A Job is a Project

 "Let our advance worrying become advance thinking and planning." — Winston Churchill

My career has been focused on both products and on projects. There is a distinguishing difference between the creation, manufacturing and sale of these two items.  This creates significant differences in the job structure and tenure.

The product takes on a life of its own and does travel through the arc of a typical life cycle with creation, maturity and eventually retirement.  But the trajectory of a product’s life cycle can be, and often is, extended and re-extended through evolution. There is a sense of permanence.

There are some jobs that are more of a product type of job. Most of the jobs that have been around for a century or more would be in careers like: police, teacher, mail delivery, military, ship captain, etc.

I think that many of us think about our jobs and careers in the same way. The expectation is that most jobs and companies will be there through the years. There might be minor changes, but if a person wanted to, they could hold down one job for their entire career.  Most of us aspire to promotions and new positions, so we don’t usually have one job for our career.  The feeling of permanence is reassuring though.

Projects on the other hand are not permanent.  They have a beginning, middle and then an end.  These projects can be days or year, but there is a natural life cycle. Once the project has finished, then the work is to find another project. The best example is the construction business.  You are hired to build a building, then when it is done you have to find someone else that wants a building for you to build.  The job is essentially over after you finish the current one.  A few examples are: construction, exploration, consulting, project sales, etc.

The illusion of permanence in a ‘product’ job is comforting, but perhaps misleading. Recently, my thinking is that we should think about jobs more as ‘projects’. What could change or bring an end to a job? The company could be acquired. The product could be obsolete by a new competitor or technology. The economy could tank, and the company could downsize.  Your project gets completed and there isn’t another one.

If we switch our perspective on jobs from products to projects, what would that change in our life? There would be some added stress and some relief in embracing the idea that the current job likely won’t be permanent.

Stress: if the job could end at any time, then you need to stay alert and be ready to have a plan for the next job. There is always a bit of tension in the air because you should be glancing over your shoulder occasionally. You should always be improving your skill set and marketability.

Relief: the career is going to change and jobs will end.  That is the natural fact of life and worrying about it won’t change that fact.  So don’t worry, be happy…mostly.  Embrace the idea of change.

The project concept then highlights a few key ideas for us to embrace.

• Change is natural and inevitable.  Don’t cling too much to the idea of permanence.

• Start to prepare for a change in the future. Invest in yourself. Update your resume occasionally, keep expanding your skill set.

• Keep one ear to the ground.  Stay up to date on current events that might affect your company. Pay attention to trends of company performance and changes in interaction with your manager.

• Keep a circle of contacts and peers active. Networking is key.  It doesn’t have to be every day, but stay connected with social media, an occasional happy hour, attending a conference.