By Aileen Hinsch
Senior Business Development Manager, Crowell & Moring

It all began in 2021. After hunkering down with our marketing and business development teams to endure the stormy seas of 2020 - through Zoom happy hours, virtual retreats, and meeting each other’s pets on video - the Great Resignation began. We saw colleagues move to new firms, switch industries, and leave the job market altogether. We heard tales of the hot job market and fielded calls from recruiters. Yet, for various reasons, many of us stayed put. Perhaps none of the opportunities sparked your interest, perhaps you were too tired to start anew, or perhaps you were inclined to weather the storm and see where things landed.

For those of us who chose to stay, the workplace looks very different today than it did in early 2020. Here are some tips for making your decision to stay put have staying power.

See the silver lining in turnover

After working through the emotions of a colleague (and often times, friend) leaving – and the stress over how you will be impacted by it, experts suggest that embracing a growth mindset is the best approach when colleagues depart. If a close colleague leaves, consider building relationships with other colleagues who you haven’t gotten to know as well. View this as an opportunity to grow your internal network. As your former colleague’s workload gets backfilled or reallocated across the team, use this as an opportunity for the remaining team members to support one another. Consider if there are ways to develop new efficiencies and use productivity tools. There may also be opportunities to take on tasks or mentor a new hire that will help you grow your skills in new areas.

Find a renewed sense of purpose

A June 2022 Harvard Business Review article, “The Great Resignation Stems from the Great Exploration,” suggests that we should use the word exploration to address the reevaluation of priorities that was at the core of many workers’ recent departures. One of those was finding purpose in work and life. Since you haven’t changed jobs, can you find ways to adjust priorities and your role to align better with what energizes you? Are there new types of projects you could lead? Or is there a project that didn’t get done during the past two years that you like to revisit? Since you’ve been in your position for a while and know your firm well, you are better positioned to stretch within your role than someone who is just learning the ropes.

If you can’t change what you do from 9-5, consider volunteering to help fulfill that sense of purpose we all look for. This could be in an area in which you have a personal passion, or it could be related to growing new skills that you can use in the workplace to continue to grow within your current firm. If the latter is of interest, I encourage you to look into opportunities with LMA, which you can do by completing the Pipeline to Volunteer Leadership form. You’ll be able to meet new people and learn new skills while fulfilling your need for a sense of purpose.

Take control of your destiny

The truth is, the grass isn’t always greener. A recent Bloomberg article, “Boomerang Employees’ Are Going Back to the Old Jobs They Quit,” supports this truth. One benefit to never having left your firm is that you know what to expect, warts and all, and can try to take action to make changes.

Struggling with key aspects of your job? Reach out to colleagues for peer-to-peer guidance and advice; many of them have likely encountered the same struggles. Stressed about how to juggle childcare with a mandated return to the office? Talk with your boss to see if you can implement a more flexible work schedule. Craving more interpersonal connection at work? Start a book club or lunch group.

Whether the Great Resignation continues or slows down in the face of forecasted economic challenges is yet to be seen. Fortunately, for those who are staying put, there are ways to make the most of this current opportunity to ensure that your personal and professional goals continue to be met.

This post originally appeared in the LMA Mid-Atlantic Region member newsletter, October 2022