Does my employers culture suit me? Have you considered the implications for me and my family carefully enough? Is working long hours going to suit me in the short, medium or long term? Lets face it, there are times in our lives when its easier to work long hours- when youve just graduated, or even when the kids have grown up are some examples.

Long hours worked when meeting a deadline can sometimes be a good thing. Short periods of intense hard work do someone no harm at all- in fact it can be good for you. Long hours away from the family all the time- thats a completely different matter. Spend too much time at the office and the next time you look around it could be the divorce court. Perspective is the key as well as good communication. If your hours are becoming a problem, talk o the boss- if they don’t come some way towards helping you to find a solution, dust off the resume, it’s time to shop for a new job

If you could work anywhere in the world, where would it be? If it’s somewhere other than where you are working right now, you need to change your job. Unrealistic? I don’t think so- you only have one innings in the game of life so play it. When you finally turn up your toes, the saddest words to say will be “if only”. Please don’t think to yourself that I could have had a great life but my boss wouldn’t let me. It’s your life, take control and follow your dreams. Where do you want to work? Get off it and get on with it

Are you doing now what you wanted to do when you were very small? I gave up long ago on being a professional golfer- I’m just not good enough. I haven’t though yet given up on other life goals. Setting and then progressively achieving your life goals are one of the things that lead us on the path to a happy life. Many people sadly die soon after they retire. I believe that in a lot of cases that they die because they have achieved their goal- namely that of retirement. A far better option is to set new goals- that’s every bit as important when you retire as it is before, perhaps even more so. Set new goals, commit them to paper, take some action and watch the magic happen.

What sort of working environment do I want? Many people love working in an office- the company, friendships and predictable hours suit them just fine, and they work happily there. For others, working in an office every day is a living nightmare- they crave the freedom that comes from variety of surroundings.

Wherever you want to work, there is a place for you- outdoors, indoors, driving, traveling, wherever, decide what sort of working environment suits you. What are you going to do about it? Get that resume off your hard drive and get it updated. Focus on your achievements and what you have done for the companies you have worked for. There are thousands of things that we have all achieved but we’ve probably forgotten most of them. Start keeping a “boast file”. File everything in it that you achieve- whether it’s that sales report showing you hit your target this month or just a thank you card from your partner. Review it regularly- it will make you feel better if nothing else

Find opportunities to mix things up if that suits your personality- if it doesn’t, great! we’re all different, just make sure you’re happy- the rest of the world seems to take care of itself when that happens