The Life Changing Art of Getting More Juice for the Squeeze
There’s go to be More to Life
Have you ever thought or said to yourself that there has got to more to _________________________? It doesn’t matter what word you put in the blank. The answer is YES! There is always something more. The question you should ask is: “Am I getting the most out of _______________________.” If you aren’t, it’s time you change your approach and start getting more out of pretty much EVERYTHING.
For a good part of my life, I accepted things at face value. I had fully adopted a “what you see, is what you get” approach to life. Thanks to my husband, I finally learned that more often than not there is potential for more than meets the eyes. I simply had to take a second look and just ask for it. That was tricky for me. I generally hated to ask for extra or more. I always felt like I was asking for too much or somehow inconveniencing someone by asking. My husband (and my hero when it comes to asking for what you want), however, is nothing like that. He rightly, believes that it can’t hurt to ask. This has led him to achieve many tiny and some pretty colossal victories in his career and business.
How HE got more
One particularly impressive victory was when he asked to convert his salaried 9-5 job at a very traditional fortunate 500 company to a part-time 100% remote position so that he could launch his start-up. Yep, you read that right. My husband asked for something the company had never done before. I had just accepted a full-time position doing my dream job.
Me heading back to full-time employment, meant that I could no longer serve as the “flexible parent,” the parent who works a flexible schedule so that he or she could serve as the primary care giver and transportation provider for our two sons. As a result, my husband now had a unique opportunity to not only spend more time with the boys as the “flexible parent,” but also a chance to become an entrepreneur. The only catch was that, my salary alone could not sustain the family while my husband got his business off the ground. The best case scenario was for my husband to keep working but from home part-time. So about a month into us both working full-time, my husband asked for exactly what he wanted (and our family needed). My husband got more juice for the squeeze, just by asking. Asking was the tiny victory that lead to a major quality of life victory for our family.
Ask and You Shall Receive
Asking is a critical to getting more out of life. My husband asked for something that didn’t exist at his company, which was a pretty big ask, but sometimes it is a matter of making the smaller ask for what’s already available. I am going to use another career example. I am a hard worker and take pride in delivering high value work products to my organization and customers. With that said, I used to have a bad habit of only focusing on that. I wrongly assumed that my work would speak for itself and result in long-term career success. This, however, was a terrible approach to my career. It led to me being unhappy and on the brink of burnout. Thus, I didn’t have the energy nor motivation to focus on professional development. This in turn meant I was less innovative and also at risk of my skillset becoming obsolete. I, unfortunately, didn’t see it that way. I felt like I wasn’t valued, nor compensated, for all the energy and effort I put into my job.
Just when I was at the height of my frustration, I learned that one of my colleagues published a book. What’s more is he was making the rounds on the conference circuit promoting his book. This person had expertly leveraged his job experience to pursue a professional goal that was well beyond his job description. It was genius. Thanks to him, I had the epiphany that I didn’t necessarily need to get praised and paid more, I needed to “get more than a paycheck” from my job.
Getting More Juice
I needed to take full advantage of all the opportunities and benefits that came with working at one of the largest and top companies in the world. It would not only help me personally, but I would have more to offer the company in return. Research shows that people are more productive when they are happy and when they make time for all those non-work related activities such as exercise, sleep, connecting with friends, and service.
I decided I would start there and focus on the opportunities the Company was already providing for associates. Then it was only a matter of asking to adjust my schedule to accommodate my workouts at the Company gym, asking to work from home so that I could be home when my children were out of school, or asking the Company to pay for a conference. I also made a few other asks that were not so obvious, like asking to serve on non-profit board and asking to work on a particular project to gain a new skill or exposure. All these asks led to a series of small victories that combined have been a big win for my family life and career.
My Tiny Victory
Three tiny steps that lead to victory in getting more juice for the squeeze :
(1) Research. Do a little digging and talk to insiders to find out all the possible perks. Whether you are planning a vacation or your next career move, do a little “reconnaissance.” Find out about all the employee benefits available to you.
(2) Get clear about what you want and need. Getting the most out of situation has a threshold. There is such a thing as, too much of a good thing. There is a point a of diminishing return. For example: Have you ever purchased a new gadget with all the bells and whistles but didn’t know how to take advantages of all those features so you ended up feeling like you wasted your money. The best way to balance that is by knowing exactly what you want and need. A good starting point is to think about your “perfect” day, week, and month. Then consider the ways leverage the benefits at your job to create more “perfect” days, weeks, and months.
(3) Just ask. I have finally embraced the notion that “it can’t hurt to ask.” My husband is a fan of quotes, proverbs, and clever words of wisdom. One of his favorite sayings is “closed mouths don’t get fed.” Getting the most out of any situation comes down to what you’re willing to ask for. Whether that be more training, flexibility, or responsibility at work to complimentary breakfast and room upgrade with your hotel stay. Asking is not always easy, but it becomes easier overtime. Use your best judgement when it comes to how, who, and what you ask for so that you don’t negatively impact your brand or relationships.