Redefining Your Career

Happy weekend everyone.

In the uncertain economy and even more uncertain job market it's important to define yourself and make yourself stand out in your career. We all have our individual talents and unique characteristics that make us who we are and help us define our roles in the work place. It's important to not get stagnant and let your career go on autopilot once we get a good job. I'm guilty of this at many times in my current position as a mortgage banker and have found myself in places that I didn't want to be in as a result. Like a place of boredom or a lack of challenge in my workplace. It's up to me to make myself better and we all have to take that initiative sometimes to develop as a person.

How do we do it? Reading books on topics that relate to our weaknesses is one way. For instance, I'm not so good at cold calling and making unexpected visits to business partners and potential clients. I find that cold calling isn't really my strong suit, so I try to read books about it and listen to other people that are good at it. Don't get me wrong, I'm good with people and can talk with just about anyone, but when it comes to getting down to the point of the call, I sometimes trip over words. We all do at some point, but we get better the more we do it. Which leads me to my next point.

Just do the things that you're afraid of and make you nervous. Breaking through that barrier of fear opens up new worlds of opportunities that wouldn't have otherwise shown themselves. One example of this in my life is performing music. I used to be afraid of getting up on stage and singing/playing guitar when I was much younger. Now, after doing it for two decades and playing out regularly, it's become a sort of second nature. Don't think I don't get butterflies in my stomach still though. It's still a rush to have a crowd of people watching you and you're every move.

So, in challenging yourself, personal growth comes as a pleasant result, which in turn gives you new talents to bring to your career, thus redefining your place in that given career. Give it try and see what opens up. Could be a raise, or a promotion, or even a better job offer. You never know until you try.