[ArchieAus]

The Stockdale Paradox and your career . Fairly well known thing "always keep an unshakable faith that you will prevail in the end , whilst facing the full realities of your current situation " .. blind optimism won't work apparently . I think it's lost its way in translation , it's sold off as a business enhancer , but in the beginning it was about survival and small wins ...and adjusting your pass/fail scale , so you might have a chance of achieving those small wins . Stockdale knew you couldn't beat the torture process in the Hanoi Hilton , you were going to crack in the end . So instead of you coming out of the interrogation room a broken man , you were told , endure it for 2 minutes . If you can do that your a hero . The Stockdale Paradox for me is not about turning your brain into an emotionless computer processor... but to give yourself a chance to succeed , by not expecting things you can't hope to accomplish , just to then lose hope when you inevitably fail . Set targets you can achieve ..and then be proud that you did . Bite and Hold as the called it in the Great War infantry tactics . Take a small step forward and then hang onto that ground , don't over extend yourself and be pushed back . You can't confront the grim reality of your current situation and yet still believe you will prevail in the end if there is no light for you to work towards as it's too far away to see . Bite and Hold ..and then be proud of the small shuffle you have taken and built up for the next ..then you can truely believe you will prevail eventually . Don't expect too much of yourself , but do set your targets , but only ones you have a chance of achieving ...then you too are also a hero .

[ArchieAus]

Very nice and fluffy huh , but now your boss sets the bar , not you ? Receive the objective , walk away and decide if it is achievable . If not , then break it down into sections . Which parts are critical to the business . Which parts are unachievable in the time frame and why . What are the resources required to fulfil the directive in the time available . Return to the supervisor and negotiate the case from a considered standpoint with resolutions .
Once was told by a boss " don't come to me with problems , come to me with solutions " . You still may get unrealistic expectations , but the trick is to respond to them not with an unrealistic or over emotional response . Step outside yourself and use "third person" if it helps . I do sometimes like I'm an additional person in the conversation . I listen to the boss and I listen to me , but with detached emotions . Makes it easier for me to see things clearly . Negotiation over , you have clearly said what is achievable depending on support given .

[ArchieAus]

And with that very sage advice..will it work? ...maybe .Has it worked for me? ...somewhat . I class myself as a mentally tough person , but after 37 years in the industry , of which 17 years have been spent managing . You do have the scars of every campaign . But I'm turning back to the Stockdale Paradox as a defence , but interpreting it in a way that will help me ..hopefully ...not help the GM 😝

[hvert]

I've lost all my motivation to fight to do a job well just to line other people's pockets.

[ArchieAus]

Fair enough hvert . I can understand that for sure . So have I in many ways . Its all just a copping mechanism ( add just enough alcohol as well ) for me . Just trying to get through . People talk about a "passion" for their work . I don't know if that actually exists , but I can honestly say I never had that . I did have "acceptance" however . This was my lot and one had to make the best of being born into a fairly hard , nasty industry .I'm finding that acceptance is disintegrating . So what to do about it ? For me I've come up with a plan . This plan could be shot to s#it of course if certain negatives happen ( WWIII , or a Chinese economic crash which sent us into another GFC ) but barring that it's fairly solid and achievable . Only catch I had to sell myself was a certain time period to keep doing what I do due to the money . That's 2.5 years to go now . 2.5 isn't a long time , but at times of very low "acceptance" is feels like a thousand years to go . At 55 I want to be totally financially independent so powerbrokers in government and industry no longer have any say in my life ...after that , utopia ?...I doubt it , there's never a perfect ending where they all lived happily ever after , but it's my dream and I'll deal with the realities of it when I get there . So 37 years down ...2.5 to go .. we'll see I guess , it's gunna take a lot more beers I reckon But that's me , that's my apparent solution . If you break down what I do , what am good at with my work ... it's solve problems . When there's bad s#it happening it gets tossed my way . My rep is that I will sort it out .... so now I'm just trying to use that hard won experience to solve my problem , which fnose what it is ? Burnout , mental breakdown ? Mid life crisis ?...or perhaps just awakening ?.... complicated stuff this "life" thing ain't it

[hvert]

2.5 years sounds doable, if you can keep reminding yourself it's only another two years. I had a similar plan at one point but tossed it aside in favor of an early, temporary, partial retirement. I wonder sometimes if I would have been better off sticking to the original plan, but too late now.

I wouldn't be surprised to see a collapse like the one in 2007 within the next five years. The property market in Australia seems pretty wild, I wonder what it will be like in a few years?

[ArchieAus]

Yes , I also hit the wall and took 6 months out mate . It wasn't really an option I just had to get out , so understand you fully on that one . I'm at the opposite end of the spectrum where I wonder if I will do irreparable damage by pushing myself too far . But time will tell huh 😀
I agree with you that the super heated east coast housing market could trigger major issues if there is another bump in the road . Spiralling personal debt is a big risk . I'm a bit fortunate in that I'm not really from that country . My Australia is a spot on the map on the edge of the western desert . Property values have actually dropped about 15 % here since the 2012 minerals price collapse , and look to be very flat for the future , but your home is your home and value is only really important if you need to sell it . Cities and masses of people are not for me . No one is of course immune , but I've done my best to insulate myself from a future inevitable correction .But anyways , it's probably a bit poor form on my behalf to be turning this into a financial review when so many people are out there struggling with their own personal demons .
For what's it's worth hvert , I reckon you have chosen a good path . We could all have another 10 minutes on this earth , who even knows these things ? And your living yours for today , you've chosen life .
Thanks also for your encouragement mate.

[hvert]

Hopefully you won't do too much damage and will be able to get out from it all in another couple of years like you want. It must be a good feeling to be so close to the finish line. I didn't mind so much when property values tanked where I am as I was happy (and able) to stay put, but I did feel trapped even though I didn't want to leave.

[ArchieAus]

Yep it would be great for a certain part of me ...if my property value had increased 100% . I don't really need that , but I would want it . I sort of attribute that part of me to the thing I reckon is wrong most about us an animal . Our addiction to greed and power . For me , it's why we are in this mess . A big motivation why I want to opt out . Don't mind me hvert , 4 beers and I become a phylosopher 😝

[hvert]

Lol, I don't drink so I don't have any excuse A bit of greed is required for opting out, no? In order to set yourself up for opting out, you have to acquire extra resources ahead of time. I am trying to work out a way to have an income that can sustain me without eating up all my time or exploiting others. It's hard.

[ArchieAus]

Yes , your so right hvert . Often I feel like a bit of a Karl Marx , not really connected to the unwashed masses , but believing in their story . I was sort of lucky and unlucky . When I was 15 my path was to become an underground gold miner . I would have been lucky to have been able to spell that job title back then , but it was my destiny . My mob had been doing it for 120 years . It's not like Cinderella and the seven dwarfs , we don't whistle while we go to work , with picks draped over our shoulders . It's a high pressure , long hours , sort of nasty industry ...but anyway , it meant I lucked out and became a guy who earned in the top 5% of the country . So did I make the most of that ? ...nope I worked hard and partied harder . High risk lifestyle ...and I experienced things . Travel ? , went anywhere I wanted and stayed anywhere I wanted and saw things people don't get to see, but only for a few weeks a year , the rest was grease and noise and rocks and conflict ... but anyway , that story would be too long and boring . So I survived , some didn't . Out of 30 boys in my class when we were in year 10 , 15 where dead by the age of 30 , not all mining , some just high risk lifestyle ... so again , anyway . Fast forward . Your right . I've lost the lust for the materialistic lifestyle ...and yet I still want to be more than comfortable ...a bit of a fraud I guess ...I would like to slow down , enjoy the moment . Take time out ...not sure , but something different 😀