We’re surrounded by a materialistic culture, consumed by consumerism and crave for immediate, first-hand satisfaction. That said, there’s nothing wrong in the occasional indulgence but most time, the reasons why we feel the need to have these things are a bit misconstrued.
For the most part, success is transient and personal and it shouldn’t just be equated to money or power. What drives one to work hard may be vastly different for another. What may give one job satisfaction may not be able to do the same for another either. This therefore calls for you to determine your own version of success even before you embark on your first job search.
How Do I Define My Own Version Success?
We’re talking about success that bring you a sense of fulfillment, leveraging on your skill sets, maximising your potential and helping others in a meaningful way, while experiencing a sense of freedom and exercising the liberty to make certain lifestyle choices. Investing your energy in actions that can bring you joy and a sense of accomplishment.
Here are some quick questions that will help you get started:
- What would give you a sense of fulfillment – not just in your career, but also in your personal life?
- Which skill sets do you want to utilise and further develop?
- What personal interests do you wish to hold on to and pursue at the same time?
How Can You Achieve It?
Now that you’ve roughly defined your kind of success, you will need to break it down. This will help you to visualize the steps you need. Here are four pointers that will help you get started on finding the right organisation for yourself.
1. Meaning and Purpose
Finding yourself in your job is in fact your job. Finding meaning and purpose in your job matter especially when you will be spending five days of your week at it. Happiness is associated with being the ‘taker’ – what you can get from others. Meaningfulness in contrast, is a suspension of what you want and involves some form of self-sacrifice. Meaning is therefore premised on an entirely different way of interacting; that is giving to other in service of the “greater good”.
2. Positive Organisation Culture and Values
The environment and culture of a workplace affects women more than it does men. According to a study conducted by New York research group, Caliper, women demonstrated higher levels of compassion and team-building skills; leading them to suggest that corporate culture is one of the main factors that women use to determine their level of satisfaction in a job.
Pervasive values, beliefs and attitudes that characterize a company to guide its practices are what make its culture. This may be articulated in its vision and mission statement. Other than checking out the organisation’s website and viewing their social media platforms, checking up on relevant hashtags may grant you greater insight on it’s internal culture. Checking out the hashtag of an organisation offers a different facet to it because it allows you to see some of day-to-day activities, the people and its lifestyle.
3. Learning and Educational Opportunities
An organisation that offers tuition assistance is a mark of sincere concern for the personal growth and professional development of its employees. It demonstrates their appreciation for the people who work to support their mission. It allows its employees to stay current and train together to develop better understanding of their fields; which is likely to form productive relationships across departmental line
4. Uniquely Customisable Benefits
It is true that a good-looking pay package is attractive but there are valuable benefits within the package that you should also look out for.
The flexible benefits scheme is an example of the excellent suite of perks offered by the Singapore Army. These benefits enable employees to seek reimbursement for personal well-being, learning and development, and family support. Well-being subsidies include items like travel/vacation, insurance policies, health screenings and preventive vaccinations, contact lenses, gym membership and fitness class.
On top of all that, there are other noteworthy welfare benefits like attractive marriage / anniversary/ newborn gifts, premium rates in insurance exclusive for SAF personnel and their families, family life education and enrichment programmes, social interaction programmes for singles and dental subsidies.
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