The Great Resignation
Are YOU prepared for THE GREAT RESIGNATION and how to compete with the huge number of professionals who are, or soon will be seeking new and more meaningful roles?
Will you be part of this mass exodus? Do you know what is important to you in your career so you can make the right decisions?
Also known as ‘The Big Quit’, The Great Resignation is the ongoing trend of employees voluntarily leaving their jobs as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to recent research by Microsoft, more than 40 per cent of the global workforce are considering leaving their employers this year.
The mass exodus has company leaders bracing for a seismic shift in the workforce — and the trend is likely to be heading to Australia.
A Deloitte study of 5,000 women in 10 countries, including Australia, India, the US and the UK found that of the 23 per cent of working women considering leaving the workforce, 57 per cent said they planned to leave their current employer in the next two years, which shows that women are feeling less loyal to their employer.
Chief strategy officer of Deloitte Australia, Claire Harding, said women were interviewed from a range of industries, from hospitality to finance, and more than half were feeling less optimistic about their career prospects today than before the pandemic.
I wonder how that will affect the diversity of organisations? What do you think?
What I think is that it’s TIME TO TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR CAREER.
To help you make the right decisions in your career – whether you are thinking of leaving, are already looking around, or are currently in between roles – I’m hosting a FREE 45-minute ZOOM MEETING that will help you get clear on WHAT YOU REALLY WANT. It’s on Monday 11th October at 12pm [AEST]
Here’s the link to register
UPDATE: Now the event is over, if you want career transition or career development support, download the [free] resources at www.thecareersacademy.online
This Little Girl is Me
And now on to the #ThisLittleGirlIsMe movement.
This is probably the most personal podcast episode I’ve ever recorded, and I’m proud to be part of this amazing campaign initiated by Miriam Gonzalez Durantez, founder of Inspiring Girls International.
Why am I about to share my story with you? Because 70% of girls feel more confident about their futures after hearing from women role models.
It’s important to know who we are, where we came from, and how we can be whomever we want to be in life. I’m about to tell you a little about what defined me as a little girl.
Here are my very early days [up to the age of 11] and some life lessons I learned that have shaped my view of the world.
I was born in Malaysia back in the days when it was called Malaya, to a Hong Kong Chinese mother and English father. In the 1950’s it was unusual to see a Brit from North Yorkshire enter into a mixed marriage [they made it into the Yorkshire papers with ‘Leeds man to wed Chinese girl’!] My parents kept the newspaper cutting and even though they have both now passed away, I am proud to be able to share it here.
What compounded some of the chatter about their marriage at that time, was that my father was a Cambridge scholar and my mother didn’t finish secondary school.
Mum missed a lot of education, as she was a poorly child with many ailments, and the invasion of Hong Kong during World War II saw her family escaping to Macau with few belongings. The chatter was that the level of education didn’t match up and it would never last.
On top of that, some of their friends apparently commented, “But what will the children look like?” [Luckily neither my brother nor I were born with two heads!]
I’m proud (and relieved) to say our immediate families were open and welcoming during what could have been a difficult time.
My father’s work as a Malayan civil servant and academic meant that I grew up in Johore Bahru and Hong Kong, which provided my brother and me with a melting pot of cultural experiences. Our friends were like a mixed bag of lollies from India, America, Korea, Japan, China, Germany and the UK.
We all spoke Cantonese at home as Dad learned to read, write and speak fluent Chinese for his work, and Mum was relieved she didn’t need to learn English.
The halcyon days growing up in the lush Hong Kong University compound in a massive, elegant colonial-style home were juxtaposed with day trips to the New Territories to visit my mother’s side of the family.
Mum’s family lived in a tiny cottage in a village with many chickens, cats and dogs roaming the streets. I saw that life could be very different depending on where you lived and your circumstances. I embraced both – there was so much love between us all.
My father died suddenly of a massive heart attack on 1 July 1970. He was 49. I was 11.
Almost immediately my mother, brother and I had to leave the university compound and find somewhere else to live. Our lives changed dramatically overnight.
My mother, who did not speak English, struggled not only with grief but confusion about what to do on her own with two children. My father had always handled every aspect of our lives – financial, legal, schooling, travel – all of it except cooking.
As business was conducted in English, and my mother did not read nor write English, my brother and I, who attended English speaking schools, were required to step up and make adult decisions for Mum.
At the age of 11, I started writing cheques (in English) for my mother to pay the bills, my brother and I had meetings with the Trustee to help Mum make financial decisions and go through the legal documentation, and if I was sick and off school, I wrote my own sick notes to give my teachers (I realised how useful this was when I was a little older and wanted to skive off school!)
I grew up very fast and realised that if I wanted to lead a life free of want, I had to understand how to manage my own money, to learn how life worked and not to let someone else take over my decision making, however well-intentioned.
To cut a long story short, I learned very quickly the importance, as a woman, to be financially independent, not relying on someone else to create the life you want [and deserve], and not to be afraid of what life throws at you.
This little girl became a resilient adult very early on in life.
There is so much more to share – this is just the beginning of a lifetime of lessons learned, obstacles overcome. Over the course of many years, this little girl:
* Overcame much angst, self-doubt and fear
* Moved country 5 times
* Reinvented her career multiple times
* Got married, got divorced, got remarried (I believe in love!)
* Won a Silver medal in the Nike National Aerobics championship & was sponsored by Nike
* Flew as cabin crew for British Airways and Korean Airlines
* Worked agency and client-side in Public Relations in Hong Kong & London
* Was a Montessori teacher
* Ran the New York and Manchester Marathons
* Became an international career coach, author, podcast host and, most importantly …
* I am mother and step-mother to 4 beautiful children and 4 gorgeous grandchildren
What I’d like to say is a HUGE thank you to Inspiring Girls International for inspiring this little girl to share her story!
Well, that was a bit personal wasn’t it? It was a little scary for me to share this however, as you’ve been so supportive of Your Career Podcast, I thought it would be appropriate for you to get to know my background and what drives me.
What drives you?
I hope I get the chance to meet you during one of my ‘live’ broadcasts or webinars one day.
For all the career support you need, visit The Careers Academy
Until next time, stay safe and stay well!
