Episode 29: Ten More Career Truths
Your career is arguably one of the three most important activities in your life. Yet I know from my long experience that there are a lot of truths that aren’t out there when it comes to careers, a lot that people don’t talk or write about, stuff that is essential knowledge.
If you grasp and apply these truths your life becomes much easier. You can better leverage your education and skills and strengths. Not only do you get your expectations right and avoid disappointment, you are also forewarned (and hence forearmed!) about any shit that comes your way.
I’ve always been keen on truth-telling and myth-busting and hence this episode.
The truth may not liberate you but it will certainly make you smarter.
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EPISODE TRANSCRIPT BELOW:
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Binod Shankar:
This is Binod Shankar and you’re listening to the real finance mentor podcast from the realfinancementor.com. The real finance mentor is your go-to resource for insight and inspiration on careers in finance, CFA and more. Now you might think, why this podcast? Well, my goal is to deliver insight and inspiration for your financial career, by making it, one: relatable. I mean this is not theoretical stuff. We zero-in on the critical, practical issues. Number two: authentic. No bullshit, no side-stepping. The topics, guests and questions are all from that perspective. And number three: insightful. Take a Chartered accountant and a CFA charter holder, add 17-plus years as a corporate warrior, mix in 10-plus years of entrepreneurship, throw in a decade of full time CFA training. Add speaking, mentoring, cycling, mountaineering and other endurance activities, and that’s me! Welcome to The Real Finance Mentor, or as I call it: RFM.
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Hi guys this is Binod Shankar, the real finance mentor, here with one of my solo episodes.
This episode is about the realities of career, stuff that no one talks about.
Many youngsters have workplace illusions. Wrong expectations create major disappointments.
I have noticed that whenever I post on LinkedIn about the harsh realities of a modern-day career, I get an extraordinary number of likes and comments.
Someone even commented that “These should be handed out to every graduating class. It would have helped me immensely even if I only knew half of these when I started!”
So, I thought this connects with many and perhaps I should do an entire episode on it, partly because I couldn’t capture the nuances. I mean I love LinkedIn but you can only say so much in a post.
Hence, I recorded the first batch of ten career truths in August 2020. That solo episode, not unsurprisingly, remains the most popular RFM episode ever even after 28 episodes of the RFM podcast and despite many highly insightful interviews with some bright and successful guests.
Of course, there had to be a sequel to the first one!
So here are Ten More Career Truths.
Truth # 1
Work can bury you
Once you start working, you will only have time for that.
I am not talking about the zero work/life balance culture prevalent in many careers and companies.
I am talking about how you will be so busy that you will forget about managing your career. The week, the month, the year will be a blur of emails, meetings, deadlines, business trips, conference calls & presentations while your career is on hold. Thanks to all these details, time flies and before you know it you are way behind and it’s hard to catch up. The other factor holding you back is the feeling that you are successful in your career so why bother?
Big mistake!
But what do I mean by managing your career?
I mean going to networking events, reaching out to people online, hunting for opportunities, getting a good mentor, signing up for career coaching, updating your resume and LinkedIn profile, talking to recruiters, learning about new roles & recruitment trends, learning new skills, reading important books & listening to valuable podcasts like RFM etc.
All this takes time and effort.
The issue is that most people are passive and reactive when it comes to career management & work and “too busy” become excuses. But that’s a disastrous strategy given how competitive the job market is.
Raise your head, work on your career and don’t allow yourself to be buried by details.
Truth # 2
Survival requires skipping levels
The normal rules of the game stipulates that you must report only to your Boss.
But your superior may be an incompetent moron, a fraud, a tyrant or an exotic mix of some or all of the three. It’s quite unlikely they will change since they are the Boss and are most likely remarkably not self-aware.
So, you have three options-
1. keep quiet,
2. fight with your boss or
3. skip level/s and talk to their boss i.e., the Super Boss.
Option 1 will ensure things stay the same or get worse.
Option 2 means that things WILL get worse and you may be fired.
Option 3 is the best because not only does the company benefit, you gain a powerful ally and you have neutralized your jerk of a Boss.
This should work quite well if you can prove that your Boss is materially harming the company. Examples would be unprofitable initiatives, nepotism, favoritism, high staff attrition, bribery, loss of key clients, harassment of staff/suppliers/clients etc.
But there’s a caveat here. You should have already built a rapport with the Super Boss and the Super Boss should like you for your competence and credibility. This of course needs to happen well before you skip levels. This also means that you must try and have as much contact with the Super Boss as possible like attending meetings & presentations that your Boss has with his boss so that the latter knows you and you can impress him. Another way is to build the relationship is give him on time & on spec information that he needs which your Boss is unable to because he is clueless on the ground realities.
Health warning- There is a small risk of blowback from your stunned Boss but it may be worth taking.
Truth # 3
You will often be undervalued
You will be paid based on your “perceived” value to the company, the operative word being perceived.
Because its quite common that what you get paid is far less than what you deserve. You get compensated based not on some random emotional plea but the value you bring to the company and your market value.
Underpayment can happen for any/some/all of the below 3 reasons:
1. You are shit at talking about what you’ve done due to poor communication skills or low confidence or some other affliction. Tragically, your employers have no idea how good you are. This is quite common.
2. You have rather high principles and think that talking about your good work is cheesy and unethical, perhaps due to some misbegotten medieval and utopian belief that your work should speak for itself. This snooty attitude is less common.
3. Your employers are notoriously stingy when it comes to pay. This is more common in small and medium enterprises and even in bigger family/owner managed businesses.
Truth # 4
You only get what you ask for
This is a perfect segue from the above point.
There is a saying in many cultures that’s broadly on the lines of “only a crying baby gets the milk”.
Don’t be the silent infant.
If you want a promotion or a raise or a mentor or anything else you have to ask for it, backed by solid justification.
Management is not watching you 24/7 and noting down all the good stuff so that they can reward you come year end. They’ve other priorities. They are not mind readers. Their motto in life is not “fairness for everyone every time”.
If you don’t ask someone else will and they will get that what you wanted but what you had some dumb medieval hang-ups asking for. And then you will be kicking yourself for years and bitterly regretting for not raising your hand.
What’s the worst that can happen? A No?
Big deal, unless you are the sensitive delicate flower type in which case, I have a bigger question for you which is “what the hell are you doing in corporate life”??
Truth # 5
Nice guys often finish last
I am assuming here that your work is top quality.
But if you are too nice you fully deserve the consequences.
Look I am not suggesting you turn into a Corporate Hitler or a Wolf of Wall Street. But your career will go nowhere if the below captures who you are:
Does the dirty work that no one wants to do
Allows people to come to you at the last minute
OK with being ignored for training, promotions, plum roles etc.
Ok with being kept out of the loop
Inability to put the universal quid pro quo principle into action. If you’ve done a favor for someone (the quid) then you should demand reciprocity (the quo).
Allows someone less able than you to take the lead.
Inability to say No to anyone for anything.
The Nice Guy syndrome often stems from fears of hurting someone’s feelings when it may not be the case.
Not only do you suffer because you are nice there is very often no reward for being a long-suffering nice guy, unless of course you fervently believe in Karma, the afterlife or masochism all of which are frankly beyond the scope of this podcast.
Stop being unnecessarily nice. There are rewards for being practical, assertive and confident.
Truth # 6
Your network is your lifeline
In bad times your network is your parachute, your safety line, your escape hatch, your life raft, your backup plan etc. etc. Your network can keep your career afloat when others’ careers are sinking.
In good times your network can get you access to quality education, well-paying jobs, promotions, brilliant mentors, active sponsors, juicy roles, impactful volunteer positions, rewarding investment opportunities, loyal business partners, big clients, competent employees and also help you raise your profile etc.
In fact, your network can do everything except make chicken soup.
You only have three things to do in your career- 1) have a great attitude 2) Have top aptitude and 3) develop and maintain a strong network. Everything else will fall in place.
But it’s not that simple in practice and good networking is quite rare because:
Many are shy and awkward and are embarrassingly terrible at networking, even after many years at work.
Many believe the holy trinity of Education, Smarts and Output are enough.
Many practice networking but purely in a selfish, opportunistic way.
These three factors are 99% of the reason why most professionals suck at networking and why they get nowhere.
Networking is an art and a science.
It’s a science because there is a process to it and the basics can be taught to and practiced by almost anyone. It’s an art because there’s so much that is possible and immensely valuable beyond the basics that’s tough to teach and a lot of it is innate.
Truth # 7
Your ego is not your amigo
We are all born with egos and ego defense mechanisms and that means we are reluctant to admit to the harsh realities of life.
We hate to admit that we are not that honest, resourceful, creative, empathetic, consistent, curious, creative etc. Because to admit that we are shit even to ourselves is often humiliating.
So, what happens?
We often carry around with us a distorted image of ourselves. We may believe we are God’s gift to (for example) finance and leadership.
What is dangerous is that the gap between reality and what you think widens as you get more qualified and as you go up the career ladder because your ego increases. In addition, as you become a bigger Boss few will be bold enough or know you well enough to give you honest feedback. So, you have a double whammy- inflated ego and lack of honest feedback- all of which are setting you up for a catastrophic failure.
This is a massive issue because you won’t grow unless you are ready to admit your mistakes.
You must grasp that you often don’t realize the effects of your actions (or even don’t know what’s driving these) and that others can tell you how it impacted them.
Leadership requires you to control your ego. If you, can’t you will remain stuck in familiar, comfortable territory.
Truth # 8
Your interests will change
You start off your career thinking that you like what you do and hence see yourself doing this for the rest of your work life. You think financial analysis/valuation/risk management/advisory etc. are big sectors where you have ample space to grow. You can’t think of anything else that interests you.
It’s quite likely that your interests will change. Why? Because of many reasons:
1. You realize that your ambition was seriously limited years ago because you didn’t know enough. Now that you do, the current career won’t do.
2. As you mature, get married, have kids etc. your priorities in life will change. You no longer care for 18-hour days, regular business travel etc.
3. You will find that the sector is no longer attractive thanks to changes in technology, consumer taste, politics, regulation etc.
4. You may find that the town/small city you started work in is too small and growth requires you to shift to a major metro or even shift countries.
5. You realize that it’s too tough and too long to get to where you want to be. If promotions to the top take 15-20 years you are better off quitting.
6. Once you reach a certain age (40?) you have spent nearly two decades working for others and learned a lot and saved enough you start yearning for freedom, impact, authenticity and self-actualization and start thinking about entrepreneurship.
I am of course not talking of a career change triggered by terminations but a voluntary change.
Don’t be afraid or ashamed to change careers based on changing interests.
Changes are perfectly natural and just shows that you have overcome the common sunk cost fallacy.
Truth # 9
Your advisors can make or break you
Don’t look for career advice to your parents or friends or colleagues. There are some excellent reasons why I say this.
Let’s assume that all these people want the best for you. That still leaves 4 big issues:
1. They don’t know you well enough. They think they do but they don’t. They have only seen what you have chosen to show them which is based on a specific context e.g., work or play.
2. They don’t know the job scope in specific markets, either current or future. Your parents entered the job market 25 years ago when markets were quite different. Your friends are as inexperienced and naïve as you are and are probably just following the herd.
3. They have no idea about what attitude and aptitude you need to make it big in that specific career.
4. They are biased specifically your parents who (at least in the middle east and Asia) want their children to enter specific fields and highly value the employer brand (so they can say their son is working with Google) and job security.
With these 4 major issues, it’s not only a waste of time talking to them, its misleading as well. The problem especially with parents is that because of their so called “credibility” you may believe them and faithfully implement their advice.
Talk to industry professionals (junior and senior), mentors, career counselors, your professors in college etc. These are better advisors.
Truth # 10
Marriage can be help or hindrance
This may be controversial but I must say it because its closely linked to your career.
Most people want to get married and have kids. That’s normal.
Although I am single, hundreds of my former CFA students are married and some have children. Most of these former students are in the 26-38 age group. I have been observing & listening to them and I have noticed that there are several big implications for your career when you get married that you must consider and expect:
Once you have children your priorities will change whether you like it or not. Your needs often become secondary and the children take precedence. There may be more friction when it comes to changing jobs or careers because now you have to consider schools, cost of education etc.
Once you start a family, you will want to be closer to them especially in the initial years (0-5) and the important pre-college period (14-17). This may also mean accepting a less desirable job just to be nearby.
The burdens of running and family fall more on the mother than the father. The mother is the primary care giver for the child. All this means that if CFA or similar challenging studies are planned, a married woman with children has to struggle a lot to juggle the 4 balls of family, self, work and studies. I have seen this at close range and this can prolong the CFA journey and also make a normally grueling saga even more grueling.
The costs of maintaining a family at a comfortable level these days can be quite high. This means extreme reluctance to accept a lower paying job although it may be your target career/company/location.
If you are the only earner in your family and you have big monthly expenses to pay you will find it almost impossible to leave the corporate world thanks to the steady income and expensive lifestyle. After 10-15 years you may be sick of corporate life but because of commitments and responsibilities you feel that you can’t take the plunge into entrepreneurship. Thus, you remain in your well-paying 9 to 5 job, secure but miserable. This is quite common.
Note that some of the above are probably more relevant in non-western countries.
Look I am not saying that you must stay single. But Performance is Potential minus Interference. Just be aware of the serious consequences, have the right expectations and get married to someone who understands and supports your career aspirations.
So that’s ten more career truths. This isn’t a work of fiction and I didn’t make these up. I have had a 28-year working career and taught 4,000 + students CFA prep. More crucially, I am a qualified Executive Coach and I have coached dozens of mid and senior level executives. In short, I’ve experienced most of the above or seen it happen to others.
Of course, there are exceptions to the above. There always are. The exceptions prove the rule.
I didn't know most of these truths when I joined the workforce 28 years ago but now you do and I hope you will reflect and act accordingly.
Some people may find all this negative & demotivating. But this episode is not meant to demotivate or to dissuade you. It’s meant as a heads up, to prepare you for that career. Because disappointment is when reality doesn’t meet expectations and I want you to get your expectations right. That way, hopefully any good stuff will be positive surprises in a corporate career that can be fulfilling in many ways, like it was for me.
I must add that all CFA candidates and charter holders are bound by the standards of professional conduct so never do anything that violates any of the standards, specifically Standard I on Professionalism and Standard IV on Duties to Employers.
You can thank me later.
Onwards and upwards.
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This podcast is brought to you by the real finance mentor. Thank you so much for listening and I really hope you found it insightful and inspirational. If you did enjoy this episode, please drop us a review and spread the word. You should check out more exclusive content on therealfinancementor.com and my LinkedIn profile which is: Binod Shankar, FCA, CFA. Let’s keep in touch! Just add your name to the mailing list on therealfinancementor.com, and we’ll tell you about new episodes plus book reviews, upcoming events and blogs. Till the next time, onwards and upwards.
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