Ask the expert: When going gets tough

What do you do when things aren't going well at work? Dr MARIE WILSON, head of management and employment relations at the University of Auckland Business School and a veteran of 20 years in corporate management and small business, offers some helpful ideas.

Q: This year I was offered an engineering job which meant I had to move to New Plymouth, well away from family and friends. Because of personal reasons and family illness I had to move back to Auckland after only four months and took the first job that came up. At first things looked great - shorter hours, a $4000 salary increase. Problem is I hate it. I'm not being challenged or stretched at all - it's not the sort of engineering I want to do. It's not the job I was led to believe at the interviews.

I've been here three months and would really like to move on. Is it too soon to move? How do I explain to potential employers moving twice in one year?

A: The easiest way to approach this is to include your reason for leaving a position along with the job details in your CV. I would also suggest that you reflect on why your current job isn't satisfying, and talk to your employer about it.

You'll want to make sure that you learn from this experience, so you can build a career record and some tenure in your next position.

Employers beware, as well. Overselling jobs to applicants can lead to employee turnover.

Q: I know most people find it hard going back to work after a holiday, but this has been my first year in a job since leaving university and I have been depressed at work since a two-week break in Sydney. I enjoy my job, it's just that everything in the office seems pointless.

A: It is common to come back and find your job not quite as stimulating as it was. While you have this new perspective, put it to work. What things do you want to quit doing or streamline and what new things could be developed to put the "zip" back into your employment?

Try not to wall yourself in at work. Take a walk at lunch or take on a new project that you've been putting off.

Not all the "point" needs to come from work. Perhaps a better balance, with some new initiatives on both fronts - work and personal - are in order.

Q: I'm a recent MA graduate working in a multinational where three of us in one department do essentially the same job. One of my colleagues is a slacker who doesn't get as much work done as the rest of us, but he is paid the same. Although I should focus on my workrate rather than his, I'm starting to feel really resentful.

A: There is nothing you can do about your co-worker's performance, and you are probably not the only person who has noted a discrepancy, if one exists.

In terms of balancing the books, pay is not the only reward. In your next performance review, you may want to discuss your options for recognition, development and promotion.

A caution, though - many people underestimate the work of others and overestimate their own.

This is natural, as you are always aware of when you are working and what you have accomplished, while co-workers' accomplishments may not be as visible.

Check your understanding of relative achievements with that of your supervisor; a diplomatic approach might be to ask how they view your work in comparison to that of others.

* E-mail your questions for Dr Marie Wilson to answer.