This morning your mahogany desk looked slightly on the pink side on first observation and upon closer inspection you learn that yes that was a pink slip you discerned and you have officially been sacked! Hold the tears. No need for the sink or plastic bucket. Bayt.com gives you ten reasons to actually rejoice because it could have been a whole lot worse.
Moms and Paps persuaded you to be an engineer and you dutifully went to an Ivy League engineering school and wore a hard hat for the first decade of your life but really you are an artist at heart. If you have missed your calling this may be a good time to completely reinvent yourself and pursue the path of your dreams. As per a Bayt.com poll on career reinvention around 80% of Middle East professionals indicated they would like to switch their career path, clearly indicating that desiring career change is a prevalent sentiment among professionals in the region.
It was all very well and dandy graduating with high honors ten years ago, but today’s youngsters seem to be running circles around you with their fancy computer skills. Never fret. This is an ideal scenario to stock up on the latest books and sign up for a course or two in any areas you may feel insecure in. In Bayt.com’s ‘Career Advancement in the MENA’ poll, when professionals were asked what they regard as the biggest mistake while climbing the career ladder, 28.6% indicated “not improving and updating existing skills” and a further 16.9% stated it was “not learning new skills regularly”. Furthermore 30.5% of the region’s respondents consider “willingness to learn” is the most important quality required to succeed in one’s career.
You have worked night and day all decade and could really use a breather to catch up on your reading and research and pursue a new degree to take your career to a higher plateau. Well, this may be just that moment you have been waiting for.
You have been itching to leave an abusive work environment for years but just couldn’t muster the strength nor justify the ensuing loss in income. Job stress resulting from a poor work environment is not to be taken lightly and its very real physical and psychological manifestations can be very severe. According to Bayt.com’s 2013 ‘Employee Motivation in the MENA’ survey on an average working day 46% of professionals in the Middle East feel either under stress (30%), or ‘under severe stress’ (16%). Be grateful that you can now put it behind you and be committed to finding a much healthier work environment the next time round.
Check out your market worth on a trusted regional salary benchmarking site like Bayt.com Salaries. If you have been earning below your worth consistently, take this is an opportunity to do some catching up. On Bayt.com’s ‘Work Satisfaction in the MENA' poll a majority of respondents (60.8%) feel they are not well compensated at work. Pick up some salary negotiation skills and learn what skills are in demand to make the salary you are targeting through a careers platform such as Bayt.com’s Career Map. In fact as per Bayt.com’s timely study on ‘MENA professionals New Year Resolutions’, requesting a higher salary featured top of the 2013 list for 48% of polled professionals.
The city of fun, dancing and ski was just right for you in the past but now that you have a family and are slightly weaker in the knees you prefer the city of sun, safety and great schools. Leading regional jobsites such as Bayt.com have eliminated many of the traditional geographical boundaries in the job search and enabled professionals to learn about, compete for and effectively access great jobs across the region for free and in real time. Check out the options available around the region regularly, set up a Bayt.com Saved Search to alert you of any relevant jobs immediately as they become accessible and apply to all jobs you are genuinely qualified for and interested in.
Whether its part-time, flexi-time, telecommuting, training, children’s schooling or extra insurance you didn’t get with your previous employer, use this as an opportunity to target companies that can deliver on the benefits you really need at this juncture in your life. Unfortunately not many employers offer these motivational stimuli. You can consult the annual Bayt.com Middle East Salary Survey published online on the leading jobsite to gauge general salary and benefits trends in your industry and region.
That commute to work was draining you and using every last drop of your energy every day. You can now breathe a sigh of relief and look for jobs closer to home or consider packing up and moving closer to your new workplace. If you are looking to make a move to a new city, Bayt.com’s Top Cities in the MENA research report has some interesting insights about living conditions and special attractions of different cities in the MENA region. The survey factors in economic factors, entrepreneurial factors, labour rights, environmental factors, everyday life, socio-cultural factors, and quality of life.
Everyone knows you didn’t quite hit it off with the last team you worked with. Next time round don’t be afraid to ask to meet the team you will be working with on a daily basis. You may also want to very closely examine what went wrong and learn what you must avoid either in your own thinking and behaviors or in external environment the next time round.
Professional growth aside, what is it that may have suffered on the personal side of your life due to your immense focus on your career? Are there family relationships and friendships you need to actively nurture? Does your home or garden need some immediate tender loving care? Have you let personal grooming and fitness fall by the wayside? Did you forget what it was to have a quiet introspective moment or an hour of pure indulgent relaxation? Well allow yourself to treat yourself now and don’t for a moment feel guilty about it. According to Bayt.com’s ' Work-life Balance in the MENA’ poll 43.3% of professionals feel they currently do not have good work-life balance and If given more free time 36.2% of professionals would choose to spend this time with their family.
