Every worker, employer and entrepreneur works in Customer Service.
It’s true. If you had no customers, you would have no employment. You might say that Customer Service is for people who purchase your product or service. That is true. But have you considered that an employer purchases your product; your work product?
We are all in service to our customer; every person on the planet is in service for some customer, but that’s another blog on another site. This blog is about serving your customer on the job. It is also about the persons who serve you.
Man is a social animal. He can survive without other people around him, but he cannot thrive. This is especially true in the economic sense. We all depend on others; people who will buy our product and people from whom we can buy products. How well we meet our customers’ needs will, to a large extent, determine how well we will thrive. So it is important to support your customers in any reasonable way that you can, especially in today’s workplace.
The job place has changed dramatically. At one time we were welcomed in as part of the family. We might work our whole professional life for one employer. Not today. Today employees change jobs on the average of every 3 to 5 years and during the course of their working years may have careers in several different fields.
Today publically traded companies are being driven more and more to think short-term by shareholders who want to see their money make money immediately.
Technology is advancing so rapidly that a new product can be obsolete before it hits the retail shelves.
Businesses are being forced to think innovatively and globally. The secure job of today is the off-shore job of tomorrow and the software program of the day after. So the employee-entrepreneur while taking care of his customers and keeping up with new thinking and technology must prepare himself for his own obsolescence.
But however much business and technology change there is one need that will remain; the need for customer service. It is one of the few skills that you can take from job to job and from career to career. The person who has the reputation of serving his customer, whether it is the public, his supervisor, management or colleagues is going to be welcome in most working environments. This is the “go to” person. The one who can get things done. The one who can point you in the right direction. The customer oriented employee-entrepreneur will have many success stories to talk about in an interview. He will have many illustrations of how he contributed to a team but was also able to work on his own. The customer service oriented employee-entrepreneur will have many examples of how he was able to overcome obstacles and improve processes.
The employee-entrepreneur is approachable. He is the one that people end up turning to when they need help and ideas. He has likeability. Likeability is one of the qualities that employer-clients are looking for in the workplace today. Because they are working leaner and there are lots of people looking for jobs today it is much more desirable to have the likeability factor than to have all the technical skills, though technical skill cannot be dismissed.
As you are looking over your accomplishments in preparation for an interview, make special note of your customer service successes. Think about the many ways that you served your customers and apply that to the job for which you are interviewing.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
Employee-Entrepreneur
Consider how the concept of the employee has changed over the years. At one time an employee entered an organization and pretty much was assured of staying with that company for his/her whole career unless they chose to leave for one reason or another. Except for misconduct, some mild recessions or some obsolescence employment was pretty steady and assured. If you wanted to work, you could find a job, for the most part.That picture has been changing since the mid-seventies and it took a big leap in its new direction two years ago with the recession. A large part of this change is due in no small measure on how we view investment. At one time people looked at their investments as long-term. No one expected to make a quick buck and move on. When you invested it was with an eye on tomorrow. Not today.
So what happens when quarterly and annual reports do not show the results that stockholders want? They take their money and go play elsewhere. Since Equity is a component used to leverage borrowings they have to find some way to reduce expenses. Care to guess what the quickest way to reduce expenses is? That’s right, lay off workers.
In addition, production expectations of employees have changed over the years. Many office workers are expected to produce in quantity, sometimes to a degree that they do not have the time to properly analyze the information they are processing. When irregularities are noticed by some particularly alert and ethical employee and brought to the attention of management, they may be ignored, pooh-poohed or dismissed out of hand. If the employee spends some effort trying to get someone to listen, that employee may find themselves looking for new employment. It’s hard to prove a dismissal for whistle blowing.
As a result of all these changes in the modern work environment employees need to rethink their approach in working in Corporate America. In fact the employee should take more of an entrepreneurial approach to their jobs. What does that entail?
As an entrepreneur you keep a bird’s eye view on your clients or customers. This means being aware of trends in their industries as well as where they place in that industry. You also keep your ears open for any negative rumors, which you quietly check out, without adding anymore fuel to the fire. It means that if the company is headed to hard times, if you are not already casting about to add new customers you begin to look at the possibility that this customer may go away. (i.e. lay you off.) You want to be current on all this information, don’t walk around with your head in the sand until you’ve lost your window to make a move on your own terms.
It also means that you do not discuss your concerns with just anyone. In fact, other than reporting ethical and/or moral and/or illegal matters to the appropriate authority in the organization, I would not suggest that you discuss your concerns with another single employee, no matter how trustworthy or close they may be. If you need to discuss these matters with someone, discuss them with a private counselor or coach. You would do no less in your own business. For instance, if you were having personnel problems in your organization and needed some advice, you would not turn to another employee to get that advice. You would turn to someone you trusted and who exercised discretion with no ties to the company.
As for whistle blowing, that is tricky. Depending on the seriousness of the matter and the resistance of management to address it, you might want to set up your exit strategy before you pursue it to any degree. Whistle blowers are generally considered anathema by all employers and often find it difficult to find work once let go by their employers. It takes great courage, a strong sense of ethics and moral fortitude to be a whistle blower. However you handle it, make sure you keep good records.
One last area to consider is making yourself known in your area of expertise and in the market. That means networking while you are employed. Make friends. Help people where you can. Become known as the go to person and people will start thinking of you first when they are looking for someone to fill a place in their organization. Additionally, so that you don’t become locked in with one company to the extent that people become concerned about your ability to adapt to changes, you might want to consider changing jobs every three to five years. Many people do this anyway in order to advance their careers. It is a quicker way to move up the corporate ladder than waiting for an opening in your present organization. Also, many corporations actually prefer personnel to change every three to five years as it brings in fresh blood and new ideas. The perception is that people become stale and complacent when in one position and with one company for too long.While the problems and concerns voiced above have been around for a long time they are of greater concern in the current corporate environment. Thinking like an entrepreneur and making conscious decisions about your relationships with colleagues and employers may help to ease your way through the current employment market.
Monday, August 9, 2010
As it was in the Beginning, so it is at the End
Ever noticed that many of those we consider the very old, mid-eighties and up spend a good deal of their days napping? Many would say it is because they do not get enough stimulation. Maybe. But have you ever watched them while they nap? It seems to me that this sleep is very different from what we call normal sleep.
Most of the time when people sleep they shift position at intervals, maybe take a deeper breath from time to time, change their expression, even have a light snoring sound. But the people I have observe of late are not doing any of this. They don’t twitch or shift a muscle. Except for the pull of gravity, they don’t move at all. Their breath is light and they don’t make a sound, not a snort or snore or sigh. They seem totally absorbed in their nap. Very often, when they wake up, it is just as if they had stepped out of the room for a few minutes and have just returned, or if they werer wakened, they act as if they were interrupted from an important private conversation.When they are awake they seem to be disengaging themselves from those around them. Last week I noticed that during their lunch they did not talk to or even look at one another, only the aides who presented their food only in response to a direct question. If you ask them what they are thinking, they may say “Nothing”, if they say anything at all and they may follow the comment with a far away stare. But I wonder.
It occurred to me that this behavior is in some aspects similar to that of a newborn. In other aspects it is just the opposite. And I had the sudden thought that this is exactly right. Newborns are coming while our ancients are leaving.Most newborns spend a great deal of their first weeks and moths sleeping. Certainly they are growing very fast at that time and many of the organs are completing their development. But is it possible that there is something else going on too? Could it have something to do with transitioning from the other side of the Veil to this side? Certainly, the longer they are on this side, the less time they spend sleeping. Is it possible that all the napping of the elderly has much to do with their upcoming transition back through the Veil?
Is it possible that the newborns are saying their goodbyes to souls, teachers, guides, soul mates and friends on the other side before making their full and complete transition here? Maybe there are last minute instructions and reminders.
Is it possible that the elderly are becoming reacquainted with a similar group on the other side? Might they possibly be getting information on what they will be doing when they make their final transition? Their naps are certainly peaceful and absorbing.It is curious that a newborn spends less and less time napping while the elderly spend more and more time napping. What do you think?
Monday, July 19, 2010
Networking – The take and give
Last time we discussed that networking is every interaction you have with any other person. True; as far as it goes. That discussion was about getting your message out. It was the “all about me” part of the message; getting out your message.
If everybody was standing in a room getting out their message, there would be a lot of noise, but where would that message be going? Nowhere. Everyone would be so absorbed about their needs they would not be able to pay attention to anyone else’s needs and they might miss some information that would be very useful for them. Listening is the second part of networking.
Networking involves communication. Communication in its simplest form requires a conveyer of a message, a speaker, and a receiver of the message, a listener. If you do not have those two components, you do not have communication and the purpose of networking has been defeated. The two rolls switch back and forth in a conversation.
The speaker’s job is obvious, to get the message out in a way that the listener can understand. At the very least this means a common social language. Using techno-speak on a lay person will come across to the listener as so much babble. But the listener has an important job, too. The listener needs to listen actively.
What does it mean to “listen actively?” It means that as you listen to the speaker you ask for clarifications or explanations of what the speaker is saying. You repeat back to the speaker what you have heard. When you do this the speaker becomes the listener and identifies areas that need more explanation and areas where your understanding needs to be validated. After the listener has asked his questions or repeated his understanding the original speaker returns to his role as speaker and answers the listener’s questions and validates his understanding. During this process the speaker makes his needs and desires known. The listener may be able to help him achieve these goals or offer suggestions on how he can achieve these goals or know of some way in which he can achieve these goals.
If everybody was standing in a room getting out their message, there would be a lot of noise, but where would that message be going? Nowhere. Everyone would be so absorbed about their needs they would not be able to pay attention to anyone else’s needs and they might miss some information that would be very useful for them. Listening is the second part of networking.
Networking involves communication. Communication in its simplest form requires a conveyer of a message, a speaker, and a receiver of the message, a listener. If you do not have those two components, you do not have communication and the purpose of networking has been defeated. The two rolls switch back and forth in a conversation.
The speaker’s job is obvious, to get the message out in a way that the listener can understand. At the very least this means a common social language. Using techno-speak on a lay person will come across to the listener as so much babble. But the listener has an important job, too. The listener needs to listen actively. What does it mean to “listen actively?” It means that as you listen to the speaker you ask for clarifications or explanations of what the speaker is saying. You repeat back to the speaker what you have heard. When you do this the speaker becomes the listener and identifies areas that need more explanation and areas where your understanding needs to be validated. After the listener has asked his questions or repeated his understanding the original speaker returns to his role as speaker and answers the listener’s questions and validates his understanding. During this process the speaker makes his needs and desires known. The listener may be able to help him achieve these goals or offer suggestions on how he can achieve these goals or know of some way in which he can achieve these goals.Afterwards the original listener becomes the dominant speaker and expresses his desires and needs and the process is repeated. At the end we have had a conversation and if each party has done their job well, we have an understanding of what is motivating each party and if everyone is even more fortunate we may find that we can help one another. And if we actually are able to help each other we have made that perfect connection.
The relationship may take time to develop. There may need to be many encounters before either party achieves their desired result. More than talking, people need to see you in action. How do you work? How do you respond to people when you are not “on”? In the end, if you have a message that resonates with others you will achieve your goal. Patience is the final part of networking.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Networking
Networking. what is it and how does it work?
We have “networking” groups these days and many people think that is what is meant by networking. When you are with or in these groups you are networking. As far as that goes they are correct. But it is not the only form of networking.
Actually every interaction you have with any other person, whether by word or deed, is networking. You never know how what you say or do will travel and affect someone. And you never know how far a word or action may travel.
We are social animals and, to a large extent, our survival is dependent on our interactions with one another. Some interactions are positive and some negative, but each interaction leaves behind an effect on everyone that action has touched. If we lash out negatively at someone, whether in pain, frustration, fear or anger, we can be pretty sure that will set up a chain of negative reactions to us individually and possibly to what caused us to lash out. But if we raise our vibration and look at the circumstances calmly, we may find a way to turn this internal reaction to something positive and not set up the negative chain.
Most of our interactions are neutral; neither negative nor positive. While negative experiences may stay with us for some time, positive experiences may stay with us for very short times unless they are reinforced with other, related positive experiences. Thus while a confrontation in the check-out line at the grocery store may stay with us for several hours, a pleasant interlude with the person next to us in the same line is likely to be forgotten before we get to our car.
The trick in networking is to make every encounter as positive and memorable as possible. A smile, a personal connection is a start. An exchange of business cards is reinforcement. If a need can be identified and met an additional connection is made. Enough of these interactions and a relationship is established. This may lead to a connection that helps you to build your business. This, too, is networking.
The conversations you have after making a speech are also networking activities.
Look closely at your business. Where are your ideal customers? Wherever they are is where you need to be. Will your networking activities work best in networking groups, making speeches or some other activity? Do not limit your perceptions of what constitutes networking. Just reach out and “touch” someone.
We have “networking” groups these days and many people think that is what is meant by networking. When you are with or in these groups you are networking. As far as that goes they are correct. But it is not the only form of networking.
Actually every interaction you have with any other person, whether by word or deed, is networking. You never know how what you say or do will travel and affect someone. And you never know how far a word or action may travel.
We are social animals and, to a large extent, our survival is dependent on our interactions with one another. Some interactions are positive and some negative, but each interaction leaves behind an effect on everyone that action has touched. If we lash out negatively at someone, whether in pain, frustration, fear or anger, we can be pretty sure that will set up a chain of negative reactions to us individually and possibly to what caused us to lash out. But if we raise our vibration and look at the circumstances calmly, we may find a way to turn this internal reaction to something positive and not set up the negative chain.
Most of our interactions are neutral; neither negative nor positive. While negative experiences may stay with us for some time, positive experiences may stay with us for very short times unless they are reinforced with other, related positive experiences. Thus while a confrontation in the check-out line at the grocery store may stay with us for several hours, a pleasant interlude with the person next to us in the same line is likely to be forgotten before we get to our car.
The trick in networking is to make every encounter as positive and memorable as possible. A smile, a personal connection is a start. An exchange of business cards is reinforcement. If a need can be identified and met an additional connection is made. Enough of these interactions and a relationship is established. This may lead to a connection that helps you to build your business. This, too, is networking.
The conversations you have after making a speech are also networking activities.
Look closely at your business. Where are your ideal customers? Wherever they are is where you need to be. Will your networking activities work best in networking groups, making speeches or some other activity? Do not limit your perceptions of what constitutes networking. Just reach out and “touch” someone.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Help Wanted
Are you working too hard in your business? Are you spending too much time on the busy-ness of the business and not enough time on those activities that generate or lead to generating revenue? Are you spending so much time trying to run your business that your life has become unbalanced. You have no or very little personal life. All your efforts are geared toward your business.
If you own your own business you know that you are wearing most if not all the hats in the organization. You are probably working long hours, sitting before your computer late into the evening trying to get all the things done that you couldn’t get done during the day. You may be spending less and less time on those activities that generate your revenue because you just can’t get to them.
STOP!
Take a cold hard look at what you are doing. How much do you really need to do. How much of what you are doing needs to be done at all. Look at every task you do and evaluate whether it needs to be done at all. Look at all the remaining tasks and evaluate whether you really need to be doing them or could they be done by someone else. Look at your remaining tasks and evaluate them. Could they be done by someone else with just a little tweaking? After all this separation the only activities left should be those that only you can do.
Next, determine how much revenue you generate, on the average, when you are actually selling your products or services.
Now take your average revenue amount and subtract from that what it would cost you to pay an administrative assistant to do all the jobs that you just eliminated from your personal task inventory. The difference (assuming you can generate more revenue than you’d pay an assistant) is the revenue you lost by doing all those tasks yourself.
There are a lot of people who can take care of the small stuff for you. Let them. Spend your time generating revenue. Your revenues and profitability should all prosper from your decision to get some help. Bonus: You should have more time for yourself.
If you own your own business you know that you are wearing most if not all the hats in the organization. You are probably working long hours, sitting before your computer late into the evening trying to get all the things done that you couldn’t get done during the day. You may be spending less and less time on those activities that generate your revenue because you just can’t get to them.
STOP!
Take a cold hard look at what you are doing. How much do you really need to do. How much of what you are doing needs to be done at all. Look at every task you do and evaluate whether it needs to be done at all. Look at all the remaining tasks and evaluate whether you really need to be doing them or could they be done by someone else. Look at your remaining tasks and evaluate them. Could they be done by someone else with just a little tweaking? After all this separation the only activities left should be those that only you can do.
Next, determine how much revenue you generate, on the average, when you are actually selling your products or services.
Now take your average revenue amount and subtract from that what it would cost you to pay an administrative assistant to do all the jobs that you just eliminated from your personal task inventory. The difference (assuming you can generate more revenue than you’d pay an assistant) is the revenue you lost by doing all those tasks yourself.
There are a lot of people who can take care of the small stuff for you. Let them. Spend your time generating revenue. Your revenues and profitability should all prosper from your decision to get some help. Bonus: You should have more time for yourself.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Questions, questions
Have you ever just sat some place with a lot of foot traffic and watched the people go by? Do you ever imagine what their lives are like; their joys and sorrows, what makes them tick? Do you ever imagine that their lives are not much different from yours but experienced differently. Are they more in tune with the Universe and their place in it? Are their insights more penetrating? Do they have insights or are they just coasting through life, never realizing that there are lessons to learn and work, soul work, that needs to be done? Do you ever wonder if at some point their lives will cross with yours and how that might happen? Do you ever wonder what that might be like?
For the most part we live our lives in an insular fashion, only letting a select few enter our circle, our space. We protect our space keeping at bay people who are “different”; people who think, act or live differently than we do. Differences intimidate us. Differences scare us. Differences make us aware that our way is not only not the only way but may not even be the “best” way. Those strangers who pass us every day reflect back the aloneness that we feel about ourselves. Or do you feel alone. Are you surrounded by people. Do these people mean any more to you than a reinforcement of how you have chosen to live; who you have chosen to be?
Do you ever wonder if you are living the life you came here to live? Does it ever cross your mind or do you just exist without thought or curiosity? Do you ever wonder if there is a purpose for you being here and now and if so what that purpose might be?
Do you ever allow yourself to sit, watching the world go by and just wonder, not directing your thoughts in any direction but letting them wander where they may. Where do you go? What do you find when you get there? Do your thoughts change your life?
When all the wondering and consideration of other people is done do you feel a restlessness inside? Do you feel like something is missing but can’t quite put a finger on it? Have you ever gotten real quiet, shutting out all of the random thoughts that constantly inhabit your mind and listened to the quiet? Have you ever let the quiet voice inside you speak when all the other voices are quiet? All the answers are there inside you. Do you listen? Do you have the courage to follow the course it asks you to set? Do you?
For the most part we live our lives in an insular fashion, only letting a select few enter our circle, our space. We protect our space keeping at bay people who are “different”; people who think, act or live differently than we do. Differences intimidate us. Differences scare us. Differences make us aware that our way is not only not the only way but may not even be the “best” way. Those strangers who pass us every day reflect back the aloneness that we feel about ourselves. Or do you feel alone. Are you surrounded by people. Do these people mean any more to you than a reinforcement of how you have chosen to live; who you have chosen to be?
Do you ever wonder if you are living the life you came here to live? Does it ever cross your mind or do you just exist without thought or curiosity? Do you ever wonder if there is a purpose for you being here and now and if so what that purpose might be?
Do you ever allow yourself to sit, watching the world go by and just wonder, not directing your thoughts in any direction but letting them wander where they may. Where do you go? What do you find when you get there? Do your thoughts change your life?
When all the wondering and consideration of other people is done do you feel a restlessness inside? Do you feel like something is missing but can’t quite put a finger on it? Have you ever gotten real quiet, shutting out all of the random thoughts that constantly inhabit your mind and listened to the quiet? Have you ever let the quiet voice inside you speak when all the other voices are quiet? All the answers are there inside you. Do you listen? Do you have the courage to follow the course it asks you to set? Do you?
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Realignment
It’s a curious phenomenon, when we find ourselves finding faults in others, especially faults that we’d like to “fix”, we are usually looking at faults in ourselves that need fixing. It’s true, people reflect back to us what we need to see in ourselves. Wow! What a concept!
What is even more curious is that if we recognized it and started working on our self, we would be too busy to interfere unduly in the lives of others. Then another curious thing happens. When we work on us and begin to exhibit a true change, the people around us begin to change. They can’t help it. Things that used to push our buttons, don’t push them anymore. Unconsciously, the people around us are looking for a button that is no longer there and so they are forced to make changes to meet the new situation.
What a concept, we change others by changing ourselves!
There will always be people who will try to control us, make us cry, angry, feel inferior or any number of negative emotions if we let them. They unconsciously feel that makes them superior. It doesn’t really. It just makes them more afraid. When we refuse to let ourselves succumb to these controls, the person trying to control us has to change. In my experience the change is generally an improvement, at least from my point of view. Oh, the change doesn’t happen overnight and it’s not too consistent in the beginning, but by changing yourself you are forcing the other person to learn new tricks. Interesting, change others by changing yourself; teach others, by changing yourself.
There are some who will refuse to change, to learn. They are too afraid to change their old status quo. They will probably drop out of your life. You have learned your lesson and are now moving on. They are still learning their lesson and so are stuck. Wish them well, then let them go. They have their path, you have yours.
These episodes are painful enough when it is with people who are passing through your life, but it’s much more difficult when it is someone in your life. Then we must take a harder but more compassionate look at the lessons that both they and we are learning. The lesson may be much deeper than it first appears. It may have many layers, many levels of learning to absorb. In my experience, patience is the key here, not only for the other, but for myself. In my experience, the most profound lessons are learned from the people who are in my life.
We are taught patience growing up, but it’s mostly for the other guy. We seldom practice patience with ourselves. Nor do we think often on forgiving ourselves for our mistakes and shortcomings. But it’s true, in order to truly love others, understand others and forgive others, we must love, understand and forgive ourselves; one of those Cath-22s in life.
So the next time someone really ticks you off and won’t do what you want them to do, stand back. Take a breath. Relax. Then thank them for the lesson that they were trying to teach you. Then smile as you walk away while they are frowning in confusion.
What is even more curious is that if we recognized it and started working on our self, we would be too busy to interfere unduly in the lives of others. Then another curious thing happens. When we work on us and begin to exhibit a true change, the people around us begin to change. They can’t help it. Things that used to push our buttons, don’t push them anymore. Unconsciously, the people around us are looking for a button that is no longer there and so they are forced to make changes to meet the new situation.
What a concept, we change others by changing ourselves!
There will always be people who will try to control us, make us cry, angry, feel inferior or any number of negative emotions if we let them. They unconsciously feel that makes them superior. It doesn’t really. It just makes them more afraid. When we refuse to let ourselves succumb to these controls, the person trying to control us has to change. In my experience the change is generally an improvement, at least from my point of view. Oh, the change doesn’t happen overnight and it’s not too consistent in the beginning, but by changing yourself you are forcing the other person to learn new tricks. Interesting, change others by changing yourself; teach others, by changing yourself.
There are some who will refuse to change, to learn. They are too afraid to change their old status quo. They will probably drop out of your life. You have learned your lesson and are now moving on. They are still learning their lesson and so are stuck. Wish them well, then let them go. They have their path, you have yours.
These episodes are painful enough when it is with people who are passing through your life, but it’s much more difficult when it is someone in your life. Then we must take a harder but more compassionate look at the lessons that both they and we are learning. The lesson may be much deeper than it first appears. It may have many layers, many levels of learning to absorb. In my experience, patience is the key here, not only for the other, but for myself. In my experience, the most profound lessons are learned from the people who are in my life.
We are taught patience growing up, but it’s mostly for the other guy. We seldom practice patience with ourselves. Nor do we think often on forgiving ourselves for our mistakes and shortcomings. But it’s true, in order to truly love others, understand others and forgive others, we must love, understand and forgive ourselves; one of those Cath-22s in life.
So the next time someone really ticks you off and won’t do what you want them to do, stand back. Take a breath. Relax. Then thank them for the lesson that they were trying to teach you. Then smile as you walk away while they are frowning in confusion.
Friday, June 4, 2010
Alignment
The person who is in alignment with Purpose, who is living authentically, experiences an inner sense of knowing that he is traveling along the path that he planned. There is a certain peace in that knowing and a certain acceptance of the obstacles that are certain to come.
Traveling with purpose and authenticity does not mean that life is all “good” and that there are no challenges. There may actually be more challenges. After all this is the Earth school and we came here to learn. Sometimes the lessons may be relatively easy while with others we may be tempted to stray from the plan and take the easier road.
Most of our challenges have to do with overcoming fear. This is as true for both the person living in alignment as well as the person not living in alignment. The difference is how each of the two addresses that fear. The person living in alignment will acknowledge that fear and recognize it for what it is but then renew his faith and trust that all will turn out as it should. This does not mean that he sits passively by. He will still do his fair share of work to see that all turns out as it should.
It is the person not in alignment that experiences an even greater challenge. In his fear he may choose control. Instead of letting events unfold he may choose to control what events unfold and how they unfold. In this he may be creating more challenges for himself and withholding help from others. This does not really help him to control his fears but actually heightens them. This fear may manifest in undo concern for others and interference in their lessons. We seek to control the lives of people around us, thinking that we are helping them. But if we were to look inside we would find that in this helping we do not experience peace, nor do we have a true sense that we are right.
We are fooling ourselves. When we try to control the lives of those we know, we feel that we are exercising more control over our own. Nothing could be further from the truth. We are actually exercising less control. Instead of operating out of trust, we are operating out of fear. But we are not operating out of fear for others, we are operating out of fear for ourselves.
We must let people choose their own paths so that they may learn their own lessons. Oh, it’s all right to give them information and advice and a helping hand, but when you sensor their choices you are interfering with their life path and that creates a burden for you. Allowing people to live their lives as they choose does not mean a policy of non-interference in the sharing of knowledge, or extending a helping hand, it does mean not forcing them along a path that you consider to be the right path.
As you let others choose for themselves, you will experience a greater peace within. You can enjoy watching both their lives and your life unfold in a harmonious way. You can revel in your differences and laugh when you stumble. You can lend a hand to help them up and brush them off as you continue down your individual paths. This is operating from trust. This is operating in alignment with your purpose.
Traveling with purpose and authenticity does not mean that life is all “good” and that there are no challenges. There may actually be more challenges. After all this is the Earth school and we came here to learn. Sometimes the lessons may be relatively easy while with others we may be tempted to stray from the plan and take the easier road.
Most of our challenges have to do with overcoming fear. This is as true for both the person living in alignment as well as the person not living in alignment. The difference is how each of the two addresses that fear. The person living in alignment will acknowledge that fear and recognize it for what it is but then renew his faith and trust that all will turn out as it should. This does not mean that he sits passively by. He will still do his fair share of work to see that all turns out as it should.
It is the person not in alignment that experiences an even greater challenge. In his fear he may choose control. Instead of letting events unfold he may choose to control what events unfold and how they unfold. In this he may be creating more challenges for himself and withholding help from others. This does not really help him to control his fears but actually heightens them. This fear may manifest in undo concern for others and interference in their lessons. We seek to control the lives of people around us, thinking that we are helping them. But if we were to look inside we would find that in this helping we do not experience peace, nor do we have a true sense that we are right.
We are fooling ourselves. When we try to control the lives of those we know, we feel that we are exercising more control over our own. Nothing could be further from the truth. We are actually exercising less control. Instead of operating out of trust, we are operating out of fear. But we are not operating out of fear for others, we are operating out of fear for ourselves.
We must let people choose their own paths so that they may learn their own lessons. Oh, it’s all right to give them information and advice and a helping hand, but when you sensor their choices you are interfering with their life path and that creates a burden for you. Allowing people to live their lives as they choose does not mean a policy of non-interference in the sharing of knowledge, or extending a helping hand, it does mean not forcing them along a path that you consider to be the right path.
As you let others choose for themselves, you will experience a greater peace within. You can enjoy watching both their lives and your life unfold in a harmonious way. You can revel in your differences and laugh when you stumble. You can lend a hand to help them up and brush them off as you continue down your individual paths. This is operating from trust. This is operating in alignment with your purpose.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Follow That Dream?
Have you always followed your dreams? Did you dare to take the path less traveled?
Most of us have taken the safe path and stayed with the crowd. That is not a bad thing. There is safety in numbers. Well,… sort of.
The world has changed and for some that safe path no longer exists. That safely traveled path has come to an abrupt end. What do they do? For some it might be a matter of moving to the next or nearby safe path and finding a place there; again moving with the crowd.
For others there is no safe path. For some there may be no path at all. What do they do? Where do they turn?
For many years people turned to Corporate America to supply the safe jobs; jobs that would be there day after day, year after year until it was time to retire and then they would supply good safe retirement plans and pensions. Those jobs are not so safe anymore. The Corporations are too tied to their quarterly earnings; to keeping their stockholders happy. The stockholders are strongly committed to continuous and continuing profits and rising profit margins. Business thinking today is more short term than long term. Oh yes, I know, there are some exceptions to that. But they are becoming fewer and fewer.
Safety, for what it’s worth, may be in the smaller, privately held or employee held companies or boutique shops. But even these shops will not fit all people. So…what will they do?
Are you one of those people; the ones who don’t seem to fit in. Maybe when you were let go you experienced a moment of extreme euphoria, as if you had been released from prison. Oh, yes, your next thought may have been: “What comes next?” But for one bright shiny moment you felt free, gloriously, giddily free. How could that be? Maybe if you are still unemployed you have found that answer. Could it be that you were not meant to travel with the crowd? Could it be you really don’t fit in with the pack?
What were those dreams you had? What were those aspirations? Are they achievable today? Would they be achievable with some small adjustments?
Perhaps the work you were doing was what you enjoyed. Maybe the work gave you purpose and a sense of achievement. If that is the case and working in Corporate America is no longer viable and the smaller private enterprises are also out, you might consider starting your own business. Have you looked into what it would take? How it would be financed. Do you have what it takes to work on your own or head up a new enterprise? Could you do it? Would you do it?
Maybe all the doors to what you were doing are closed. Frankly the idea of doing what you did all your professional life is giving you nightmares. Can you turn to your earlier dreams for an answer? Can you dare to start over? Can you dare to forge your own path? Are you free and do you have the courage and ability to be the authentic you? Do you have the courage to succeed on your own terms? You now have the freedom to choose, perhaps for the first time in your life. It’s scary. No doubt. There is the chance that things will not work out. But positive attitude and a belief that the Universe will provide as long as you do your part may get you through.
It’s a thought. Can you do it? Will you do it?
Most of us have taken the safe path and stayed with the crowd. That is not a bad thing. There is safety in numbers. Well,… sort of.
The world has changed and for some that safe path no longer exists. That safely traveled path has come to an abrupt end. What do they do? For some it might be a matter of moving to the next or nearby safe path and finding a place there; again moving with the crowd.
For others there is no safe path. For some there may be no path at all. What do they do? Where do they turn?
For many years people turned to Corporate America to supply the safe jobs; jobs that would be there day after day, year after year until it was time to retire and then they would supply good safe retirement plans and pensions. Those jobs are not so safe anymore. The Corporations are too tied to their quarterly earnings; to keeping their stockholders happy. The stockholders are strongly committed to continuous and continuing profits and rising profit margins. Business thinking today is more short term than long term. Oh yes, I know, there are some exceptions to that. But they are becoming fewer and fewer.
Safety, for what it’s worth, may be in the smaller, privately held or employee held companies or boutique shops. But even these shops will not fit all people. So…what will they do?
Are you one of those people; the ones who don’t seem to fit in. Maybe when you were let go you experienced a moment of extreme euphoria, as if you had been released from prison. Oh, yes, your next thought may have been: “What comes next?” But for one bright shiny moment you felt free, gloriously, giddily free. How could that be? Maybe if you are still unemployed you have found that answer. Could it be that you were not meant to travel with the crowd? Could it be you really don’t fit in with the pack?
What were those dreams you had? What were those aspirations? Are they achievable today? Would they be achievable with some small adjustments?
Perhaps the work you were doing was what you enjoyed. Maybe the work gave you purpose and a sense of achievement. If that is the case and working in Corporate America is no longer viable and the smaller private enterprises are also out, you might consider starting your own business. Have you looked into what it would take? How it would be financed. Do you have what it takes to work on your own or head up a new enterprise? Could you do it? Would you do it?
Maybe all the doors to what you were doing are closed. Frankly the idea of doing what you did all your professional life is giving you nightmares. Can you turn to your earlier dreams for an answer? Can you dare to start over? Can you dare to forge your own path? Are you free and do you have the courage and ability to be the authentic you? Do you have the courage to succeed on your own terms? You now have the freedom to choose, perhaps for the first time in your life. It’s scary. No doubt. There is the chance that things will not work out. But positive attitude and a belief that the Universe will provide as long as you do your part may get you through.
It’s a thought. Can you do it? Will you do it?
Friday, May 14, 2010
Success
What constitutes success? Is it society’s standards or an individual’s own assessment of his life? Can one be considered successful if he experiences success in one area of his life, but finds the rest of his life a shambles?
Can success be measured externally or is it an internal measurement? Who has lived the more successful life?
Is it the man who has pulled himself out of poverty by the scratching of his own fingers, or just by the dint of hard work and smart decisions, but who has not taken the time to make friends, other than those who could advance his fortune? Or is it the man who has taken time along the way to appreciate the people around him and to build deep relationships with those who have crossed his path or at least dealt with them fairly and honestly while they were in his life?
Is it more successful to reach the end of one’s life surrounded by people , hundreds, even thousands of people, none of whom you know well or for that matter really know anything about you? Or is it better to reach the end of your life surrounded by just a few friends, all of whom know you well, who know something of your dreams and aspirations and who have laughed and cried with you?
Is the man who has achieved all of his life, who at the end is still looking around for more worlds to conquer who is the more successful? Or is the man who looks back on his life and realizes he had a wonderful family and friends and that his life was rich with laughter and tears and is content to say, “I had a good life”?
Who is more successful, the man who was able to control events in his life so that he was never surprised and was always prepared for whatever might happen? Or is it the man who rolled with the punches? Who felt that life was an adventure to be experienced as it came, good or ill?
Who is the more successful, the man who has no humor about himself but laughs at the foibles of others, or the man that realizes life is fun and funny and laughs most often at himself and never at, but with others?
What is success at the end of life? Is it the man who rails against his fate which was always to pass from this earth, or is it the man who can sigh with contentment and say “I did good”?
As you stand in line at the grocery store, who is more successful, the man whose face is plastered over all the magazines and newspapers or the man standing next to you?
Can success be measured externally or is it an internal measurement? Who has lived the more successful life?
Is it the man who has pulled himself out of poverty by the scratching of his own fingers, or just by the dint of hard work and smart decisions, but who has not taken the time to make friends, other than those who could advance his fortune? Or is it the man who has taken time along the way to appreciate the people around him and to build deep relationships with those who have crossed his path or at least dealt with them fairly and honestly while they were in his life?
Is it more successful to reach the end of one’s life surrounded by people , hundreds, even thousands of people, none of whom you know well or for that matter really know anything about you? Or is it better to reach the end of your life surrounded by just a few friends, all of whom know you well, who know something of your dreams and aspirations and who have laughed and cried with you?
Is the man who has achieved all of his life, who at the end is still looking around for more worlds to conquer who is the more successful? Or is the man who looks back on his life and realizes he had a wonderful family and friends and that his life was rich with laughter and tears and is content to say, “I had a good life”?
Who is more successful, the man who was able to control events in his life so that he was never surprised and was always prepared for whatever might happen? Or is it the man who rolled with the punches? Who felt that life was an adventure to be experienced as it came, good or ill?
Who is the more successful, the man who has no humor about himself but laughs at the foibles of others, or the man that realizes life is fun and funny and laughs most often at himself and never at, but with others?
What is success at the end of life? Is it the man who rails against his fate which was always to pass from this earth, or is it the man who can sigh with contentment and say “I did good”?
As you stand in line at the grocery store, who is more successful, the man whose face is plastered over all the magazines and newspapers or the man standing next to you?
Friday, May 7, 2010
Ingenuity and Creativity
I was just reading an article provided by the Wall Street Journal to Yahoo online. It said that fully 20% of the men between the ages of 25 and 54 are not working. It doesn’t address the employment of those over 54 which we might expect to be worse. The article goes on to quote the President’s economic advisor as saying that when the economy has fully recovered about five years from now the improvement will be that one 1 in 6 men will be out of work. Doesn’t feel like it will be that much of an improvement does it?
It does say that many of the jobs that have gone away, will never return. Many of them production line work or construction, but office workers are being affected too.
We can’t expect the government to help us out. They don’t really know how to cope with this state of affairs either. The only solutions they seem to come up with are only digging the hole deeper. The bailouts we are funding may be creating a few jobs, but not in the number we need. Government created jobs for the unemployed doesn’t really make sense either. That’s the government creating jobs that the taxpayer is funding. So those new jobs the government creates are being paid for by the people who are being employed in those jobs, with considerable additional support by the already overburdened taxpayer. We have to stop the madness.
We have gotten use to being taken care of. We have allowed our minds and imaginations to go soft , thinking that we will be taken care of in times of trouble. In times of trouble we are the ones we need to turn to. Government was designed to govern. Too make laws that protect us and keep the country from sinking into anarchy. The government was not meant to be our caretaker, nor should we expect or want it to me.
We need to do what we have been best at, applying our ingenuity and creativity to solving the problem. We the people, not the U.S. government need to do this. We are the most affected. The government pays lip service to the problem but then goes blithely on and exacerbates it by continuing to spend money we don’t have.
Nor is Corporate America the answer. Public companies do not have very much loyalty to their employees, if any. Their loyalties are to their stockholders. The stockholders attention is on short-term result, the bottom line and ROI. So when those quarterly and annual reports come out and ROI is not good, management looks around to see where it can save money. Let’s see, are the top executives going to vote to slash their exorbitant salaries and bonuses? Not likely. Are they going to decrease the size of upper management, possibly, though not likely. Why would they vote themselves out of a job? Guess where they are going to turn to next? Hello! The middle and lower echelons of the work force have come into their sights. Surprise! Oh, don’t worry. The work is not going away. There are just going to be fewer people doing it. A few of those jobs may come back when the bottom line picks up. Maybe, but probably not.
So it now falls upon the ones who have been most affected to ferret out the solution to this problem. The world has changed. It has moved on. We can no longer expect the old ways to work. We cannot expect to be taken care of.
Will we rise to this challenge? There is no choice. We have to. When we started this country we made do with what we had and in doing so forged a better more prosperous life. We invented and developed ways that made our lives easier and more efficient. We developed industries that put people to work, work in which they could take pride. We need to do it again.
Rhetoric aside, if we are to survive and thrive we must do it again.
It does say that many of the jobs that have gone away, will never return. Many of them production line work or construction, but office workers are being affected too.
We can’t expect the government to help us out. They don’t really know how to cope with this state of affairs either. The only solutions they seem to come up with are only digging the hole deeper. The bailouts we are funding may be creating a few jobs, but not in the number we need. Government created jobs for the unemployed doesn’t really make sense either. That’s the government creating jobs that the taxpayer is funding. So those new jobs the government creates are being paid for by the people who are being employed in those jobs, with considerable additional support by the already overburdened taxpayer. We have to stop the madness.
We have gotten use to being taken care of. We have allowed our minds and imaginations to go soft , thinking that we will be taken care of in times of trouble. In times of trouble we are the ones we need to turn to. Government was designed to govern. Too make laws that protect us and keep the country from sinking into anarchy. The government was not meant to be our caretaker, nor should we expect or want it to me.
We need to do what we have been best at, applying our ingenuity and creativity to solving the problem. We the people, not the U.S. government need to do this. We are the most affected. The government pays lip service to the problem but then goes blithely on and exacerbates it by continuing to spend money we don’t have.
Nor is Corporate America the answer. Public companies do not have very much loyalty to their employees, if any. Their loyalties are to their stockholders. The stockholders attention is on short-term result, the bottom line and ROI. So when those quarterly and annual reports come out and ROI is not good, management looks around to see where it can save money. Let’s see, are the top executives going to vote to slash their exorbitant salaries and bonuses? Not likely. Are they going to decrease the size of upper management, possibly, though not likely. Why would they vote themselves out of a job? Guess where they are going to turn to next? Hello! The middle and lower echelons of the work force have come into their sights. Surprise! Oh, don’t worry. The work is not going away. There are just going to be fewer people doing it. A few of those jobs may come back when the bottom line picks up. Maybe, but probably not.
So it now falls upon the ones who have been most affected to ferret out the solution to this problem. The world has changed. It has moved on. We can no longer expect the old ways to work. We cannot expect to be taken care of.
Will we rise to this challenge? There is no choice. We have to. When we started this country we made do with what we had and in doing so forged a better more prosperous life. We invented and developed ways that made our lives easier and more efficient. We developed industries that put people to work, work in which they could take pride. We need to do it again.
Rhetoric aside, if we are to survive and thrive we must do it again.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Change – Begets Change
Once you have made the career change, if you have chosen wisely, you may find that other areas of your life begin to change..
A friend once told me that some people are in your life for a season and some people are in your life for a reason. As you change you may find that certain people, friends, co-workers, acquaintances, disappear from your life. You may no longer have anything in common with them or they with you. Try to retain those relationships on some new level if you can, if for no other reason than that you like them or maybe they could be a help in you new career, if not today, maybe tomorrow. But if it is time to let those relationships go, then honor them and let them go.
Certain interests may go by the wayside to be replaced by other interests. The possibilities here are endless. If they no longer fit into your life, consider letting them slide away. New interests will undoubtedly come along and replace them.
You are evolving, changing who you were into a new person, with new needs and new dreams and new goals. In five years you may look back and not recognize the person you used to be.
As you evolve, stretch. Try something that you have never tried before. The more that you evolve and allow yourself to evolve, the easier it will be to meet the changes that will be coming your way. But evaluate each change you make. Is it for the better? If not, let it go.
You are on a life-long adventure to discover the real you. Your purpose will change as you evolve. It may stay basically the same, but will become clearer, sharper, better defined. And when you achieve your goal you will find that there is a new one waiting beyond it. That new goal will require more changes. It is never ending. And that is good. That is how we learn, how we progress, how we develop. It makes us more interested and interesting.
The old fears may melt away. The excitement of growth of looking beyond our immediate needs, wants and pleasures will absorb more of our attention.
Resistance to change is futile. It will come whether or not we care to recognize the need to adapt. So recognize that you need to change. Control, to the extent that you can, how those changes occur in and affect your life. You will find your life more exciting and interesting and yes, adventurous. You may even learn to like the changes.
A friend once told me that some people are in your life for a season and some people are in your life for a reason. As you change you may find that certain people, friends, co-workers, acquaintances, disappear from your life. You may no longer have anything in common with them or they with you. Try to retain those relationships on some new level if you can, if for no other reason than that you like them or maybe they could be a help in you new career, if not today, maybe tomorrow. But if it is time to let those relationships go, then honor them and let them go.
Certain interests may go by the wayside to be replaced by other interests. The possibilities here are endless. If they no longer fit into your life, consider letting them slide away. New interests will undoubtedly come along and replace them.
You are evolving, changing who you were into a new person, with new needs and new dreams and new goals. In five years you may look back and not recognize the person you used to be.
As you evolve, stretch. Try something that you have never tried before. The more that you evolve and allow yourself to evolve, the easier it will be to meet the changes that will be coming your way. But evaluate each change you make. Is it for the better? If not, let it go.
You are on a life-long adventure to discover the real you. Your purpose will change as you evolve. It may stay basically the same, but will become clearer, sharper, better defined. And when you achieve your goal you will find that there is a new one waiting beyond it. That new goal will require more changes. It is never ending. And that is good. That is how we learn, how we progress, how we develop. It makes us more interested and interesting.
The old fears may melt away. The excitement of growth of looking beyond our immediate needs, wants and pleasures will absorb more of our attention.
Resistance to change is futile. It will come whether or not we care to recognize the need to adapt. So recognize that you need to change. Control, to the extent that you can, how those changes occur in and affect your life. You will find your life more exciting and interesting and yes, adventurous. You may even learn to like the changes.
Friday, April 23, 2010
Change – Making the Shift
Some have had a relatively easy shift. They liked their careers and those careers are still viable. Their shift may be relatively easy, a matter of finding a similar job within their current geographical area.
For some, the shift may be a little more emotional and disrupting. They can find a job, but will have to relocate to take it. That means leaving friends, relatives, schools, places of worship, doctors, dentists and all the people with whom you do business. It could be exciting! It could be a little scary; new place and no one you know. Are you prepared to make those changes? Does this change answer your purpose, your needs, and in this case, if you have family, how does it fit their needs and purpose? Good questions. They need to be addressed, but if all is aligned, then pursue it. Remember you are courageous! You have heart! You are a hero!
Everyone else is making even bigger shifts. How exciting! How adventurous! How courageous! Maybe your first decision is whether or not to stay in Corporate America or do you go out on your own. If you go out on your own, what would you do and how would you do it? If you stay in Corporate America, you still have decisions to make about what you will do and where and how you want to do it. Hmmm….. Where to start.
Decide what you want to do.
Decide what skills you have that will fit your new career. Decide what new skills you need to get to move into your new career. Decide what information you need to make the career change. Daunting? Taken as a whole, yes. So break it down into small pieces. List all the pieces; discrete actions that need to be taken. Decide what you can do now, today. Do it. Decide what will take longer. Create a timeline for starting and completing each activity. Post this plan where you will see it every day. Mark off actions that are completed as they are completed. Add new actions that you may have missed as they come up.
Here is the important part. Identify the major milestones along the way. When you achieve them celebrate! Be judicious. Not everything is a milestone. On the other hand, recognize that there will be important milestones on the way to your goal.
You are now creating your own changes. Because you are changing there will be changes around you. Some old things may fall away. New things will take their place. You are in new territory. The possibilities are endless!
While you are doing all the work for your career transition, network. Keep in touch, especially with people who can help you achieve your goal. Educate yourself. Read. Listen. Analyze. It’s all part of The Shift.
For some, the shift may be a little more emotional and disrupting. They can find a job, but will have to relocate to take it. That means leaving friends, relatives, schools, places of worship, doctors, dentists and all the people with whom you do business. It could be exciting! It could be a little scary; new place and no one you know. Are you prepared to make those changes? Does this change answer your purpose, your needs, and in this case, if you have family, how does it fit their needs and purpose? Good questions. They need to be addressed, but if all is aligned, then pursue it. Remember you are courageous! You have heart! You are a hero!
Everyone else is making even bigger shifts. How exciting! How adventurous! How courageous! Maybe your first decision is whether or not to stay in Corporate America or do you go out on your own. If you go out on your own, what would you do and how would you do it? If you stay in Corporate America, you still have decisions to make about what you will do and where and how you want to do it. Hmmm….. Where to start.
Decide what you want to do.
Decide what skills you have that will fit your new career. Decide what new skills you need to get to move into your new career. Decide what information you need to make the career change. Daunting? Taken as a whole, yes. So break it down into small pieces. List all the pieces; discrete actions that need to be taken. Decide what you can do now, today. Do it. Decide what will take longer. Create a timeline for starting and completing each activity. Post this plan where you will see it every day. Mark off actions that are completed as they are completed. Add new actions that you may have missed as they come up.
Here is the important part. Identify the major milestones along the way. When you achieve them celebrate! Be judicious. Not everything is a milestone. On the other hand, recognize that there will be important milestones on the way to your goal.
You are now creating your own changes. Because you are changing there will be changes around you. Some old things may fall away. New things will take their place. You are in new territory. The possibilities are endless!
While you are doing all the work for your career transition, network. Keep in touch, especially with people who can help you achieve your goal. Educate yourself. Read. Listen. Analyze. It’s all part of The Shift.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Change – Moving On
A part of your life is gone. This is an invitation to change. How big or small the change is up to you. You have an opportunity here and it’s up to you what you will make of it. Do not assume. Do not assume it is a no brainer that you will go back to doing what you were doing before. Maybe you will go back. But the possibility exists for you to go in a different direction. The temptation to run back to what is familiar is very great, but does that familiar still serve you? Perhaps. Perhaps not.
Before you begin putting your job search plan together, ask yourself if your last position was serving you. Refer to your worksheets. Overall, were you happy with it? Were you stimulated by the work or did it cause great agitation and frustration? Did you feel a sense of accomplishment each day when you left or just sheer exhaustion and relief that the day was over? If you were happy, then ask yourself if the same type of job is still available in the workplace. If it is, you’re set. It’s time to put a game plan together for your job search. If the answer to these questions has been in the negative, you have some work that you might consider doing first.
If you liked the work but not the environment, good. You are no longer there. If the same type of work exists then put your job search plan together and get started.
But if you were not satisfied with your job, if your work did not feed your need for a sense of accomplishment and purpose, then consider looking at how you might change what you were doing so that it does.
What are you interested in? What are your passions? Look at what has drawn your attention over a great period of your life. How can you use hat to feed your purpose now? How closely is this aligned with the work you have been doing? Is there a market for what is drawing you? Do the skills that you currently own fit in this new calling? What skills do you need to acquire? There is a lot of work to be done here. You can ask questions of other people. Talk to other people. But the real work will be done within. Are you willing to live your life’s purpose? Do you have the courage to live authentically? I think you can.
So now do your due diligence. Use the internet. Use the library. Talk to other people who do work in the area that is calling to you. Then get very quiet. Listen to your heart. Now remember, you are a hero. You have heart. You have courage. You are about to begin a great adventure.
Before you begin putting your job search plan together, ask yourself if your last position was serving you. Refer to your worksheets. Overall, were you happy with it? Were you stimulated by the work or did it cause great agitation and frustration? Did you feel a sense of accomplishment each day when you left or just sheer exhaustion and relief that the day was over? If you were happy, then ask yourself if the same type of job is still available in the workplace. If it is, you’re set. It’s time to put a game plan together for your job search. If the answer to these questions has been in the negative, you have some work that you might consider doing first.
If you liked the work but not the environment, good. You are no longer there. If the same type of work exists then put your job search plan together and get started.
But if you were not satisfied with your job, if your work did not feed your need for a sense of accomplishment and purpose, then consider looking at how you might change what you were doing so that it does.
What are you interested in? What are your passions? Look at what has drawn your attention over a great period of your life. How can you use hat to feed your purpose now? How closely is this aligned with the work you have been doing? Is there a market for what is drawing you? Do the skills that you currently own fit in this new calling? What skills do you need to acquire? There is a lot of work to be done here. You can ask questions of other people. Talk to other people. But the real work will be done within. Are you willing to live your life’s purpose? Do you have the courage to live authentically? I think you can.
So now do your due diligence. Use the internet. Use the library. Talk to other people who do work in the area that is calling to you. Then get very quiet. Listen to your heart. Now remember, you are a hero. You have heart. You have courage. You are about to begin a great adventure.
Friday, April 9, 2010
Change – From the Beginning
You’ve lost your job. Maybe you knew it was going to happen. Maybe you didn’t. In any event you have lost something. It was an activity to which you gave a third of your time week after week. It got you out of bed five days a week.
In our culture we expect that if you lose your job you just shake yourself off and go find another. Don’t look back. Just forge ahead.
But that’s not really true is it? It was a significant part of our life, so love it or hate it we have a lot of emotion wrapped up in it. You may get angry. “How could they do this to me after the loyalty I gave them; all the hard work; all the extra hours?” You may not feel like being around people as you “sort things out.” Or you feel friends and colleagues pulling away from you as if you had some kind of contagious disease. You may feel unfocused and unable to concentrate as you wander through the house trying to decide how to proceed. Denial and isolation, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance, these are the five stages of grief and you are experiencing them. In order to successfully move on grief must be acknowledged.
How? Journalize your feelings. Take walks and meditate on what the job meant to you. Hold an Irish wake. Acknowledge the loss in some way that has meaning to you. As you mourn your loss, become aware that you have survived it. You are a hero. You have the courage and heart to move on and at the risk of sounding melodramatic you are the Phoenix who will rise from the ashes. Okay. That’s a little over the top. Nevertheless, the thought, as silly as it may seem may be just the catalyst to help you move on.
As you deal with your loss, start to evaluate its qualities. How did you really feel. Were you secretly glad because you really did not like the work, the company’s culture, your colleagues? Maybe you truly loved your job and would love to do the same thing again. Whatever those thoughts and feelings acknowledge them, they will be the premise on which you formulate the plans for the new home you are building. That is part of the process, too.
To begin, make two lists. The first one is a list of all the things that you liked about your job. Beside each one write why you liked it. The second list is what you disliked about your job and why you disliked it.
What are you going to do with this information? Ahhh….more on that next time.
In our culture we expect that if you lose your job you just shake yourself off and go find another. Don’t look back. Just forge ahead.
But that’s not really true is it? It was a significant part of our life, so love it or hate it we have a lot of emotion wrapped up in it. You may get angry. “How could they do this to me after the loyalty I gave them; all the hard work; all the extra hours?” You may not feel like being around people as you “sort things out.” Or you feel friends and colleagues pulling away from you as if you had some kind of contagious disease. You may feel unfocused and unable to concentrate as you wander through the house trying to decide how to proceed. Denial and isolation, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance, these are the five stages of grief and you are experiencing them. In order to successfully move on grief must be acknowledged.
How? Journalize your feelings. Take walks and meditate on what the job meant to you. Hold an Irish wake. Acknowledge the loss in some way that has meaning to you. As you mourn your loss, become aware that you have survived it. You are a hero. You have the courage and heart to move on and at the risk of sounding melodramatic you are the Phoenix who will rise from the ashes. Okay. That’s a little over the top. Nevertheless, the thought, as silly as it may seem may be just the catalyst to help you move on.
As you deal with your loss, start to evaluate its qualities. How did you really feel. Were you secretly glad because you really did not like the work, the company’s culture, your colleagues? Maybe you truly loved your job and would love to do the same thing again. Whatever those thoughts and feelings acknowledge them, they will be the premise on which you formulate the plans for the new home you are building. That is part of the process, too.
To begin, make two lists. The first one is a list of all the things that you liked about your job. Beside each one write why you liked it. The second list is what you disliked about your job and why you disliked it.
What are you going to do with this information? Ahhh….more on that next time.
Friday, April 2, 2010
Change
It’s the only constant in life. Evolution, change, is universal and inevitable. Sometimes it’s an improvement, sometimes not. It is all around us. It does no good to bury our heads in the sand and pretend it will go away. It won’t. So we must learn to meet it head on.
Awareness of evolution first arises in us when we try to meet change in traditional ways and those ways no longer work. We may keep on trying for a while, but at last must admit to ourselves that the change must be met in a different way. We may ask ourselves if we can do this? Yes, we can for we are heroes. We have the courage and heart to face what is placed before us. We are warriors who must fight our way through.
Many of us are being challenged to evolve a little more and a little faster than we find comfortable. But we are heroes. We have the courage and heart to battle through. We have the ability to change, to adjust and adapt to new circumstances. Being perceptive, we realize that we must first make changes within. We must identify what those changes must be. We are discovering that we must not only think outside THE BOX, but we may need to think outside ALL the boxes. We may need to redefine our purpose, our life path. Some might be able to do this on their own, by themselves, but many of us need a support group. We need a team that can help us to identify the changes, make them and use them to move forward. We need family, friends, community, mentors, and coaches to surmount the challenges we are facing.
But while we may call upon this support group, the decisions on what to change, and how, will ultimately be ours and the first thing we have to do is to accept that change is inevitable and that we can make it a good thing. Acceptance is the first hurdle and arguably the hardest.
One area where many have been most affected is in our careers. Jobs have gone away, some never to return. We must retrain ourselves for new jobs, new careers or reinvent the work we have done. We need to think about work, employment, in a new way and decide how it can fit in the current reality and how that may evolve in the future. We may decide our current work has no place in our present life and decide what career we may turn to next. These decisions also apply to those who still have their jobs but are dissatisfied with them and feeling restless to move on.
Sometimes, change is needed just because our current circumstances are not fulfilling our inner needs. To retain our authenticity, we must evolve. Good! Having made that decision, it’s time to move on. But how? We will need a plan. But even before the plan, we will need to establish a goal; something more than just “getting a job”. But what? More on that next time.
Awareness of evolution first arises in us when we try to meet change in traditional ways and those ways no longer work. We may keep on trying for a while, but at last must admit to ourselves that the change must be met in a different way. We may ask ourselves if we can do this? Yes, we can for we are heroes. We have the courage and heart to face what is placed before us. We are warriors who must fight our way through.
Many of us are being challenged to evolve a little more and a little faster than we find comfortable. But we are heroes. We have the courage and heart to battle through. We have the ability to change, to adjust and adapt to new circumstances. Being perceptive, we realize that we must first make changes within. We must identify what those changes must be. We are discovering that we must not only think outside THE BOX, but we may need to think outside ALL the boxes. We may need to redefine our purpose, our life path. Some might be able to do this on their own, by themselves, but many of us need a support group. We need a team that can help us to identify the changes, make them and use them to move forward. We need family, friends, community, mentors, and coaches to surmount the challenges we are facing.
But while we may call upon this support group, the decisions on what to change, and how, will ultimately be ours and the first thing we have to do is to accept that change is inevitable and that we can make it a good thing. Acceptance is the first hurdle and arguably the hardest.
One area where many have been most affected is in our careers. Jobs have gone away, some never to return. We must retrain ourselves for new jobs, new careers or reinvent the work we have done. We need to think about work, employment, in a new way and decide how it can fit in the current reality and how that may evolve in the future. We may decide our current work has no place in our present life and decide what career we may turn to next. These decisions also apply to those who still have their jobs but are dissatisfied with them and feeling restless to move on.
Sometimes, change is needed just because our current circumstances are not fulfilling our inner needs. To retain our authenticity, we must evolve. Good! Having made that decision, it’s time to move on. But how? We will need a plan. But even before the plan, we will need to establish a goal; something more than just “getting a job”. But what? More on that next time.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Courage, Heroes and Heart
We all know what a hero is, or do we? We all know what courage is, or do we? We all know what it means to have heart, or do we?
It is easy to see the courage heroism and heart displayed by our combat troops, police and firemen.
It’s a little harder to see the courage and heroism of the single mother struggling to support her family without any help from the children’s father. She will do the best she can for them. Her heart will let her do no less.
There’s the courage to scale the tallest mountains in spite of the dangers. Why? Because it’s there! These are people we admire; heroes. But they will tell you they are not heroes, they just had to do it. When they got to the top, their hearts sang with their accomplishment.
We see the courageous terminal patients who fight for every breath of life they can get. We honor them as heroes. But do we see the courage and heroism of the family of those same patients as they struggle to support them to the end? Do we see the courage it takes for them to move on after the battle is lost? Probably not so much. But they are equally heroic. They may think that their heart will break, but somehow they find the courage to continue on with their lives afterwards.
We all know more examples in a similar vein. But these are not the courageous heroes that I want to acknowledge here.
I want to write about the breadwinner who has been out of work for weeks, months or longer, who is wondering where he will get the money to feed, shelter and clothe his family if a job doesn’t come along real soon. This person gets up every day and works the phone, networking with every contact possible and when he runs out of those he scours the papers and job boards to land that job. Still no luck. [I have used the male pronoun in this article, but these situations are not gender specific.] He might like to give up, but something won’t let him. He has so much love for his family, too much heart to give up and that heart has given him purpose. So he keeps plugging. Eventually he gets that job. It might not have him making the same money that he was making before, but he has a job. He can take care of himself and his family. He has purpose once again.
But maybe he doesn’t get a job. Then what does he do? He takes stock of himself. He assesses what skills he does have, what skills he can acquire without too much time or money and looks for something else to do. Maybe it is a job he would have never considered but for his present circumstances. Maybe he is very fortunate and his skills apply to another career that he will find more satisfying; more rewarding. Now, even though he keeps his eye out for the job he originally wanted, he widens his search and eventually finds something outside of his original career field. Hopefully it’s better. Maybe it’s not. But he is once again, able to take care of his family, so he throws his heart into the new job, new career, with enthusiasm and courage. Maybe he finds that this new job gives him more satisfaction, inner peace than that old job. Maybe losing that old job has turned out to be a blessing.
There are people who are no longer able to work. Maybe they are no longer able to take care of themselves. People who dependent on others to take care of them. They probably don’t like their circumstances, but they make peace with it. They continue because life is still sweet; still to be enjoyed. They accept, in their heart that others will be helping them, maybe for the rest of their lives. But their tragedy gives other people purpose and work. So they learn to accept the help graciously and learn to experience life from a different perspective. They embrace whole heartedly what they can do and learn to let go of what is no longer possible. How courageous! How heroic!
I have had a song playing in my head for a couple of weeks now. It is an old standard called “My Foolish Hear”. The song really has nothing to do with this post, except that it has been replaced by another song, one from the musical Damn Yankees called “You Gotta Have Heart” and that song has everything to do with this blog. Look it up. I hope it provides a little inspiration to you. It has to me.
We are all courageous in our own way. If we give of our skills, our passions and our love we are deserving of the title hero. Perhaps you know of someone deserving of this title. Someone who gives quietly and without reservation or thought of reward, passing on whole heartedly to their families and community what is in their heart to give. If so, write to me about them. Share it in this blog or write to my email address. I’d love to hear their story.
It is easy to see the courage heroism and heart displayed by our combat troops, police and firemen.
It’s a little harder to see the courage and heroism of the single mother struggling to support her family without any help from the children’s father. She will do the best she can for them. Her heart will let her do no less.
There’s the courage to scale the tallest mountains in spite of the dangers. Why? Because it’s there! These are people we admire; heroes. But they will tell you they are not heroes, they just had to do it. When they got to the top, their hearts sang with their accomplishment.
We see the courageous terminal patients who fight for every breath of life they can get. We honor them as heroes. But do we see the courage and heroism of the family of those same patients as they struggle to support them to the end? Do we see the courage it takes for them to move on after the battle is lost? Probably not so much. But they are equally heroic. They may think that their heart will break, but somehow they find the courage to continue on with their lives afterwards.
We all know more examples in a similar vein. But these are not the courageous heroes that I want to acknowledge here.
I want to write about the breadwinner who has been out of work for weeks, months or longer, who is wondering where he will get the money to feed, shelter and clothe his family if a job doesn’t come along real soon. This person gets up every day and works the phone, networking with every contact possible and when he runs out of those he scours the papers and job boards to land that job. Still no luck. [I have used the male pronoun in this article, but these situations are not gender specific.] He might like to give up, but something won’t let him. He has so much love for his family, too much heart to give up and that heart has given him purpose. So he keeps plugging. Eventually he gets that job. It might not have him making the same money that he was making before, but he has a job. He can take care of himself and his family. He has purpose once again.
But maybe he doesn’t get a job. Then what does he do? He takes stock of himself. He assesses what skills he does have, what skills he can acquire without too much time or money and looks for something else to do. Maybe it is a job he would have never considered but for his present circumstances. Maybe he is very fortunate and his skills apply to another career that he will find more satisfying; more rewarding. Now, even though he keeps his eye out for the job he originally wanted, he widens his search and eventually finds something outside of his original career field. Hopefully it’s better. Maybe it’s not. But he is once again, able to take care of his family, so he throws his heart into the new job, new career, with enthusiasm and courage. Maybe he finds that this new job gives him more satisfaction, inner peace than that old job. Maybe losing that old job has turned out to be a blessing.
There are people who are no longer able to work. Maybe they are no longer able to take care of themselves. People who dependent on others to take care of them. They probably don’t like their circumstances, but they make peace with it. They continue because life is still sweet; still to be enjoyed. They accept, in their heart that others will be helping them, maybe for the rest of their lives. But their tragedy gives other people purpose and work. So they learn to accept the help graciously and learn to experience life from a different perspective. They embrace whole heartedly what they can do and learn to let go of what is no longer possible. How courageous! How heroic!
I have had a song playing in my head for a couple of weeks now. It is an old standard called “My Foolish Hear”. The song really has nothing to do with this post, except that it has been replaced by another song, one from the musical Damn Yankees called “You Gotta Have Heart” and that song has everything to do with this blog. Look it up. I hope it provides a little inspiration to you. It has to me.
We are all courageous in our own way. If we give of our skills, our passions and our love we are deserving of the title hero. Perhaps you know of someone deserving of this title. Someone who gives quietly and without reservation or thought of reward, passing on whole heartedly to their families and community what is in their heart to give. If so, write to me about them. Share it in this blog or write to my email address. I’d love to hear their story.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Authentic Purpose Found
I had occasion today to observe someone who has obviously found her purpose in life and is very committed to what she does. Amazing!
I volunteer for a hospice organization in my area. I have one patient I visit weekly, spending about three hours with her on each visit.
When I arrived today I was told that they were trying to reach the nurse assigned to the patient by the hospice organization. There had been a development that needed some attention. Surprising, to me, the nurse didn’t call to discuss the situation, but instead showed up on their doorstep in about 90 minutes!
The nurse examined the patient and then discussed what she saw with the patient and her daughter. Although the nurse undoubtedly had a full schedule when she started her day, she never acted like this visit was a bother or a strain on her time. She, the patient and the patient’s daughter discussed the situation and the course that needed to be followed. The nurse also indicated that she would follow up with the patient’s primary care physician when she left. She went over everything two or three times, each time just as easy and thoroughly as the first. She listened to what they had to say and discussed her conclusions and why and, again, iterated what actions she was going to take concerning the matter. Altogether she spent a little more than half an hour with the patient. The whole time she was there her manner was competent, professional, reassuring, friendly, and congenial. WOW! Authenticity at its best!
This is a person doing what she was meant to do. She is living her life’s purpose and she is doing it authentically, compassionately and purposefully. What an inspiration! If she can do it, so can we all!
I volunteer for a hospice organization in my area. I have one patient I visit weekly, spending about three hours with her on each visit.
When I arrived today I was told that they were trying to reach the nurse assigned to the patient by the hospice organization. There had been a development that needed some attention. Surprising, to me, the nurse didn’t call to discuss the situation, but instead showed up on their doorstep in about 90 minutes!
The nurse examined the patient and then discussed what she saw with the patient and her daughter. Although the nurse undoubtedly had a full schedule when she started her day, she never acted like this visit was a bother or a strain on her time. She, the patient and the patient’s daughter discussed the situation and the course that needed to be followed. The nurse also indicated that she would follow up with the patient’s primary care physician when she left. She went over everything two or three times, each time just as easy and thoroughly as the first. She listened to what they had to say and discussed her conclusions and why and, again, iterated what actions she was going to take concerning the matter. Altogether she spent a little more than half an hour with the patient. The whole time she was there her manner was competent, professional, reassuring, friendly, and congenial. WOW! Authenticity at its best!
This is a person doing what she was meant to do. She is living her life’s purpose and she is doing it authentically, compassionately and purposefully. What an inspiration! If she can do it, so can we all!
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Skirting the Problem
You just want to go in and do your job but you are surrounded by colleagues who spend their time gossiping and complaining about the boss, the job, the deadlines, something, anything. Then there are those who just never seem to pull their weight and you end up doing some part of their job as well as your own. It makes you crazy! You want to work in an environment where people get along, and work as a team, where everyone pulls their weight. Wake up! You are living in Fantasyland! There just ain’t no such place!
People are going to be people no matter where you go. Happiness comes from within. Those external issues that keep you from enjoying your job are just a diversion. You are skirting the real problem. You are not aligned with what you are doing.
It’s time to take a look at what is really going on within you. It is time to align with your purpose; acknowledge your authentic self. Those little irritations are a nudge telling you to look deeper.
Maybe you are in the right career and just need a change in perspective.
Maybe you are in the right career field but need to be looking at a different aspect of it.
Maybe this is not the career that is aligned with your purpose.
How do you discover which it is? You go within. By discovering what gives you peace, contentment, a sense of purpose, a sense of alignment. Discover the authentic you. Once you do and once you bring yourself into alignment with that authenticity, all those irritations we talked about above will disappear from our view. Oh, they will still exist, for others who are unaligned, but if there is nothing for you to look at, there will be nothing for you to see.
People are going to be people no matter where you go. Happiness comes from within. Those external issues that keep you from enjoying your job are just a diversion. You are skirting the real problem. You are not aligned with what you are doing.
It’s time to take a look at what is really going on within you. It is time to align with your purpose; acknowledge your authentic self. Those little irritations are a nudge telling you to look deeper.
Maybe you are in the right career and just need a change in perspective.
Maybe you are in the right career field but need to be looking at a different aspect of it.
Maybe this is not the career that is aligned with your purpose.
How do you discover which it is? You go within. By discovering what gives you peace, contentment, a sense of purpose, a sense of alignment. Discover the authentic you. Once you do and once you bring yourself into alignment with that authenticity, all those irritations we talked about above will disappear from our view. Oh, they will still exist, for others who are unaligned, but if there is nothing for you to look at, there will be nothing for you to see.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Being Authentic
Being true to our personality, character and spirit. It’s a lofty ideal, but not so easily attained.
Recently I was told a story about a couple who had attained the American Dream. They had worked hard and were very successful; big house, expensive cars, nice vacations, lots of money, multimillionaires. They’re getting a divorce. Why? They found that they weren’t happy living the American Dream.
A former colleague told me another story about a big time executive that had been laid off. Instead of looking for another position in Corporate America, he had started a business in physical training. She said he was making a lot less money, but was far happier.
These two stories are by no means unique. The recession has many people reassessing their lives and their priorities. That includes trading in their old careers for new ones; ones without the fancy title, big money or prestige. People are learning how to make what they have go further and that they can do with far less than they used to think they could and they are happier for it.
How about you? If you’ve lost your job and are looking for another, do you want to go back to the same type of work? Did it make you happy? Forget whether the boss was happy. Were you happy? If you are one of the lucky ones who kept your job, are you happy? Are you doing more but hating to get out of bed in the morning knowing what you will face at the office? The stress. The lack of appreciation. Are you constantly aware that you could be terminated on a whim?
Maybe now is the time to take a look at your career. If it isn’t giving you a sense of purpose and a sense of accomplishment are you being authentic? Maybe you should be looking for a new career. More on that later.
Recently I was told a story about a couple who had attained the American Dream. They had worked hard and were very successful; big house, expensive cars, nice vacations, lots of money, multimillionaires. They’re getting a divorce. Why? They found that they weren’t happy living the American Dream.
A former colleague told me another story about a big time executive that had been laid off. Instead of looking for another position in Corporate America, he had started a business in physical training. She said he was making a lot less money, but was far happier.
These two stories are by no means unique. The recession has many people reassessing their lives and their priorities. That includes trading in their old careers for new ones; ones without the fancy title, big money or prestige. People are learning how to make what they have go further and that they can do with far less than they used to think they could and they are happier for it.
How about you? If you’ve lost your job and are looking for another, do you want to go back to the same type of work? Did it make you happy? Forget whether the boss was happy. Were you happy? If you are one of the lucky ones who kept your job, are you happy? Are you doing more but hating to get out of bed in the morning knowing what you will face at the office? The stress. The lack of appreciation. Are you constantly aware that you could be terminated on a whim?
Maybe now is the time to take a look at your career. If it isn’t giving you a sense of purpose and a sense of accomplishment are you being authentic? Maybe you should be looking for a new career. More on that later.
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