In this video I expand on advice from an article about finding your dream job from Forbes.com. In order to find your dream job you have to know what you want first. Then listen to your friend’s advice and take what works for you, leave what doesn’t. You have to filter anyone’s advice by what works for you at all times so that you don’t get off track, and take a job just because someone else suggested you’d be good at it. Listen to yourself first, at the end of the day you know what’s best for you.
Read the article from Forbes.com here: http://www.forbes.com/sites/forbeswomanfiles/2012/01/03/finding-your-dream-job-from-the-bathroom-floor/
I was talking to my career coaching client, Damon, this week and he asked a great question. I hear this often, so I wanted to share it with you. How do you know if your job is not a good fit for you, versus you just need to improve yourself and work on your skills? There’s no one size fits all answer. Although, it would it be very nice if there was! Here’s how you can start to understand the difference:
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Remember that there are some things we can learn and some things that we can’t. Some things are also a lot harder for us to learn than others. It’s the distinction between talents and skills. Talents are inherent while skills can be learned. When you are thinking, “I should be better at this,” are you considering something that you can actually learn and develop? Or is it a natural talent that just is not there.
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You need to understand the difference between something you can work on and improve versus something that is part of your personality type. Some thing’s you can’t necessarily change, and you wouldn’t necessarily want to. You are who you are. So in some cases we need to accept that, move on, and realize there’s a better job fit for us out there.
I hope this is helpful to you to get you started on thinking about talents versus skills and understanding and your personality type.
Hallie Crawford
Career Transition Coach
P.S. Find out if for sure if you’re in the right career with our free Ideal Career Quiz.
I was working with my client Seth this week. He came to our career coaching call very excited with the progress he had made. I wanted to share this quick tip with you:
Seth is a high performing individual. He sets high goals for himself and is constantly thinking of new ideas for his work at a custom software outsourcing firm in North Carolina. He would blast into his office in the morning excited to go to work, and at the end of the day his desk would be cluttered. He didn’t get to those important, versus urgent, items that he wanted to during the course of the workday. He would forget about those big goals we had been working on through career coaching to help him work smarter, not harder.
One of the tools Seth is now using which had made a huge difference in his day is this white board in his office. Each day when he first arrives, his assignment is to sit and look at his white board for 5 minutes before he does anything else. This grounds him in what he needs to do for the day, and settles his mind so he’s able to better prioritize his tasks. Seth’s desk is now clear. His mind is clearer. He is more confident, and is achieving those important goals every day.
I can tell you he sounds different when he comes to our career coaching calls. Seth is less frantic, more focused, and calm. Nice work Seth!
Last night I had the opportunity to speak for Georgia Tech Alumni Association’s Waffle House Career Series. The topic was “Live and Work with Passion and Purpose“.
It was an exciting and well attended event. There was great interaction and participation. We discussed how to bring passion into both your personal life and your career. Thank you to all those who came out!
Inspiring example: A participant from last night, Michelle, said her dream job was to make chocolate. I talked to her more today, and I really believe she will make it happen. She is currently getting her MBA at GA Tech to learn how to run a business. She plans to open a retail or online store. She did an internship with a chocolate maker in Australia. I know she’ll make her dream a reality because she has a plan, has multiple options to make it happen in a practical way AND she has passion for it. This is something she really enjoys doing.
What’s your passion? How will you make it happen?
Hallie Crawford
Atlanta Career Coach
This is a great article I would like to share with you. Part of the reason I like this article so much is because I can relate to it.
Read this article here: Finding Your Dream Job from the Bathroom Floor
I remember crying in mom’s kitchen and actually the bathroom at work (several times). I felt I was part of the “lost generation” in my 20’s. I didn’t know what I wanted to do and where I should go. I didn’t realize the first step I had to take; just like the lady in this article.
I needed to figure out who I was and I what I wanted in the first place. After all my crying I gained some clarity in a workshop with a career coach, and I started getting back on track. But I had to go through that whole process to get where I am today. Many things have changed since then (i.e. technology, the economy slump.) One thing that doesn’t change is the fact that you need to know yourself and know what you want before you will get anywhere.
If you are ready to gain some clarity in your career direction, check out our 5 Keys to Finding Your Ideal Career E-book.
Hallie Crawford
Career Help Coach
Change is scary! Many times we ask ourselves to bite off more than we can chew in terms of how much we expect to exercise, or how quickly we push ourselves to find a new job. When we fall short of our lofty expectation, we feel discouraged and set back. In career coaching I like to employ the micro-change strategy.
For example, a current client of mine is suffering considerable stress from her job and wants to make healthy changes to reduce the effects of stress and negativity. At first she suggested doing yoga each morning, but after reframing the idea in terms of a small, manageable change, she determined her micro-change would be to play a motivating song in the morning as she readies for work and then to take one deep breath just before getting into her car. While this may seem insignificant, it is an encouraging change that she can easily accomplish and see as progress.
Ultimately, these small behavioral changes help to reinforce the new positive thoughts and internal messages we are seeking to sustain so that we can break down barriers and pave the way toward career clarity.
Stacy Smyk-Santiago
Certified Career Coach
This article, Job Search: ‘Tis the Season… So Get Out There! is from late November, but I think it is still worth reading. I wanted to share with you this excerpt….
January and February represent the strongest hiring period of the year. New projects, initiatives, and budgets are put into place and hiring generally skyrockets at the beginning of the year. Although not every January can promise a boom in the marketplace, by actively networking and positioning yourself as a valuable and enthusiastic candidate, you’ll be well on your way to getting that all important call for an interview on January 2nd.
In my Mercer MBA workshop last week, we talked about the concept of sharpening the saw from Steven Covey. Keep your skills sharp so you remain competitive in your job search. Always be looking for a way you can stand out from your peers.
If you found this helpful, and want help taking the next step in your job search, please contact us today for a complimentary consultation.
Hallie Crawford
Certified Career Coach
P.S. Be sure to join us for our FREE TELECLASS: How to Find Your Dream Job in 2012. Register here.
It’s interesting to me how so many people set their New Year’s resolutions but fail within a few weeks (if not a few days). Why is that? I think that the problem is that most resolutions are unrealistic or general (I will lose weight, I will eat healthy, I will spend more time doing ____).
What’s your resolution? Do you see this pattern? Here’s some help…
Anytime you set goals you need to remember two things:
- Your level of commitment is crucialIf you are not ready to commit to change, whether it is a career change, losing weight, learning how to ride a horse, etc it won’t happen. You have to be committed to make it happen. Before you set your goal think about how committed you are to it. I have my career coaching clients measure their commitment to career change on a scale of 1-10. If it’s not at a 10, I ask them to think about what would make it a 10. How can they move it up the scale? You can read more about the importance of commitment here.
- Your goals must be SMART goals
Yes most of you have heard about SMART goals by now (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Results-oriented {realistic/relevant}, Timely). The problem is that most people know what SMART goals are, but not that many are successful at creating SMART goals for themselves. You need to be able to set specific steps for you to be able to reach your big goal.I find that my clients are able to reach their goals when they create weekly and monthly checklists with small action steps. This helps keep their goal top of mind with tiny baby steps to reach it.
Here’s an example – Many people say they want to lose weight in the New Year. That’s great – but how can it be a SMART Goal. My suggestion would be not to focus on the full year. Start smaller. So for example you might want to say that by April 1st you will have lost 10 pounds (specific – not just lose weight). It is a measureable, attainable, realistic, timely goal. Your baby steps in your checklist for week 1 might be to have a salad every day. Week 2 might be to add 30 minutes of exercise 3 times a week.
Let us know what your New Year’s Resolution is and how you have set SMART goals for yourself in the comment box below.
Happy New Year!
Hallie Crawford
Atlanta Career Coach
