Having a strong work ethic is the ultimate cheat code for a great career. However, it is also misunderstood what it means to have a strong work ethic. Because see while 'quiet quitting' is the opposite of having a strong work ethic, working long hours or weekends doesn't mean you do. It is easy to say what it is not, and it's one of those 'you know it when you see it' things.
One of the narratives I have seen here that get it wrong. "Don't sacrifice your well being for an employer who will fire you without notice"
I would say don't sacrifice your well being for any employer, even the one who promises to never fire you (where are those, slide into my DMs please!). Having boundaries is a good thing for well being and a great thing for long term career prospects, but those boundaries should be yours, not whatever the latest thing is on social media.
For example, I did my first internship in the graphic design field back in the day without pay. This is before I received any education in graphic design. In India, where the people to opportunity ratio is way skewed, why would a small design firm hire someone without the knowledge they need for a paying job! They had no incentive to hire me, so I created one (free help around the office). At the end of the internship, I had a portfolio that allowed me to apply for an MFA degree, and skills that I could use for the rest of my life. It felt like a fair energy exchange to me. See, my personal boundaries is what I respected here, not someone else's idea of how things should work.
To be clear, this in no way is me advocating for unpaid internships in all scenarios. Today, I work in a large tech company. The interns we hire are plenty skilled, they have gone through a portfolio review etc. So they are compensated for their time and effort. That is how it should be.
This is the problem with trying to have nuanced conversations online, it is very easy to take examples of exploitation, and come up with black and white rules of shoulds, nevers, always etc. and apply them to all situations.
Back to having a strong work ethic. I have much to say on this subject, but currently where I am is thinking about it as a combination of having found your purpose or at the very least what makes you light up, and proactively putting your best effort in the pursuit of that. YOUR best effort, on YOUR terms, with YOUR boundaries and what YOU think is fair and unfair.
And if you can't find anyone who has the right opportunity that will align with your definition, creating your own opportunity and giving that your best shot.
Design Leadership (x-Google, x-LinkedIn, x-Shopify)
1moCan we see the Maps slide please? Ofcourse, after masking any Google specific metrics / info.