If you’re reading this post, you’re either in this place now, “been there and done that,” or just curious to see what I have to say about it. Ok, here goes.
According to some of the latest research done by Gallup (Gallup’s World Poll), 85 percent of the world’s population is not happy at work. And, over the last few years that I’ve tracked their work in this area, the numbers have shifted very little. To make matters worse, many workers make too much money to quit and do something they would enjoy. The burden of responsibilities and living expenses makes pursuing the thing they love feel like climbing a mountain without gear!
If you find yourself in this predicament, how do you turn it around? How do you get unstuck? While some may feel like there’s no hope, I want you to know there is. There are some key steps you can take to course correct which can lead you to career fulfillment while earning a wage that can work for you (and your household!).
While marketing has its four P’s of marketing, I call this my Five P’s of Career Fulfillment:
Patience
Yes, patience – that despicable word we all hate, are often not good at practicing, yet is vital to success in most areas of life. Why do you need patience? It’s simple. You didn’t get in the predicament you now find yourself in two weeks, so you most likely won’t be able to get out of it in two weeks.
The beginning of your career, with the exception of crippling student loan debts for too many young people nowadays, is often the period in your life when you have the least amount of financial burden until you retire. You have no mortgage, expensive car with a big car note, children, ailing parents, etc. However, as your income grows, so do your expenses. The money is good so you ride the wave.
Yet, one day you wake up and realize the burden of what you’re doing outweighs the satisfaction of the lifestyle you built. The hole you now find yourself was dug over five, ten, twenty years. If you spent ten years digging yourself into a hole, the chances of climbing out of it in three months is pretty slim. Getting out isn’t impossible, but will definitely take some patience.
Purpose
If you’ve followed me for any amount of time, you should be familiar with four words I say all of the time, “What do you want?” As I always state, it’s four small words but they add up to one BIG question. It’s one thing to be bored, burned out or frustrated with your present circumstances, but it’s another to know where you want to go when you leave them.
If you hate your job and know there’s more out there for you, now is the time to clearly understand what it is you want – not what you think you can have. If you pursue what you think you can have, you’ll end up right back in this same situation. By taking the time to figure out what it is you really want to do in this season of your career or for the rest of your career, it can keep you out of this trap in the future.
Planning
“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”
Some people are natural planners (yours truly!), while others are more comfortable and quite successful operating more spontaneously. In the end, you must follow the rhythm that works for you, but I strongly encourage you to map out a plan for the change you want. While even the best planners will tell you no plan is fool proof, by thinking through and mapping out strategies and actions to achieve your goal, you can save time, money and energy. Consider this, if you lived in Scottsdale, AZ and wanted to drive to Whippany, NJ, would you do it without considering the route, expense, time, needed attire or resting stops? You might but good luck!
Profit
In business, whatever is leftover after expenses are deducted from revenue is called profit. The more profit a business has, the more latitude it has for new pursuits. It’s the same with your personal finances. The more profit you have after deducting your expenses from your income, the more you position yourself to be able to try new things. Even if the income isn’t quite where you need it to be initially, profit will cushion the ride for you.
When you’ve become accustomed to a certain lifestyle, it can be very difficult to cut back. However, you must weigh the burden of your current (and future!) circumstances against the burden of trimming some fat out of your life. Do you really need a new car right now? Can you vacation more sensibly for a while in order to save money? Can you sacrifice eating out 1-2 times per month and use that money to double up on credit card payments? By reducing your expenses, you create a lifestyle that’s easier to afford. When you do this, you give yourself the ability to make changes in your career that are much more satisfying and the time it might take to build in that career to grow your income.
Pursuit
In a conversation I had with my mother last week, she shared a saying from my late grandfather: “Nothing beats a failure but a try.” While I seem to recall hearing this somewhere before, I’ll give my Grandpa the credit for now.
Some of you probably began implementing these steps before you got to this point in the post, while others are sitting there saying to yourself, “This won’t work for me, because she has no idea of what kind of hole I’m in.” For the former group, high five! For the latter group, you’re absolutely correct. I don’t know your individual circumstances, but I know my Grandpa was right. If you don’t take steps now to course correct, I can guarantee things won’t change for you. But just imagine what would happen if you only put forth the effort…….
In life, name three things you’ll spend more time engaged in than your career. If you can’t complete the list, NOW is the time to make the rest of your career the best of your career.
#TakeBackYourCareer
Until next time….