In Avoiding the Agony of a ‘Bogey’: Loss Aversion in Golf — and Business (November 11, 2009 in Knowledge@Wharton), the author writes, “Tiger Woods and other golf superstars who stand to win millions on inch-long putts apparently are subject to the same fear and aversion to risk that can afflict investors and managers [and I would say also, those who are looking for work]. Taking the safe route, however, has its own costs, according to new Wharton research.”

“In a working paper titled, Is Tiger Woods Loss Averse? Persistent Bias in the Face of Experience, Competition, and High Stakes, Wharton operations and information management professors Devin Pope and Maurice Schweitzer examine putts during pro golf tournaments and determine that even the best golfers systematically miss the opportunity to score a ‘birdie’ — when a player sinks a ball in one stroke less than the number of expected strokes for a given hole — out of fear of having a ‘bogey”‘– or taking one stroke more than what is expected. According to the researchers, for many, the agony of a bogey seems to outweigh the thrill of a birdie.”

As applied to seeking employment, it would seem we ‘job hunters’ are trying to say ‘just the right thing’ often in looking for work, having performed job hunting tasks perfectly and followed some unwritten but somehow mysterious set of ‘rules’ for finding work.  In so doing, I wonder if we aren’t doing so out of fear of ‘having a bogey’ [not getting the job] rather than ‘trying for the birdie’ [playing to win the job]–that is, by presenting our talents with clear and pointed attention to what those talents are (our features) and the positive results prior employers have derived from their use (the benefits), having first carefully researched and identified even more clearly what the needs an employer has.

The fear of not getting the job–loss aversion–combined with lack of preparation for articulating and demonstrating our talents may actually be the major deterrent to success in landing the new assignment.  What must we do mentally to prepare ourselves to ‘sink a birdie’ ever time we interview?  It would appear that banishing our fears and focussing on ‘sinking the putt’ may be our only real obstacle.

A thought provoking talk at TED: “What’s Truly Behind Career Crises”

Philosopher Alain de Botton, author of “The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work,“ speaks on why job snobbery and social inequality are fuelling anxiety and fears that we’ll be judged an ‘under-achiever’, he says in this TED talk about the realities of success.

http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/605

He implies it seems that the real questions about work and life are ‘who are you’, ‘what are you good at doing,’ ‘why are you here,’ and ‘what does it matter if “life/work balance” is an impossible ideal.’

This fits well in my thinking about why job hunting is dead, and why I’ve started this blog.

With much discussion about networking, including the online ‘social’ type, it’s clear that many of us don’t really understand what it is and how to do it.  Recruiter/writer Nick Corcodilos, in Ask The Headhunter newsletter, “Too late to network?” (March 18, 2008), sums up what is clearly the issue, to my mind:

“True networking is when you spend time with people who do the work you want to do, talking shop. Good networking involves working with other active professionals, even if it’s on a volunteer project, or to learn something new. Good networking is rubbing elbows and enjoying talk and activities related to the work you want to do.

“Here’s the thing that confuses people and frustrates them: They think we network to get our next job. That’s absolutely wrong. We network to get smarter, to make new friends, to build our value and our credibility in our professional community, to help others, and to enjoy our work outside of the job. Job opportunities arise out of networking; they are not the reason to do it.”

Networking is all about building community, then nurturing it for the benefit of all who are part of it: “No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main….” (John Donne, 1572-1631).  Why we have lost this understanding is anyone’s guess: our focus on individual freedom, many options and choices in products, services, and activities in a capitalistic economy.

It would seem that Jesus’ words to us are truly ‘the’ life principle. “Here is a simple, rule-of-thumb guide for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you, then grab the initiative and do it for them. Add up God’s Law and Prophets and this is what you get.” (The Message, Matthew 7:12).  The message is clearly a proactive one, ‘take the initiative,’ but not in a self-centered manner.  Rather, put the other person(s) first in your life, and ‘what goes around will come around.’

This ‘ethic of reciprocity,’ the ‘Golden Rule,’ is evidenced through world history:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethic_of_reciprocity

What if we–you and I–applied this transformational principle to our careers, daily work assignments, and interactions with others in the work search process and our efforts to keep our jobs and stay employable?