The Foreign Service Journal, November 2006

you accept an assignment to Western Europe, don’t be surprised if you’re delivering demarches telling your contacts to allow genetically-modi- fied food into their country. Make sure the work is rewarding to you. An area newer officers sometimes overlook is researching who their bosses will be. You could live in the country of your dreams and have work you’ve always wanted to do, but if your boss is a lousy manager and leader, you may find yourself dread- ing going to work. See what the buzz is about the person. What do fellow officers think his strengths and weak- nesses are? Find out her manage- ment style and decide if it’s compati- ble with how you like to be super- vised. The relationship you have with your supervisor can make or break an assignment, so try and find out ahead of time if your styles will match. Another thing to keep in mind when you look at possible assign- ments is how it will affect your career. Therefore before you submit that bid, consider the next tip: Decide what’s most important to you. Do you hope to make ambas- sador or deputy assistant secretary in the shortest time possible, or would you rather pursue the work that inter- ests you most? Neither choice is a bad one, but the goal will affect your choice of assignments. While every rule has an exception, conventional wisdom (aka the Career Development Program) dictates there are certain steps to take to make it to the Senior Foreign Service, and you need to begin taking them fairly early in your career. It may require going to a post where dependents are not allowed, or tackling issues you don’t like, or working with people you’d rather not be around. You need to decide which tack you want to take, and discuss the implications with your family. You don’t want to put in 10 or N O V E M B E R 2 0 0 6 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 19 F S K N O W - H O W