The Millennial Career Dilemma Series – Article 21, By Shubika Bilkha

 

Last week I introduced the concept of values in my introduction to the #WhatMattersMost series. Furthermore, I went on to say how digging deep to find those values has now become an almost unavoidable exercise. It is our values in effect that at the core define who we are, how we respond to situations and determine the choices we make in our lives and careers. Dissonance is often linked directly to a mismatch of values and resilience is often built by a key understanding of ourselves and our core values.

 

For the millennial career seeker, in a world of infinite choice, limitless possibilities and constant evolution, the essence of values then becomes even more pertinent. Amidst the fervor of resume updates, dealing with consultants and placement officers, coordinating interviews, fighting for a higher pay and more, an emphasis on values could lead to greater fulfillment, less disruption and an expectation alignment.

 

The Deloitte Millennial Survey 2018 estimates that 43% of millennials would leave their job in 2 years, while 61% of Gen Z respondents would leave their jobs in the same time period. It further suggests that millennial and Gen Z employees prioritize a positive work culture, flexibility, opportunities for continuous learning, well-being programs and incentives, as well as a focus on ethics. In my experience of working with millennials, I have found that there is greater emphasis placed on integrity, being socially conscious, finding balance and being valued in an organization.

 

In fact, I remember in my graduate job search process a fair number of years ago, it was the culture of the organization, the kind of people I met and engaged with at the company, and an inherent belief in the organizations vision that were key drivers for my eventual selection.

 

So if you are a millennial career aspirant focused on finding the ‘perfect’ role and organization, here are some pointers on why the values exercise isn’t quite so futile and needs to be a priority:

 

Improves Your Pitch

Understanding your values makes you articulate who you are better. This will in turn contribute to differentiating you amidst your peers at an interview and help you tell your own unique story. Aligning your values to the organizations values is also key to ensuring you get the job!

 

Makes it Easier to Wake up each morning

An awareness of your own values can help you find organizations with cultures that resonate with who you are at your core. This will automatically make you more enthusiastic about your work and make that waking up in the morning process less tedious. We spend a large portion of our lives at work, so make it count!

 

Raise Your Career Quotient

Identifying your values early on will help you craft your career trajectory, boost satisfaction and help you hone in on what matters most to you as you build or accelerate your career graph. This will enable you to identify job roles, opportunities and organizations where you can thrive.

 

Defines Your Personal Brand

The more you honour who you are at your core, get self-aware, the better you will be at telling your brand story. It will enable you to showcase your strength of character more compellingly and describe your uniqueness giving you that added sense of confidence. Find your personal brand # and take it to the next interview!

 

You Know When to Say No

A famous Steve Jobs quote is “I am as proud of the things I have not done as the things I have done” articulates the importance of being able to say no to the things that do not work for you. The power of understanding your values is that you can identify job roles, organizations, cultures or teams that are just not working in your favour and focus on the ones that are!

 

 For more information on Edpower-U’s Career Coaching and Workplace skill building programs please write in to enquiry@edpoweru.com.

 

About the Author

 

 

Shubika Bilkha is currently the Founding Partner of Edpower-U. She is a dynamic entrepreneur, trained executive coach, media spokesperson, author and corporate advisor with experience that spans the financial, technology, ecommerce, education and real estate sectors in India and Internationally. As the managing Director of two early stage start-ups in technology and education, Shubika has hands on experience in all aspects of these businesses. She was recently the Managing Director of a leading vocational training institute in India and has worked with a number of leaders across industry, government and the educational ecosystem in India and the UK.

 

She is also a published author with her first book widely distributed.

 

Shubika is an alumna of Mount Holyoke College, USA and Columbia Business School, USA; an Associate Member of the Chartered Securities Institute (CSI) in the UK; and has completed the “Building Excellence in Higher Educational Institutions” at the Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad. She is a trained Executive Coach with CTI, UK in line with the International Coaching Federation (ICF) ACC guidelines.