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Compromise

Autumn has arrived and for many people this means enjoying the colors of the trees, picking pumpkins, and enjoying football fun. Yet as you sip your pumpkin spice latte, you are suddenly reminded we are in the last quarter of another year. The year 2021 has slipped by. Our year of uncertainty is still alive and kicking and most people are just trying to figure out which end is up still.  Each of us walked into 2021 with a vision and expectation for what we wanted from life and had to change our expectation in some way. Welcome to the equation - the power of compromise.

Many people think of compromise just between two individuals in a disagreement yet it applies to so much of our new life. This year, I have had to engage in a lot of compromise in my day to day existence. In shopping for anything, I have had to either make product substitutions. I have also had to make a compromise into how I visit places and people due to Covid. I have had to compromise on my expectations over and over again.

All this compromise does not just apply to consumer goods. It also applies at work. From my values and life experiences, I have a certain set of expectations on how I want my employment day to day to flow. I would like resources and people around me to flow in a certain manner. I would like my working conditions to be a certain way. My expectation is a certain salary and benefits to maintain a certain lifestyle.  I am not alone in this thinking. This same overall summary applies to everyone in any workplace.  In each day at work, I as an individual must compromise my expectations to meet those of others and the environment.

There seems to be a new way of thinking and trending. The “almost good enough” or “okay for now” mentality has shifted. People have decided for many reasons they are no longer happy with compromising what is important to them in order to maintain a job for now. The “Great Resignation” is now real. Many people, not just a couple of unhappy zealots, are looking for employment that offers salary, perks, and conditions that meet their lifestyles.

The trend to seek full-time remote work is real now. People no longer want to spend hours on the freeway commuting back and forth to work. People are seeking flexibility in time and location. People are seeking wages that meet their personal cost of living and lifestyle choices. An employer unwilling to be flexible will see people leave and may find it difficult to fill key spots. This will ultimately lead to loss of income as targets are not able to be met or contracts fulfilled.

After the almost two years of “new normal,” it is unreasonable for any employer to flip a switch and go back to business as usual. It is also hard for any individual to do the same. Ultimately, those unwilling to bend will break. We need to focus on awareness of what is happening in order to prevent the breaking point.  We need to know what is important for an individual or group and why. We need to all pay our part in the solution.

 ~Karen Cirincione

Email: kcirincione@gmail.com        

Linked In: www.linkedin.com/in/karenjcirincione

Twitter: @kcirincione 

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