Changing your mentality for a job share.
It’s learning to share all over again... We all learn the value of sharing when we’re young, or at least that’s what our parents tried to teach us. Share your toys, share your sweets... some kids struggle with it more than others (guilty) but eventually most of us get the hang of it. it’s the same when it comes to learning to job share, it can be hard making the mental switch from “mine” to “ours”.
It’s unlikely that the first job you’ll ever have will be on a job share basis, the vast majority of us will have some sort of a solo career before we find ourselves in a job share. It can be quite the culture shock switching to a job share. While you may still be doing the same job you always have, the way you go about doing it has to change.
The hardest thing to get to grips with for many is that within a job share, you’re not going to be two part-time employed individuals. You’ve got to think of yourselves as two people working on a team doing one job. With this being the case, communication is has got to be paramount. The team you work with are expecting your job to be fulfilled as if it was one individual. This means both parties being fully up to speed on current events at all times. The handover between both parties needs to be thorough for this to be effective.
Once you’ve got your handover in place and you’re sure you’re both on the same page, it’s time to start operating as a team. This in essence is switching any mention of “I” to a “we”. Instead of “I” made that decision, “we” made that decision. This also works in terms of any mistakes you may make, instead of “it’s their fault” make it “it’s our fault”. This will show solidarity between the two of you and that you’re both part of the same team, not that you’re just in it for you.
Switching from the “I” to “we” mentality won’t just be of benefit to you, your team will also appreciate it. Knowing that no matter who it is that’s covering that particular day, they can raise an issue as if it was either person will help them greatly. This is in addition to knowing that regardless of the person who’s in the same work will get done.
Comparably, job sharing is just like all of those group projects we did at school. There was the well oiled machine that just got on and got great marks as a group, and then there was the group that could never quite get it together... One person did all the work while everyone else sat back and took credit. Fingers were pointed, arguments were had and in the end everyone suffered. Don’t be those guys!
Job sharing is a very give and take situation and a delicate balance needs to be stuck to keep things running smoothly. You’ve got to keep in mind that you’re not just turning up to the office for your sake... in addition to the rest of your team, you have your partner to consider. Your short-comings will in turn become their short comings and vice versa. However, on the flip side their achievements will be your achievements, you’re both in it together through thick and thin.
Before considering a job share, be sure that you’ll be able to meet the expectations required of it. It can be very rewarding for those who do it right so be sure to prepare yourself for what’s to come.
If you think you can handle a job share, make sure you sign up to ShareYourJob and find your perfect job share partner.
