If you could win your perfect career by playing a national lottery type game how often would you play and how many tickets would you purchase? How much do you really want to win your dream job? Just imagine, wouldn’t it be great if this type of game could exist?
Unfortunately for now it doesn’t, therefore instead of sitting back and wishing for a magic wand solution or perhaps feeling a victim of bad luck I would like to encourage you to question the level of effort you are willing to give to achieve your career goals.
Take the time, make the effort to identify what you are looking to achieve, write down your goals and ambitions and more importantly make a commitment to yourself in order to achieve the level of success you deserve.
The desire to win = the effort you put in
In my Career Blog last month I mentioned that input activity = output results, the conversation that I once had with a client who failed to identify that applying for 1 job a week really wasn’t going to help secure any job let alone his dream job.
This week a friend of mine who took a sabbatical from her role nearly 18 months ago came to stay with me for a couple of days. Having spent over 35 years working without a break she made the decision to travel the world with her husband, next month their travels will come to an end as they return to the UK and the jobs they left behind them. I can’t start to imagine what it would feel like to return to a job after taking 18 months off to travel the world. Amongst others, the word challenging comes to my mind.
The reason my friend came to stay with me was because she had in fact been requested to attend an interview for a role that she applied for whilst traveling. Crazy perhaps? Too much effort? Would you be prepared to not only interrupt your holiday but to also spend additional money to return to the UK to attend an interview? Her response when I questioned her action was quite simple “How can I expect to achieve my career goals if I’m not prepared to put in the effort and to go the extra mile” (quite literally!)
Make an effort. Not an excuse.
Before you can achieve any career goal, you have to be clear on what it involves. Fortunately for my friend, her time spent away from her job has provided her with a focus, she has a clear vision as to her career direction. I meet many people who claim to be incredibly passionate about what it is that they are looking to achieve and yet feel uncomfortable when I question the level of effort they are willing to give.
Take the time, make the effort to identify what you are looking to achieve, write down your goals and ambitions and more importantly make a commitment to yourself in order to achieve the level of success you deserve.
“The successful person makes a habit of doing what the failing person doesn’t like to do.” Thomas Edison
Nikki Hutchison, Corporate Mentor for the Internal Job Market
A Corporate Mentor for the ‘Internal Job Market’ who offers employees an edge over their internal and/or external competition. With over 15 years’ experience, Nikki educates professional people to build on their personal brand, to sell themselves in the content of their CV and interview technique and to overcome personal barriers to fully recognise their strengths and achievements.