Working Strategies: Random thoughts: Stretching job titles and happy places

Amy Lindgren Now and then I like to write about random thoughts that are too small or personal to make into a column Holiday weeks are a good time for small bits so here are certain things in the present on my mind Playful job titles Shoot I thought we were done with this A up-to-date press release tells me that companies are adopting playful job titles and seeing results Well isn t that special I know that s snarky but consider my position Having written r sum s professionally through at least two eras of made-up job titles I m pretty much over it I don t know which was worse the soulless Administrative Clerk II Class C type of titles from the s or the hard-to-take-seriously Chief Custodial Engineer titles that came later From my perspective both swings of the pendulum threat the reader not knowing what the heck the candidate does for a living Now a press agent announces that five quirky titles are making a difference for companies as they seek to distinguish themselves to job seekers Curious Here they are see if you can guess what the more standard version would be Chief Happiness Officer Director of First Impressions Expansion Hacker Brand Evangelist Digital Overlord Ready for the answers A Chief Happiness Officer focuses on employee wellbeing so maybe that used to be human information if it existed at all The Director of First Impressions used to be called a receptionist or front desk manager a Improvement Hacker might be the marketing manager the Brand Evangelist might be replacing constituents relations or sales but with almost religious fervor and the Digital Overlord is a souped-up website manager Quoted in the release is Mark Baldwin CEO of Baldwin Digital Creative job titles can communicate company values clearly energize existing squad members and attract talent who resonate with your organizational tradition He does advise thoughtful implementation with an eye toward employee acceptance and industry way of life I m not a fan but I guess I can t disparage what s working for other people And besides the press release itself was exceptionally well-written with fairly credible arguments Dani K the press agent from Journalist Insights requested a link to her client which is only fair for giving me column fodder https www baldwindigital ie You won t find the release itself on the site so tell me if you d like me to forward that to you Time to stretch Are you sitting at a desk or perhaps hunched over a phone while you read this Perhaps you re like me eager to unfold an actual newspaper each morning but still hunching over to read it Apparently we re not doing ourselves any favors I don t have a specific source on this but I ve been reading peering at my computer screen about how stiff we re all getting Hours at our desks more hours on the couch and endless endless hours driving if you have teenagers in sports it all adds up to pretzel bodies that we need to stretch while we still can Personally I can barely squat down anymore to feed the cat or clean up the aftermath tasks I wouldn t mind giving up but you see my point Spring is the ideal time to get back into a few kind of shape You re creative you can figure this out Stand at your desk wave your arms during Zoom meetings off-camera practice squats while you watch a show I ve already started by getting one of those sit-stand things for my desktop computer Now I can overwork at multiple heights Baby strategies Going to your happy place A lot of folks are struggling with the country s sense of upheaval right now You don t have to follow a particular political party to be suffering the effects of high prices unexpected layoffs and ricocheting national policies To combat his feelings of helplessness and occasional fury one of my clients has started taking a daily writing retreat His practice of stealing minutes to capture his thoughts reminds me of the old commercial where the harried mother sinks into a bubble bath murmuring Take me away Calgon After my client described the positive effects I decided to start a retreat of my own Now I end each day with soft music and a light whodunit It s a sad comment that reading about murder and mayhem is a better sleep aid than my own thoughts gathered from the day but there you have it Comments Those are my random bits for the moment What are yours Related Articles Working Strategies Using AI to organize or even conduct your job search Working Strategies Specific survival tools for uncertain times Working Strategies Navigating part-time jobs at a professional level Working Strategies Finding a part-time job requires a plan Working Strategies Holding on when things get tough Amy Lindgren owns a career consulting firm in St Paul She can be reached at alindgren prototypecareerservice com