 All right, hi everyone and welcome to how to hire and fire your employer My name is April Sides, I'm a developer at Lullbot I'm also the lead organizer of Drupal Camp Asheville and no I'm not looking to fire my employer a little bit about my background I've had I have experienced in higher education government and agency work I've taken several leaps in my career The first one was the hardest, but I've learned a lot in 13 years of full-time employment And each leap has contributed to my growth personally and professionally and this journey has led me to being here in front of you today So why do I care about this topic and why should you care? Based on results from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics American Time Use Survey we spend 34% of our awake time at work. It's the number one activity after sleep and personal care So that means we spend over a third of our awake time in work and work related activities So as Drake says YOLO you only live once life is too short to be unhappy at work So today we're gonna talk about a few things here. What do you have want and need? Should I stay or should I go? How do you find the right employer and how do you fire your current employer? So I'm gonna start with what do you have want and need? You know this involves personal reflection and introspection you have to know yourself and what you want and need to know what you're looking for It's important to be honest with yourself in this process. There are no right or wrong answers So start with your assets You have both soft and hard assets your soft assets include your knowledge skills strength and network These are the things you have that you can contribute to an organization They may be listed on your resume or included in a cover letter and they help to determine your market value So can consider things like what happens at your organization? When you're not at work, what do people frequently compliment you on? To get an outside perspective ask your trusted contacts What do you see are my greatest strengths and if you had to come to me for advice on a topic? What would it be? And then you also have hard assets hard assets include your cash investments possessions in relation to your financial obligations These help in risk assessment and salary negotiations You know can you afford a lower salary salary for better benefits and if an opportunity doesn't work out Can you pay the bills before your next job? So next let's think about your personal values You know knowing your personal values will help you make better career decisions Finding an employer and job that closely match your personal values Can lead to better job satisfaction So if you've never realized your values in a formal list, they're still present just unconsciously That's because values are found in the decisions we make in the past So there's an activity that is most successful with a friend to get an outside perspective But think about the big transformative moments of your life The name five values from those stories and then those will be your personal values the top five This is similar to something called a mountains and valleys exercise where you think about the highs and lows in your past and find The values that were present or absent If an organization wants to learn about your values to determine if you're a good match They may ask you to name someone you admire and why? Let's think about your aspirations and goals Aspirations are shaped by your actions and experiences. So in your personal life What do you do when you have nothing urgent to do and will someone pay you for your passions? Also, think about things that compliment your soft assets and past experience so that you can build on your past and continue to grow It's also important to think about your growth trajectory So there are two types of growth trajectory steep and gradual Steep growth trajectory is cracked characterized by being a change agent being ambitious at work and seeking new opportunities And gradual growth trajectory is characterized by being a force for stability Being ambitious outside of work or simply content in life and being happy in your current role But note on this figure that both of these different Growth trajectories are on the same side of the graph as excellent performance. So one is not better than the other They're just different But just remember it's not sustainable to be ambitious at work and outside of work And this is a quote from a book called radical candor We all have periods in our lives when our professional growth speeds up or slows down Allow yourself and your peers the freedom to change So lastly, let's talk about your work environment needs Think of these as a spectrum or a slider So in terms think about what works best for you So in terms of in-person versus remote how much in-person Interactions do you require and if you decide to try to remote what were your workspace look like? Also consider the size of an organization large versus small a large organization typically has more hierarchy So they may have more growth and change opportunities They may also be very process oriented if a small organization is owned by another organization it may operate like a large a larger our organization and Values can be widely different between the sizes of organizations Also think about the structure formal versus informal and what do you need to be productive? Do you prefer or need structured or flexible work hours workspace and tools or dress code? Also consider the pace of work slow versus fast You know sometimes slow can be burning can be boring and sometimes fast can lead to burnouts And there are going to be cases where the pace will vary from time to time based on project deadlines But determine what works best for you Also think about distraction like how distractible are you low versus high? Which which office environment is going to work best for you will you thrive in offices cubicles or open spaces and What level of interruption are you comfortable with and this applies to both in-person and remote? What work culture will dictate often dictates how available you should be at any given time think about what's going to work best for you And last let's think about travel none versus lots You know travel could include retreats conferences client meetings trainings One amount of travel are you comfortable with? So your assets your values aspirations growth trajectory and work environment needs will evolve over time Reflect often, you know if you're familiar with agile software development think of this as an iterate and grow process for yourself and your career So how do you decide when you need to leave an organization? First evaluate your current job, you know, are you surviving or thriving do you have work life balance? Does your job align with your current aspirations and growth trajectory and are you experiencing burnout? And I want to take a moment to talk about burnout. There are three kinds of burnout Overload burnout is characterized by working hard, but risking health to pursue your ambitions Under challenge burnout is characterized by being bored having a lack of learning and growth opportunities and feeling disengaged from work and Neglect burnout is characterized by feeling helpless or incompetent You can't keep up and you're feeling unmotivated These are the signs of burnout. I'm going to read through them. There are a lot of them Which is really important to you to know what they are so you will be able to See them and notice them and take care of them Physical symptoms such as exhaustion most of the time headaches muscle aches getting sucked often a negative attitude about work or your career Feeling like everything is overwhelming or your efforts are futile Neglecting your own needs as your as if you're a pushover withdrawing from new responsibilities challenges and people procrastinating mainly avoiding work or work taking longer because you can't concentrate short-tippered especially with colleagues and difficulty sticking to regular self-care like exercise and eating well and loss of motivation and optimism You may not know you have burnout until you hit a wall and self-care is very important and Also think about these in relation to a friend a co-worker even a boss You know adopt the radical caner motto to care personally and challenge directly Let people know if you think they may be having burnout So now let's evaluate your employer You know after you've had your personal reflection are your values aligned and do you respect the leadership? How do you feel about the organization's direction of future? Do you feel appreciated and supported? Are there opportunities for career growth? How is employee feedback received and do you see results? Are there problem patterns? How are they managed and are they tolerable or intolerable? How's it feel be honest with yourself? So if you like your employer, you don't have to fire them You know you can consider exploring other opportunities within the same organization If that's not an option you can use your current job in organization as a reference to compare with other opportunities If you seek a higher salary Request a conversation about increasing your salary before giving notice Don't use giving notice as a way to get a raise This can actually erode trust between you and your employer and sends a message that your job is only about the money So ABC career planning from the startup of you is a great tool for planning your next move So in this diagram here plan a is your current job or organization Plan B is what you will pivot to it be a new opportunity And sometimes you change to a plan B because a is not working but sometimes a is working yet Plan B seems to have more potential The best plan B's will be different but related to what you're doing now so that you can make use of past experience and continue growth This plan will be more open-ended Plan Z on the other hand will be more concrete It will allow you to take on uncertainty and risk, you know think of it as your safety net your life vote your fail-safe option To build this plan first identify how to measure when you're tracking towards a worst-case scenario Then develop a plan that tells you what to do should that happen. That's your plan Z So now that we know ourselves better and have a better idea what we're looking for There's so many organizations out there. How do we find the right employer? We'll start with research You first consult your network, you know all of my jobs have been through a network connection Your network can be one of your greatest assets for career growth and events like this are perfect for growing your network Be sure to attend social events even if you feel uncertain about it You know find yourself a networking mentor someone you feel comfortable with and you know that they're going to include you in Conversations and activities you focus on human connections play games have fun and go to trivia night tonight Build relationships because who knows you might learn about a new opportunity tonight But also consider having a give-first mentality think of ways that you can help others And you can check job search channels, you know, who's hiring and what organizations are options If you're looking specifically within the Drupal community jobs at Drupal org is a good place to start Used indeed and dice as well as monster calm and LinkedIn. There are a lot of job search websites out there So once we have some some potential organizations, how do we learn more about each of these organizations and compare? so in this scenario our plan a is Dunder Mifflin and How do we know if in a tech hooli or Pied Piper is the right plan B If you're not familiar with these companies, they're fake companies from TV shows and movies So you can compare organizations on readings websites such as glass door and comparably You know be sure to look at employee reviews and note posting dates and trends You know, I believe organizations like people can evolve when they decide to so keep that in mind as you read the reviews Then visit organization websites, you know find their values find their mission statements Learn about their employee benefits see if they have any current job openings review their portfolio to see if you're interested in working on similar projects And note their language, you know, how do they talk about themselves? So imply and in the interview so I highly encourage you to apply and in an interview Applying is not a commitment in a sex. It's an exploration. So don't doubt yourself Apply if you have some of the qualifications let the interview process determine if you're a good fit You can also gain feedback from the interview process and that can help you identify any gaps in your skill set But remember to interview your potential employer as well, you know Think about the things you learn from personal reflection and use your personal values as a tool for decision-making So ask questions that will give you more insight into how well the organization is aligned with your values You know contact current or former employees of the organization within your network If you aren't directly linked to a former employees look for shared connections You may have with these people and request an introduction Also ask for specific examples to illustrate in the descriptions of the organization But also be filled be sure to filter your research, you know Take a step back take the rose-colored glasses off that make things look better than they are Consider individual bias and trust, you know pay attention to language Distinguish between work and play culture and look for inconsistencies between your sources So how do we collect and compare all this information? Spreadsheet of course Surprise I didn't come up with this myself This is open source an open source Google sheet from a Twitter post by Joel Califa. This handle is not details This is next level so you can add your own criteria and add weights to each score each organization and then compare the totals I've typically used a whiteboard to compare Benefits and differences So now let's talk about evaluating risk of a specific opportunity or offer So first thing to think about is what is the worst case scenario and is that tolerable or intolerable? Can you change or reverse the decision you made midway through? You know is plan B doable? Is there a specific long-term commitment? Some opportunities may require years of commitment in my experience agencies typically have a 90-day check-in to see if things are working out That might allow for an early change if things aren't And sometimes agencies offer contract work prior to offering an official position to test things out And then can you get to a new plan B or Z relatively quickly? Important to remember the uncertainty doesn't equal risk. You will never be 100 percent certain When an opportunity is uncertain, it doesn't mean it's risky some of the greatest opportunities have the most question marks and Consider agent stage, you know, what will the risks be to you in a few years? Consider your hard assets and obligations Different life situations affect your abilities take on certain levels of risk and risk is personal You know go after opportunities that others may see as risky, but you don't And be sure to evaluate all the benefits of a job not just the salary You know experience knowledge and connections can allow you to pivot into a wide range of new plan Bs You know this opportunity could be a stepping stone to a bigger and better experiences and look for opportunities They have a high short-term risk, but low long-term risk You know seek to build your resilience with frequent contained risk taking if you're currently in a low risk plan a Experiment with risk and side projects Maybe even within the Drupal community, you know find an initiative or project is promising and express interest in contributing Think of risk taking it like a flu shot You get a small dose of the flu a small Contained dose of the flu which makes you resilient against the flu But if you don't find risk risk will find you the only long-term answer to risk is resilience It sounds scary, but it's true. You know safety is relative For example a government job is typically considered a low-risk job until the government shuts down for a month The unexpected will happen and resilience is your secret weapon So the 10 10 10 decision-making tool may also be helpful, you know, how will you feel about this decision 10 minutes from now? 10 months from now and 10 years from now Also waiting to make a decision can be good. It helps to avoid an emotional decision You know, that's why people say sleep on it, but just be aware of analysis paralysis So now let's say we have an offer. Let's talk negotiation. If you don't ask the answer is always no It's my motto Seller negotiation is important, you know It's easier to increase your salary before you start than afterward and remember that your salary growth builds throughout your career If you don't negotiate you could be leaving money on the table and just think of it as simply part of the process But it's important to express excitement and flexibility throughout the negotiation process and don't be afraid to ask questions You know, what are my career progression opportunities? How is the salary decided? You know typically organizations will increase their offer, but there are cases when the salary isn't flexible And you just have to figure out what works best for you So these are some websites that have tools to research your potential counter offer Just be sure to account for the organization's location size and industry as well as factor in your experience education and performance and Also search multiple sources because they each have their own unique set of filters that vary results In addition to salary think about negotiating your start date You know be sure to consider your fulfillment of obligations to your current employer You can likely find these in your requirement in these requirements in your employee agreement contract or handbook If you can take some time off between jobs, it will allow you to start your new opportunity refreshed and energized Again, be sure to express excitement and flexibility throughout the process So some things to think about if you want to take time off between jobs in the US if to think about health insurance You know if your insurance doesn't terminate immediately Request that your last day be in the beginning of a month and then request your start date Before the end of that same month, so you would be covered for the month Your employer may provide you with information about Cobra Cobra allows you to purchase the same insurance you had with your employer But in my last transition I learned that Cobra has a retroactive grace period so If you if your new job is going to start before the end of the grace period You can potentially purchase the health insurance if you need it And it will be retroactively applied to your last day of employment Also review your financial assets and obligations and ensure you can pay your bills without a paycheck So how do you fire your current employer? First you have to give notice You want to consult your employee agreement contract or handbook to know the required notice period You know two weeks is most common, but it can range from a month to a week Just be aware if your place of employment has any legal requirements such as the UK This is my go-to resignation template. Not that I do this often It includes a simple statement of resignation and it's the date of last day It also expresses a willingness to fulfill obligations and is thankful for the opportunities experience with the organization So before you press send or drop off your letter be sure to manage your expectations of how your employer will react You know think about what typically happens when someone leaves your organization This can range from celebration with cake and drinks to being fired, which isn't cool For some the standard protocols that an employee is escorted out of the building by security. Just prepare yourself accordingly So now you've given notice now you need to fulfill your obligations When fulfilling your obligations you may be asked to work with your manager to transition your work to others You may even be asked to assist and hire your replacement There may also be opportunities to work beyond the notice periods as a contractor until they hire your replacement Just remember to build bridges. Don't burn them. You may find yourself working with them in the future So this is a photo of Mario Hernandez and myself We work together closely at media current and now we're actually working together on a project He's still at media current and I'm with Lullaby. So you never know what the future holds Keep in mind that if an organization burns bridges, you can't control that You can only control your behavior and your actions and those are a reflection of who you are Be sure to give feedback You know, you may have an exit interview if not you can provide an exit letter Just remember to be professional try to avoid emotionally charged responses Also, give the organization data to improve, you know, this could make things better for your co-workers and your placement If problems aren't reported or documented, they're less likely to be resolved. So my final thoughts Introspect regularly and allow yourself to evolve Grow your network. It will be your greatest asset for career growth Don't be afraid to apply and negotiate Don't burn bridges Build resilience by taking risk and remember this success for you is also success for your organization So you aren't being selfish. It's a win-win If you're interested in this topic, I'm an avid audio book listener And these are some of my favorite books that I've been listening to you on this topic Radical candor is a great management focused book It doesn't have to be crazy at work is a great read And I have a few stickers that you can put over things that shouldn't be crazy at work If you'd like to come up and get one just a few The startup of you is a career building book and the Alliance is an organizational focused book that compliments the startup of you And tribal leadership is also a great book. I'm also a podcast junkie So there is a new session of work life with Adam Grant that I'm really excited about Thrive Global has a podcast but I also recommend following them on Facebook and Twitter They have great articles about career building burnouts, etc Yonder's a podcast focused on the challenges of remote organizations Radical candor is related to the radical candor book mentioned before and hurry slowly as a podcast about avoiding burnout So, thank you everyone and happy career planning Anyone has any questions, maybe don't want to be recorded, but that's okay I'd also remind you that Contribution Day is tomorrow starting at 9 a.m. And You don't have to know code to give back And remember to provide feedback for the session on the Drupal Drupal con Seattle webpage and Make me a better speaker