I Tracked My Career Satisfaction for 12 Years. These 6 Ingredients Matter Most

(as originally published in inc. magazine)

Annual performance reviews have always reminded me of doctor visits.

Manager: “Hi, Mike. Good to see you. How would you say you’ve been doing this past year?”

Me: (Unable to remember much prior to today’s lunch, let alone nine months ago)
“Pretty good, I guess.”

Manager: (Nods reflectively) “Uh-huh. Reviewing your file here, I’d say your blood pressure (revenue) is where it should be, but your weight (cost) has been climbing. I’d like to recommend some diet (staff changes) and exercise (overtime).”

These rituals can feel obnoxious, because both sides of the table are typically so bereft of actionable information. Your manager does care about you, but he or she has a lot of other people to worry about too.

Having learned early in my career that nobody cares about my professional well-being more than me, I committed myself to coming up with more useful assessments of my professional health than “Pretty good, I guess.”

“If you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it.” — Peter Drucker

My scheme, back in October 2005, was to commit to a healthy habit of recording my work satisfaction against a few criteria. Some mix of measurements that could help me better assess, and ultimately improve, my professional decision making.