7 insights from 7 years at Google
In celebration of my 7 years working at Google, here’s 7 insights I’ve learning over the years:
If you can’t go up, go across: I proactively moved roles from sales > go-to-market > partnerships; 3 different roles in 3 different parts of the organization. Frankly, it was difficult to go “up” in times of corporate efficiency and flattening. Going “across” with lateral moves expanded my network & my skills. Plus, I got to try out different job functions to find the best fit, and reenergize myself with new, interesting work.
Sponsors, mentors, coaches, your network - you need them all: Yes, you are in the driver’s seat for your own career and yes, you also need people to help you. A sponsor to advocate for you when you’re not in the room. A mentor to advise and guide. A coach to facilitate personal growth in a safe space. A network to get you information you need. All important, all take time and care to cultivate.
The culture within the culture matters: From Ads to Cloud, business to engineering, different cities or leaders, the subculture really changes. That can mean more or less: autonomy, flexibility, collaboration, business travel, late night calls, support, recognition, ambiguity, etc. All of which impacts your ability to thrive and be successful.
Find your passion projects: So many Googlers have amazing passion projects outside their day jobs. From launching a nonprofit, learning a new language, writing books, scaling mountains, you name it, someone is doing it. That energy motivated me to take writing classes, run my first 5k, and spend time volunteering.
Show up with empathy: I’m at the time in my life where friends & coworkers are losing parents, and that hurts. Others are going through divorce, major health challenges, family changes, and so much more of the truly hard life stuff. Show up with empathy. Every. Single. Day. You will never have the full picture about what’s going on in your coworker’s life.
Perspective check: There might be a terrible client meeting that is the stuff of legends or a conflict that stays with you. But the average, run-of-the-mill stressful work stuff will get lost to the depths of your memory. Breathe. How much of this current stressful situation will you remember in 5 years?
Keep it real: People gravitate to authenticity and honesty.
If you’re considering working with a career or life coach, take a moment for reflection. What have you learned about yourself? What do you hope to learn working with a career coach? Where do you want to go from here?
