Talk about working for a cause focused or non-profit organization, and you are most likely to get quite a few stares and glares from everyone around you. Not that we blame you though. The concept of working for an organization that doesn’t pay you may sound to be something that is hard to digest for some.
Factors like societal mindsets and internalized perceptions among others often give off the notion that working for a non-profit organization cannot be considered as a fully acknowledged career choice.
Why is compassion necessary in the workplace?
Many companies believe that placing excess pressure on the employees would make them work better, thus increasing performance and productivity. However, the truth is far from that. In reality, high levels of stress and pressure can prove to be detrimental to an employee’s performance. A level of compassion on the other hand, can create a more productive workplace with happier and more satisfied employees.
Compassion allows for companies to bond with their employees on more than a professional level. These bonds have shown to have several positive effects on the workplace and its workers, including improving social interactions, increasing psychological distress and strengthening the body on the whole.
Tips to how to build a compassionate career
Thinking of building a compassionate career? Well, here are some tips that would help you identify your true calling and find out how you can bring some compassion into your workplace.
- Identify your style
Identify your particular style first. Check which characteristics work well for you. This will, in turn, help you identify the right work culture that has the right people who share your goals and interests.
- Identify your shortcomings and hindrances
Are you following a path because of your expectations or the expectations of those around you? Are you satisfied with what you are doing on a daily basis? Do you face regular hindrances when trying to travel the path you choose? How powerful are they in influencing your choices and decisions?
Consider all these questions and write down the answers to the same on a piece of paper. By the time you finish, you will have come to the right conclusion of whether you are in the right path or not.
- Identify potential ways to move forward
Now that you have landed your dream job, consider how you can go about making it more meaningful. Shaping your career is considered an essential tool in building your life the way you want it to be. One way to do this is to connect with peers, get involved in the community and gain knowledge of new tools and skills that would help enrich your career.
You can also choose to create an action plan with target goals to reach and the strategies needed to reach them. Set deadlines for these goals ranging from a month to a year or more. Eventually, you will start feeling more responsive in your job as you cross these targets one by one to move forwards towards the last goal.
- Identify borders and contemplate crossing them
Building a compassionate career and going global with it is a great initiative. However, it would need a fair amount of long term planning, determination, courage, adaptability and tolerance to establish a cause driven organization on foreign soil.
Your best bet in this scenario is to first visit the destination you plan to start the company in and visit some cause driven organizations in the area. This would provide you with enough opportunities as well as plenty of support to start your initiative and take it forward on foreign soil.
A compassionate career would bring more purpose to your life, both in a personal as well as a professional way. These tips would help you understand the benefits of working in a cause driven organization and starting your own compassionate career as well.
