by Kathy Caprino, Guest Blogger -
I received a question on my Forbes blog
Career Bliss today that struck a real chord with me, and I wanted to share it with you. The question was in response to my post
5 Ways To Tell If You Need Career A Change.
Kiran asks:
Hi Kathy. Thank you so much for the article. What about people who are starting their career? I had decided to make my career in mechanical design and R&D. The opportunities however are far fewer in this field. Where as opportunities are more in, say, the field of supply chain, production, maintenance, marketing. I twice got selected for technical marketing but decided not to join. What should an individual do when starting off? What to do when lot of opportunities knock on door but not from the field one is looking for. Should a fresher accept these opportunities and think about career change afterward OR should he wait no matter how much time is required?
Here was my response:
Hi Kiran – Thanks for your great question. I can’t advise you directly without knowing more about your situation (for that we’d need a ), but I’d offer this. To me, your question is a bit like when a child comes to his mother and asks, “Mom, I really adore soccer and that’s what I want to play next year, but there are only a few spots on the team. Should I do what I can to get on the soccer team, or just go out for basketball which is easy to get on?”
What I’m getting at here is this – I’ve found that people are a thousand times happier, more fulfilled and successful when they’re doing work they love, generating outcomes they care deeply about, using their natural talents and gifts, and not sacrificing their spirits and souls for “security.”
Here are some questions to ponder:
1) Are there steps you can take now that plant the seeds for growing more desirable and in demand in the highly competitive field you love?
2) If you take another path, and years later wake up to the fact that the industry has changed and there ARE positions in the field you originally wanted, will you have regrets about going down this other path?
3) Can you gain employment now that pays the bills but ALSO prepares you well for the work you really want to do?
4) Finally, are you sure that mechanical design and R&D ARE what you want? How do you know, exactly? Did you “try on” this direction thoroughly to know that this is professional identity you want?
In the end, career change can be much harder than starting off doing what you want and planting the seeds for that all along the way. As I career changer myself, I know this to be true. I’d recommend figuring out what you want NOW ( will help you do that) and going for it with all you’ve got.
I’m working on my second book right now, and in it, I’m discussing the critical steps we need to take if we want to build happy, rewarding and successful careers that buoy us through the hard times in life.
An important thing to realize is that you will probably dedicate more hours to working than to anything else in your entire life. Knowing that, do you want to settle, right out of the gate? Do you want to sacrifice your spirit, your natural talents and gifts and feeling enlivened every day, for what you think will bring you “security?”
The sad reality that I’ve seen in my own life and with thousands of other midlife career professionals is that they have gone the route of sacrificing joy, fulfillment and excitement in their work, only to wake up years later to find that the unsatisfying work they settled work was stripped away from them due to the recession. I’ve seen that they only thing that is secure in your life is YOU – your spirit, heart, your talents, and gifts, and passions, your unique perspective. Pushing past your comfort zone and going for what you care about deeply is what keeps you stretching, growing and thriving. (Here’s more about how moving out of your comfort zone is critical to your success and happiness.)
My advice is to go with what you care most about, even if it’s much harder. Pursuing work that makes you feel alive, valuable and of use is a life-changing experience that generates many rewards. That said, you must take the right steps to remain employable and marketable, and to be highly valued in the workforce. It’s not enough to pursue your passion without doing what’s required to be great at your work, and to contribute in meaningful ways in your field.
But once you do that, you’ll have married up two of the most important ingredients of a life well-lived – joyfully giving of yourself and your amazing talents every day in the world, and nurturing and supporting yourself and your loved ones in ways that make you proud and happy.
Are you facing an important decision between pursuing work you love and doing what you think is the “secure” thing? What will you do?
(To build a happier, more rewarding career, visit kathycaprino.com and The Amazing Career Project.)
Kathy Caprino, M.A. is a nationally-recognized career success coach, writer, trainer and speaker dedicated to the advancement of women in business. She is the author of Breakdown, Breakthrough:The Professional Woman’s Guide to Claiming a Life of Passion, Power and Purpose, and Founder/President of Ellia Communications, Inc. and The Amazing Career Project, all focusing on helping professional women build successful, rewarding careers of significance. A Forbes and Huffington Post contributor and top media source on women’s career and entrepreneurial issues, she has appeared in over 100 leading newspapers and magazines and on national radio and television. For more information, visit www.kathycaprino.com and connect with Kathy on: Twitter, FB, LinkedIn.
Source: http://kathycaprino.com/2014/05/starting-out-should-you-pursue-what-you-love-even-if-its-much-harder-to-get/
by Kathy Caprino, Guest Blogger -
Throughout my 18-year corporate career, all I saw around me was what other corporate people were doing – the good, bad and the ugly. The meetings that droned on and on, the ridiculous political fights, the narcissist leader, the power-hungry manager stepping all over his staff, the passing over of certain individuals for promotions because they didn’t “fit in,” and so on. I also saw examples of individuals thriving in their work, and leaders who inspired, but truthfully, those were very few and far between.
Now that I’m out of corporate life and run my own business, I see it all very differently. I see what I and others should have been doing to build our careers more successfully — to experience greater personal reward and satisfaction – even in very limiting corporate situations. And I see that many people are far better suited to being out on their own as independent workers – either as entrepreneurs, consultants, private practitioners or in other capacities.
Helping people move from career misery to professional joy and reward, I’ve identified 7 essential steps professionals must take if they want to generate exciting financial reward and experience doing meaningful, purposeful work that aligns with their highest values and authentic lifelong goals.
The 7 critical steps to building a career that’s both financially and emotionally rewarding are:
Know that you are more than your current role
Every year in my career coaching I learn one major lesson about career pain that I hadn’t seen in that way before. This year’s lesson is that people can’t help but feel absolutely defined by how they’re doing in their current job – by what their bosses and colleagues think of them, and how they are performing within that tight, narrow culture. It doesn’t matter if they were stellar rock stars in their previous jobs; if they’re suffering now and not being appreciated, recognized and valued, that’s all they see and all they believe.
The reality, however, is much different. You aren’t just this job or role – you are an amazing amalgam of talents, gifts, experiences, perspectives, accomplishments and contributions. Just because this job isn’t a fit and you’re failing at it, doesn’t mean you are a failure. It means you’re focused on the wrong thing, with the wrong people, at the wrong place.
Tip: Know when it’s time to leave. Don’t stay in a place that doesn’t accept or value you.
Figure out who you love to serve
I felt so often in my corporate work, “What am I doing this for? Who cares? What’s the point?” Selling and marketing products for marketing organizations left me very cold. Now I know why. I thrive on doing work that contributes to people’s growth and happiness. If I’m not doing that, I’m not satisfied. I also know that I love to serve mid-career women in particular, because I was so lost in my former professional life and I couldn’t find any help that truly addressed my specific challenges. And those challenges, in great part, had to do with my being female in a corporate world that didn’t embrace feminine leadership styles, values and approaches.
Knowing exactly what you want to do and who you love to serve, and pursuing that in your work, takes courage and resilience. I can’t tell you how many men each year challenge me in my chosen niche of serving professional women. Men have asked angrily, “Why don’t you offer your programs to men too?” What they really mean is, “I need the kind of help you’re offering. Why can’t I have it?” The answer is that there is a very great need today for supporting the advancement of women in leadership and business in ways that honor and address women specifically, and I’m happiest and most fulfilled when I am contributing to that goal. You have to be tough, courageous and firm about who you are, and what you love to do, and not cave under challenge and criticism. That’s what it takes to pursue your heart’s work.
Tip: Start identifying exactly who you love to serve, and have the guts to pursue that niche. (This tool will help.)
Use your natural talents
It was a shocker to me that we can be fabulous at tasks we hate to do. Your work is much more fun and rewarding when you’re using talents that come naturally versus skills that you’ve acquired because you had to, but aren’t easy for you. For example, I’ve been good at managing multi-million dollar marketing budgets, and reporting on P&L variances to a corporate board, but I hate it. I much prefer (and am much better at) formulating ideas and new behavioral models to generate change, as well as writing, training, coaching, speaking, product development, qualitative research, and more.
Tip: Base your career on what comes naturally and easily to you. I guarantee that drawing on your natural talents generates much more reward on many levels. Use what you’re gifted at, not what you struggle to achieve.
Build connections with people you adore, and help them
Yesterday, I felt so exuberant and blessed because I dedicated a full day to talking to new colleagues, mentoring new contacts (who became instant friends), and connecting with professionals I love. An amazing boost of adrenalin comes from collaborating with and helping people you adore. And the more you do this, the larger your circle grows with people you deeply admire, and who inspire you.
Don’t spend one minute more than you have to with people you don’t like. Wasting your time with them means you’ll lose precious opportunities to build a more robust support community of people who enliven and inspire you to grow and thrive.
Tip: Identify at least one new person each week you admire and adore, and would like to help. Get on the phone with them, and find new ways to be of help.
Close your power gaps
I was laid off after 9/11, and my self-esteem was shot for months (and years) after. I didn’t realize then that being let go was exactly what needed to happen, because I hated my corporate identity and needed a change but would not take the steps to alter it. Now I see that I suffered from what I call a “power gap” – being laid off made me feel unworthy, unwanted and weak.
The single most important thing you can do to build a professional life you love is look at where you feel “less than” and address that courageously. Whether you haven’t finished your degree and you’re ashamed of that, or your skills in a critical area are rusty, or you got fired six months ago and it’s devastated you, spend the day today thinking about your “dirty little secret” – what makes you feel undesirable, unworthy and ashamed. Then do something bold and courageous to address that power gap so you’ll never have to live that feeling of “I’m ashamed because I’m not good enough” again. My bold move was to earn a Master’s degree in marriage and family therapy and change careers. What a blessing that was.
Tip: Look at where you feel ashamed and unworthy, and take a bold step to close that power gap today. Do it!
Think bigger than “What’s My Next Job?”
Sadly, thousands of corporate professionals think only in terms of linear career progression, and that’s the wrong way to look at your career. It’s not a series of jobs, salaries, and titles you should be focused on. It’s who you want to be in the working world, and how you want to contribute over the long arch of your life.
For example, if you’re an advertising director who longs to do something much more creative with your talents, don’t think only about what next advertising job will get you there (because it won’t). Think about how you can leverage your creative talents to do something completely different, such as produce and sell your own art, or illustrate a children’s book. If you’re a copywriter bored out of your mind at your science marketing job, think about how you can use your writing talents differently – perhaps to help a worthy cause, or support a non-profit you care about, or write your own blog (or book). Get out of the narrow thinking about your next job, and explore how else you can contribute in the world.
Tip – Brainstorm openly about other ways you can use your talents and gifts rather than “What next job should I get?” Evaluate the talents you love to use, and talk to everyone you know about new and different avenues for being of service using these talents.
Act like a savvy entrepreneur
I remember one of my bosses saying to me when I was reviewing my division’s P&L, “I want you to manage this as if it were you’re money.” I tried, but couldn’t wrap my head around that, because it wasn’t my money. Now that I run my own business, I get it. Every single investment – every new technology tool, new partnership, new program I launch – means I’m committing to a new direction and I have to know what it takes to make it work, and be fully prepared to make that happen.
Corporate folks often don’t know what that feels like. But if you can “try on” and live the identity of an entrepreneur, your career will change for the better. You’ll embrace risk more easily, and you’ll understand your potential contributions and talents and leverage those. You’ll embrace failure as information, and you’ll realize more quickly when things are going sour, and learn to pivot. And finally, you’ll understand that the people you surround yourself with can make or break your happiness, success and growth.
Don’t stay stuck where you are. Be flexible, nimble, fluid and open.
Tip: Wherever you are today, think more like an entrepreneur. Change is good, flexibility is critical, self-trust is essential. Don’t resist it.
(To build a happier, more rewarding career, visit the Amazing Career Project.)
Kathy Caprino, M.A. is a nationally-recognized career success coach, writer, trainer and speaker dedicated to the advancement of women in business. She is the author of Breakdown, Breakthrough:The Professional Woman’s Guide to Claiming a Life of Passion, Power and Purpose, and Founder/President of Ellia Communications, Inc. and The Amazing Career Project, all focusing on helping professional women build successful, rewarding careers of significance. A Forbes and Huffington Post contributor and top media source on women’s career and entrepreneurial issues, she has appeared in over 100 leading newspapers and magazines and on national radio and television. For more information, visit www.kathycaprino.com and connect with Kathy on: Twitter, FB, LinkedIn.
Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/kathycaprino/2014/05/03/the-only-way-to-build-a-career-that-generates-both-financial-and-emotional-reward/
