By Anita
Newton Anita (Bajaj) Newton currently leads marketing at Adknowledge .
She advises a range of startups and provides marketing education through
Kauffman Foundation's Founders School . @ anitabnewton Head of
marketing, Adknowledge @ anitabnewton
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This summer, I was mentoring a young professional in
corporate America who was concerned about making a career move. Although
he loved the role and the company, he thought it might be too risky.
Others told him to steer clear because it was "too challenging."
Now, I realize free advice is often worth its price, but the
idea of not moving to a new opportunity because it's "risky" or
"challenging" struck me as terribly naive. This is especially true in a
marketing context.
After all, the days of the Mad Men martini lunches are over (insert frowny face).
There isn't a company on the planet that isn't under assault from a well-funded competitor or legacy-free upstart:
-Startups struggle to find enough customers to pay their bills.
-Agencies lose one major client and are left saddled with expensive labor.
-Google makes a policy change and it wipes out an entire ad tech ecosystem.
Big companies are also feeling the brunt:-Agencies lose one major client and are left saddled with expensive labor.
-Google makes a policy change and it wipes out an entire ad tech ecosystem.
-McDonald's is getting its lunch eaten by fast casual restaurants Chipotle and Panera.
-Consumers are checking out of hotels and into Airbnb.
-Cable is short-circuiting because of streaming services like Netflix.
-The Motor City is being left in the dust by customer and media darling Tesla.
The list goes on and on and on …
-Consumers are checking out of hotels and into Airbnb.
-Cable is short-circuiting because of streaming services like Netflix.
-The Motor City is being left in the dust by customer and media darling Tesla.
The list goes on and on and on …
The point is this: There's no such thing as a "safe" or "easy" place. It just doesn't exist anymore.
While this is sobering (cue the Mad Men frown face
again), in a way it can be liberating. If you're going to have to work
your tail off, slog through mud, and climb a big mountain every day, why
not do it at place you love?
I am not a happiness expert, but here are a few things I know to be true about careers and love.
Culture matters: If the people you work with are not ones
you would want to meet in a bar or run into on the weekend, chances are,
your culture (to borrow a phrase from Captain Obvious) may not be
ideal.
Fear: Often, the biggest challenge preventing people from
having the career of their dreams is themselves. If you can remove fear
as a mental barrier, you will be amazed at what you can achieve.
Money: The ability to pay the bills is clearly a requirement
to the job. But lots of people can live on less than what they're
making. Happiness statistics point to the fact that after making $75,000 per year, most people were no more or less happy.
The spare-time test is real: Recall a place where you get a
lot of new ideas. For some, it's during a jog, for others, it's while
driving. We have all heard the shower is a place for intense
inspiration. When you aren't working, what kind of business ideas do you
think about? If you're an accountant but you keep dreaming up new ideas
for a viral video, that should tell you something about what you might
like to do in the future.
Actions count: The Dalai Lama
once said, "Happiness is not something readymade. It comes from your
own actions." If you're not in a job that allows you the freedom to
unleash your intellectual and creative potential, then reread this
article. From there, well, you know what to do.
The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.
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