Who Moved My Cheese?
In August, I wrote about graduating the Capital One Management Rotation Program (MRP) where I had spent the first two years of my career, working in two different roles over that span. Shortly before graduating, I went through the interview process to ‘officially’ move into the product management job family, and passed.
After two years of limited agency in selecting what role I’d be in (the MRP places you in your first rotation based on your background and feedback from interviews, and your second rotation takes into account some of your interests that you highlight in the rotation process to place you), I had a chance to hand pick my next role for what I felt was best for my career at this moment. For me, there were some guiding principles for me in selecting said role:
- Working for an organization & team with an outstanding culture. I put a HIGH premium on this one, as I don’t believe work should be something you clock in and clock out of. You should be invested in your teammates and, even if the work isn’t enjoyable sometimes, the people you do it with make it worth it. A strong culture, throughout the entire organization, was an imperative for me.
- Working with a community of product managers who would help me grow and develop my “product toolbox.” I know at this point in my career, being just 12 months into product management at the time (and now nearing 1.5 years), I had a lot to learn. I wanted to pick a role where I had a firm commitment from my peers and leaders that they would do their part in supporting my development, while I upheld my end by being curious and committed to growing for the benefit of the organization.
- Working for a manager/management chain that valued me and supported my growth opportunity. I’m a believer in myself and my potential, but it means 10x more when there are others around you who see things you don’t see (both positive and negative attributes) and will support and publicly advocate for your career growth and trajectory.
- BONUS: Work location flexibility. I’ve lived in the state (Commonwealth if you want to get specific) of Virginia for 26 years now, and I’m itching to get away for a bit. Capital One has returned to the office, in a hybrid model, as of September 6th, though there’s an emphasis on team and employee choice. I wanted to join a team where I had the opportunity to explore new places.
When I was picking my next role after MRP graduation, I weighed each of these (rather equally) to come to a final decision. I settled on another product manager role on our card agent servicing platform, feeling strongly that they checked off each “box” around my guiding principles and I was stoked to get started.
After under 2 months into the new role, we were hit with the first major re-organization that I’ve personally been actually impacted by. There had been some shifts in my past two teams, but they didn’t really impact my day-to-day and hardly impacted my reporting structure, if at all.
Without going into a lot of detail, the larger product team I joined was split apart and ~half of us moved to a new, but related, organization. There was a MAJOR project that finally came to a close after several years, and it played a part in triggering a shift in the way we do things and think about what’s to come. The shift makes sense in a lot of ways, but, it’s not something I anticipated nor expected when I joined the team and therefore left me with some uneasiness.
I hadn’t been with the team for long, so at times I felt like I may not have had the same right to feel any certain way as others, who have been there longer, do. In reality, it impacts everyone, both positively and negatively, in different ways and we’ve all got the right to interpret it the way we feel.
In his closing remarks after the announcement, the former VP gave a few pieces of advice. Each had it’s own time and use, and I made note of each of them. But the last one he mentioned I’ve put at the forefront of my thoughts as the announced shifts became official:
“Embrace the new opportunity.”
When some things are out of your control, you have to take it for what it is and find what things you can control. Take change in stride, learn from it, and make the most of the opportunity ahead.
In 2020, after COVID-19 ended college for me along with my baseball career, I started calling past alumni and get their advice on how to approach the situation at hand. One alum, Shooter, recommended I read “Who Moved My Cheese?” to position myself with a positive mindset, that the change that was happening presented an opportunity, rather than a detriment.
The book shares a story of four characters, two people (Hem + Haw) and two mice (Sniff + Scurry), who are caught up in a maze — a metaphor for their life/surrounding environment. At different points in the maze, there are “Cheese Stations” where the characters may find their ‘Cheese.’ Quickly, each of the four find their first station, full of all the cheese in the world. However, one day the cheese is gone — someone seemingly ‘moved the cheese.’
The two mice head back out into the maze to see what else they can find (embracing change), while the people remain there, feeling comfortable where they’ve been and expecting the cheese will come back, as they feel entitled to it (resisting change). Eventually, Haw embraces change and goes out into the maze to find new cheese, though Hem stays behind and continues to resist change.
Without re-writing the whole book, the general gist is that change is inevitable, and we should anticipate, adapt, and embrace the change, else we become a ‘Hem’ and be left behind. (***ALSO: The book is a VERY quick read, and if you can get your hands on a copy I recommend taking a look!)
Below, see the core pillars documented in the story:
I read the book in 2020, and recently revisited the book in the midst of the unexpected changes at work. Put simply, my ‘cheese’ moved, but it’s up to me to make it a great opportunity to find the new cheese, embracing the change that happened. We’re in the age of innovation & disruption. Change happens, and if it’s not happening, then that may be an indicator that you’re lagging behind.
If you have any thoughts or comments, I’d love to hear them and talk with you about them! Drop me a note on this post and/or on LinkedIn.
