The Career You’ll Love

Sponsored by Carl Dierschow’s career blog at www.Dierschow.com

The “where” questions

I thought I’d continue on from the previous newsletter which discussed the “who” questions in managing your career.  You just might see a theme emerging here.

There are a wide range of pertinent “where” questions, so let’s start off with the obvious ones.

Where do you want to work? Having targets helps to focus your energy and your message.  Sure, at this stage perhaps you’re desperate to work anywhere that will pay you, but there are limitations.  Why spend your valuable energy on jobs that you’d never be qualified for, would require an unacceptable move, or are with people you’d never want to spend time with?  Sure, if a total surprise falls in your lap, check it out – but spend your valuable time where you’ll get the most bang for the buck.

Where do you want to live? For many people, this is a driving factor in their career decisions.  It’s quite OK to be attached to your family and friends – you get to decide.  You also have the right to want to move elsewhere, if you like that sense of adventure and getting away from your past.

Now let’s take on some of the less obvious questions.

Where are the influencers? These are people who are connected to people you’d like to know, who affect decisions, or who have useful information.  And notice that the question is where they are.  Many times you don’t know exactly who you’re targeting, so the first question is to find where these kinds of people tend to hang out.  That might be a physical place such as networking meetings or even a particular restaurant, but more often these days it’s in virtual meeting spaces and social media sites.  Watch, and then engage in the discussions.

Where is my career headed? This is a totally different kind of question, because it’s 99% about where you WANT to be headed.  But do take a minute to think about this objectively – What is the trajectory you’re on?  What’s the easiest path?  What do other people assume your next career steps would be?  Then, of course, don’t be constrained by these answers – where would you LIKE it to head?

Where are other people focusing? Then take this information and do something innovative.  Even do the exact opposite.  If you’re feeling frustrated by a lack of progress, if you’re uninspired by the advice you’re hearing from others, then mix it up.  Do something different.  Often you’ll find that this can help give you energy to dig into the hard tasks, especially if you’re feeling like you’re up against a brick wall right now.

If you’re feeling a bit burned out right now – in your job, or looking for a job – find a friend who can be your confidant and supporter.  Focus on sparking some creativity and energy to get yourself moving again.

An important resource

Here’s a strange one.  But since this is my newsletter, I get to be honest.

Some of the most important resources I have are on the spiritual side - my faith, my friends at church, and the contribution I make to others’ spiritual development.  Many people would enforce a wide division between spirituality and their work life, but I don’t tend to do that.

In fact, my spiritual side was one reason why I got into coaching in the first place.  This profession is one of the ways that I help my clients to find fulfillment in their lives, even if we never use religious language or images.  It helps me to pursue my deeper purpose.

So I’d ask you:  Would development of your spiritual side help you to find more happiness in your career?  It has for me.

If you are interested in individual career coaching, group coaching, or other resources which might help you with difficult choices, please contact Carl at carl@dierschow.com.

Connect with Carl on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to get timely updates and connections to a broader range of professionals.

© 2010 Possibilities Partnership LLC

The Career You’ll Love

Sponsored by Carl Dierschow’s career blog at www.Dierschow.com

The “who” questions

As you try to figure out what you want to do when you grow up, there’s thousands of things that you could be investigating.  Not only going out and looking at the world around you, but also digging down to your internal needs and motivations.

There’s some important questions that can help to guide your investigation and decisions, but today let’s focus on what I call the “who” questions.

Who am I? This should be the starting point, even before you go out and look at opportunities in the world.  There are a lot of choices you could make, but you have to make them based upon your personal set of values and goals.  So start by looking at your past – your entire lifetime – and how that made you who you are today.

Who do I want to be? As you’re looking forward, most people sense a gap between where they are and where they want to be.  Sure, you want to create a good life for your future self and your family.  But more importantly, what’s the character traits that you want to develop?  What accomplishments do you want to be known for? And then — who is the new person you need to become?

Who can I rely on? None of us is in this life alone; we’re all travelling with friends, family, and supporters.  They will help you achieve your goals, especially if you help them achieve theirs.  If you don’t feel like you have enough people to draw upon, then start creating the list of who COULD help you move ahead if you worked to develop the relationship.

Who do I need to know? As the natural outgrowth of the previous question, you can develop the list of people with whom you’d like to work, play, and make a contribution to the world.  Think of each of them as a partner, rather than just someone who needs to give you something.

Who will care? Sometimes you’re developing yourself for your own self-fulfillment, but many times you also want to make a contribution to the larger world.  Starting with your family, your friends, associates, and community – who would you like to care that you are in their lives?  What do you want them to be thinking about you?

The answers to these questions will help you to design the career that will fill your life with joy.  And more importantly, the SEARCH for the answers will give you some key insights into your situation and the people you’re travelling with on this journey.

An important resource

I was talking with a lady this morning who is in the business of helping people figure out whether they want to build a business, or buy one from someone else.  It was fascinating for me, especially with my recent decision to connect up with Small Fish Business Coaching.

Many people are thinking about going into business for themselves, especially if they’ve become burned out on working for others.  There’s a surprising amount of vitality in small businesses, especially because so many people have been shed from jobs in large companies.  It gives me great hope for the future of small business.

If you’re thinking about starting your own company or buying into someone else’s, look for local advisors who can help you with the decision.  I was speaking to a person from FranChoice, but there’s plenty of other options.  It’s a great asset which can help open your eyes to making the right decision based on your personal goals.

If you are interested in individual career coaching, group coaching, or other resources which might help you with difficult choices, please contact Carl at carl@dierschow.com.

Connect with Carl on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to get timely updates and connections to a broader range of professionals.

© 2010 Possibilities Partnership LLC