In just under one week’s time I will reach the milestone of 39 years working for the ‘same’ company – we have had many names, numerous owners and a handful of different sites, but, in the same way that the apocryphal broom that has had its handle replaced four times and the head replaced seven times but is still the ‘same’ broom, I am still with the company that I started working for back in 1977.
This is, of course, somewhat different to the expected career pattern these days and – I think – I have missed out in some ways because of my unwillingness to move around. There is little doubt that the “high flyers” who flit from one position to another in an never ending climb to an unreachable “top” will benefit in monetary terms for as long as they can maintain that upward momentum and, along the way, they will gain a much wider range of experiences than the likes of me have managed.
Do I envy them? Certainly not – I have made my choices based on what works for me – even though that has resulted in a number of “career limiting” decisions. There have been a few occasions along the way when I have felt frustrated by things that were outwith my control and which forced me into some sort of corner where it seemed as though my “good nature” was being exploited.
Most choices in life force some sort of compromise – it is rare that there is no “down side” – but equally, for every down side there is an “up side”. When you are faced with a choice of X or Y where both are desirable in some way there is little point in mourning for the loss of Y when you have chosen X – as (presumably) the choice is made on the basis of which is best.
Equally, when it is a case of choosing the “lesser of two evils” or of simply making the most of what little you can have, you must be grateful for the positives. You make a choice – if the alternative is worse then whatever choice you have made it is a positive one – you have “gained” the difference between the choices.
So it has been on a number of occasions – and yes, sometimes it seemed as though “the system” had left me with hobson’s choice – especially when what was on offer was not very appealing – but the alternatives (such as they were) were even less appealing.
I think (and here I might be just a tad biased) that I could have been in a position of more “influence” – I think that my skills and my abilities are sufficient to warrant that. In that respect I suppose I have failed to fulfil my potential. However – when considered together with what I have already said in this post it should be clear that attaining “my potential” would have come at some cost or other.
A while ago there was a discussion amongst some of my peers as to whether the “profession” that I belong to should be populated by “specialists” (those who know a lot about a very small area of knowledge) or “generalists” (those who know a bit about a very large number of different areas of knowledge) – the conclusion that was arrived at was that neither of these was entirely satisfactory, but that specialists were, seemingly, more valued.
I am, without any doubt, a generalist – although in some areas I guess I have enough knowledge to seem like a specialist to many people. However, part of that is down to choosing relatively ‘niche’ areas where there is not so much competition!! Whatsmore – my “generalist” tendencies are much more than ‘just’ within my chosen profession – so in some ways I am – I guess – a generalist amongst generalists.
A cynic described a generalist as someone who knew not very much about everything – whereas a specialist knew just about everything about not very much.
One of my ex-bosses once told me that he reckoned that he could give me any job to do and (assuming it was sufficiently interesting) I would be able to cope with it. That is true – up to a point, of course – there are certainly a great many things that I am pretty much incapable of doing…..
I think that I have written elsewhere in this blog about the fact that I am not one to develop a “bucket list” – yes, there are plenty of things that I might think “it would have been good to do that” I stop short of making (just about) anything a target to reach, or a place to visit, or a sight to see, before I die. I could certainly come up with a VERY long list of ‘candidate’ bucket list items – but I am equally sure that I wouldn’t be able to choose between them when it came to refining the list.
As this is about reviewing thirty nine years of work I should say that, whilst I have had many good times, I am not sorry to be able to see the “finishing line” fast approaching. My work has allowed me to see plenty of places that I would otherwise not have seen. I have met thousands of people over the course of the years – many of whom I count as ‘friends’ – although geography dictates that a goodly number are “online only” friends!! That extended network – and the feeling that some of them, at least, recognise some sort of worth in me – is probably the number one achievement for me.
Others are motivated in different ways – by achieving targets, by earning millions, by breaking records. For me, the satisfaction comes from having done a good job, having, in some respect, solved a problem for someone and from an acceptance of my worth from people that I respect and admire.
….. and I can’t wait for the remaining weeks to pass until I reach the ‘end’ of my working life and can retire and enjoy myself.