Why courage matters for finding career happiness

Welcome to week 2 – continuing on our topic of “4 key distinctions that matter for finding career happiness”.  Of course, these are key only after you obtain the ‘3C’s’ – clarity, confidence and conviction.

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.

Our first distinction was getting comfortable making choices.  Did you clarify what your relationship to the concept “choices” is for you?  Making choices and accepting your choices is a key distinction to be in touch with – it can lead to a significant breakthrough that may enable you to find happiness in a career choice.  Getting clear about a career path (both short-term and long-term planning), can ease “choice discomfort” .

This week we explore why courage (feeling afraid but moving forward anyway), matters and how to get courageous.

Do you have the courage to make changes from time to time in your career?  We all know when we have overstayed our welcome when we are a guest – the same holds true for jobs and careers.

• Suddenly, you aren’t as excited about your ability to master the same tasks and projects – the butterflies in your stomach that used to propel you forward while you said to yourself ” how am I going to tackle this challenge” are gone – you know no matter what gets thrown at you – you will handle it well – and instead of being excited and proud of that you feel a yawn coming on
• your boss isn’t as great as you once thought
• maybe you’re not as effective as you used to be – suddenly you are getting consistent feedback from multiple sources that isn’t so great – whether you agree with it or not
• you are no longer inspired or re-energized by the same banter with your peers
• maybe you suddenly notice (and are annoyed at) the way your co-workers chew their food at lunch (alright maybe I am stretching it here)

But you see where this is going…Things have changed.

• You argue with clients, co-workers and/or bosses
• You get “written up” for performance or behavioral concerns
• You suddenly experience physical aliments
• You want to throw up every Sunday night before bed (I am not exagerating on this one – we all know about this lovely phenomenon)

UGH – it just gets ugly.

Moving on however can be scary.  As they say “The devil you know is better than the devil you don’t know”.  Possibly the saddest statement on the planet – there is just no hope of happiness in it.

When you are clear about the skills you need to develop and the environments where you can easily get exposure to obtaining those skills it is easier to make a move.  Being in the process of looking for a new job or career alone can make you better tolerate things that are annoying you at your current job.  If you ever left a job because you wanted to get away from the job, the culture or from someone without KNOWING how a move was in your best career interest (aside from it satisfying your need to just get away from your current situation) – you were headed in the wrong direction. If you leave a job because you are headed for something that will enrich your career journey, broaden your skill inventory, utilize your natural talents and satisfy your professional and personal interests, then you are headed in the right direction.

Of course there are circumstances that are beyond your control – harassment, corruption, etc. – those situations were never going to let you get what you needed from the job in the first place – report the problems, see if they get resolved quickly (resolved meaning – obstacles to obtaining your career goals are removed), and move on as soon as you can to get back on track (either in the restored environment or in a new one).

• Knowing when to change jobs can be learned,
• knowing what to look for in your next job/career is clarity you can get help with to attain, and
• being courageous can then follow – it becomes much easier as you progress in your career journey.