because his old position was filled.