I'm going to be serious for a change here. And long-winded. For one thing, this is a lesson I learned the hard way. For another, I currently have two vehicles in the shop and unavailable for my transportation needs, where I currently own two vehicles, which leaves me cranky and wondering how the hell I'm going to get home from work. Not to worry, my next post will be snide, offensive, and hurtful as usual, and maybe even terse. (Man, I can't even be serious when I'm being serious. How sad is that?)
Anyway, it's very easy to let inertia take you over and leave you in a comfortable position long after it has stopped being a good match for you and your group. This leads to stagnation and burnout (and in my case, therapy and years of unemployment). It's important to keep an eye on yourself and your situation--the farther you are down that road, the harder it is to lift yourself out of the rut. When you find yourself headed that direction, look around and see whether there's a better challenge somewhere else.
The nice thing about a big company is that it's very likely that a better situation exists in the next group over, and an internal transfer is much easier on the lifestyle than an external job search. Just make sure you're ready to answer the inevitable interview question, "Why are you leaving your old group?" with something other than my stock (and remarkably unsuccessful), "My management has been lying to me and screwing me over for the last three years, and I'm finally sick of the whole thing." (Corollary: DO NOT WAIT until you are finally sick of the whole thing!)
I'm certainly not trying to say, "OMG you gotta get outta there" on your first day. (God, I'm a downer, aren't I?) If nothing else, there's a balance that needs to be struck between stability and stagnation--at MS, three to five years in a position was usually enough to prevent any alarm bells from going off in the mind of the prospective new manager.
I'm just saying, embrace the change that has just happened, and remember down the road that change can be reinvigorating and good for both you and your employer. That's one reason I went with contracting when I went back to work--it (hopefully) creates a situation where I'll have some job change every couple of years whether I'm emotionally up to instigating the change myself or not.
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Date: 2006-10-02 09:08 pm (UTC)Anyway, it's very easy to let inertia take you over and leave you in a comfortable position long after it has stopped being a good match for you and your group. This leads to stagnation and burnout (and in my case, therapy and years of unemployment). It's important to keep an eye on yourself and your situation--the farther you are down that road, the harder it is to lift yourself out of the rut. When you find yourself headed that direction, look around and see whether there's a better challenge somewhere else.
The nice thing about a big company is that it's very likely that a better situation exists in the next group over, and an internal transfer is much easier on the lifestyle than an external job search. Just make sure you're ready to answer the inevitable interview question, "Why are you leaving your old group?" with something other than my stock (and remarkably unsuccessful), "My management has been lying to me and screwing me over for the last three years, and I'm finally sick of the whole thing." (Corollary: DO NOT WAIT until you are finally sick of the whole thing!)
I'm certainly not trying to say, "OMG you gotta get outta there" on your first day. (God, I'm a downer, aren't I?) If nothing else, there's a balance that needs to be struck between stability and stagnation--at MS, three to five years in a position was usually enough to prevent any alarm bells from going off in the mind of the prospective new manager.
I'm just saying, embrace the change that has just happened, and remember down the road that change can be reinvigorating and good for both you and your employer. That's one reason I went with contracting when I went back to work--it (hopefully) creates a situation where I'll have some job change every couple of years whether I'm emotionally up to instigating the change myself or not.
Oh, and congrats and good luck, of course.