Want conviction? Profoundly help others

Welcome to our 4th and final week  continuing on our topic of  “4 key distinctions that matter for finding career happiness.”

Let’s recap.  There are 4 things I want you to master in order to fully manifest the 3 C’s of career happiness (clarity, confidence and conviction).  Our first distinction was get comfortable making choices, our second was get courageous and our third was get committed to on-going education.  Remember, you are never really “out of school” – formal education and training should never stop.  Hopefully you selected a career and industry that are good matches for your abilities and interests so regular doses of  the latest information and the opportunity to connect with your peers should be nourishing to your soul – if they aren’t – HELLO – you may be in the wrong job/field (call us immediately before reading any further so you can get the help you need to find a career that excites you).

Last week we talked about needing to demonstrate your affiliation to OTHERS in your profession.  I shared that affiliation matters and one of the best way to show that you have the opportunity to be socially connected to your professional network is through pursuing continuing education (plus it helps you stay on top of the latest knowledge and developments in your field).

Going after continuing education and training is where you FIND your career and industry affiliations – the top talent in your field – the “who’s who” that YOU WANT TO BE CONNECTED to.  But how do you turn the illusion of being connected to these folks (it’s really just an illusion because your just hanging out in the same places they hang out), into a reality?

Welcome to the 4th distinction – PROFOUNDLY HELP OTHERS.

The formal networks are easy to find and join – just pay your dues and join them (pay your dues, post the initials after your name and read their newsletter like everyone else in your field does), and attend conferences, training and development relevant for your field.  It is the informal networks that hold the value and can be tricky to break into – so don’t worry about breaking into them – create them and then profoundly help within them.

What’s the difference between help and profound help?  Help is delivering timely assistance that is needed or nice to have that doesn’t require you to go to far out of your way and can be achieved on your own.   Profound help is doing something that requires (or appears to require), you going out of your way.  This may include doing something you could charge a fee for, enlisting the help of your social or professional network, or spending time to listen to them and then sharing your intellectual capital or wisdom so that person can have a breakthrough or “ah-ha” – just a few examples.

Why does this matter?  2 reasons ….

1. It creates a connect to an INFORMAL professional network.  You are now somebody who knows “somebodies” – you are one less degree away from the Kevin Bacon of your field.
2. It builds a QUALITY network.

It is the TESTIMONY of you – what you do that effectively helps and serves others – beyond what is required of the job  – that is the basis of high job performance.  That quality is very difficult to get at in an interview – because a demonstration of it is most powerful when it comes from others – not from your examples of your strengths or accomplishments (of course you will say you’re great – Duh!)  TESTIMONY from others tips the scale in your favor – often this works even when you are less technically qualified.

Profoundly helping others creates your CHAMPION BASE.  The people in your champion base are the people you reach out to first when you know what career you are going to switch into (or when you want to change jobs).  They will be so ready to you (referring you makes them look good), and it helps to be supported by fans when you are making a significant life change like switching jobs or careers!

Get on a path that utilizes your natural talents and satisfies your preferences – transition from the workforce to the indigoforce.

Clarity – UNDERSTAND what your natural talents and abilities are, where they are needed, why they are needed, and why you encountered past successes and obstacles.

Confidence – OWN YOUR CHOICE to use your natural talents and abilities or to cultivate new talents and abilities with or without concerted effort.

Conviction – ACT CONTINUOUSLY to pursue roles that utilize your natural talents and abilities and communicate your aspirations in a manner that earns respect.