| |
| |
|
Careers & Employment Information |
|
|
|
Career Job Satisfaction - Get Off the Treadmill - Exit Your Rat Race!
Get Off the Treadmill - Exit Your Rat Race! We can all get in a rut from time to time. Who hasn't had a moment in their lives where you've asked yourself the question: "Why am I doing this?" Whether it's who you've become, the business you are in, your career, relationships, where you live or all of the above - sometimes you realise you're just not where you want to be - and you're not sure how you got there! It sure feels like your own version of a rat race though. If where you want to be in your life is not where you are, then maybe it's time for you to drop out of your very own rat race. We are conditioned into believing that we must continue to strive, to take more on, and to do more, in order to be "successful". But this is a limited and ultimately self-defeating definition. If we can only be more successful by what and how much we do, then we have created our own treadmills to run on. 1. Redefine Success Redefining success for yourself can be the first step in taking a fresh perspective. Try this exercise by completing the following sentence. " I know I am successful when??." You may not complete the sentence with anything to do with work or material goods. Here are some examples. I know I am successful when?. ?I laugh every day with my children ?I bounce out of bed enthusiastically every morning ?all of my relationships give me great joy ?I inspire others to make positive changes By redefining what we believe makes us successful, we begin to strive for different things in our lives. This can be instrumental in slowing down the treadmill enough for us to take stock of where we are. 2. Springclean your mind If you feel as though you don't have time for anything, especially thinking about ways to do things differently, it's time for a time-out. When we are busy and occupied all the time, we are usually reacting to things going on around us, rather than acting out of choice. So make an active choice to take a rest, a vacation, talk it out with someone you trust, blow off steam, do whatever it takes to get some perspective about your situation. Just this simple step will make you feel more in control, and can help to streamline the energy you'll need for the changes ahead. The idea is not to just get out of your rat race but to go towards a more fulfilling way of living 3. Get real The reality is that you can't change anyone else's behaviour but your own. So it's a good time to stop wishing that people would act differently so that you could feel better. Also, it's time to make alternative plans just in case you don't win the lottery or get a salary increase. This sounds harsh, but people who wait for things to happen to them are usually waiting a long time. Don't wait for chance or fate to step in. Figure out what it will cost (in time, energy, money, etc.) to make the changes you know you need to make. Then figure out what it will cost not to. 4. Pack light There's something very cathartic about taking time to clean things out - getting rid of the old to make way for the new. You could start with a room in your house, your email address list, or old beliefs that aren't adding value to you any more. In every situation there is a good lesson to take with you, something of value to keep. Even if it's only, 'Well that's a place I know I never want to be again'; there is something worth keeping. Any situation, and your perception of it, is part of who you are. Identify specifically what it is you want to keep and what you'll leave behind. Be brutal. You may even miss some of the things you choose to leave behind - that's all part of the process. What you will find is renewed energy for new things that you want to include in your life - a great start to exiting your rat race and beginning on a new journey. 5. Create a map When was the last time you thought about where you wanted to be in 5 or 10 years time? We get so caught up in "doing" things - for the business, for work, for others - things we think we should be doing, that we take no time to consider what we really want. Forget the race. Think journey. Take the time to think about yourself, and where you would like to be. Nobody else's map will do here -it's time to do some hard thinking for yourself. What are the core values that you'd like to base your life around? What do you love to do or to be? What gives you a sense of purpose? What do you stand for? What could you not be dissuaded from believing in, no matter what? If you had one life to live this time round what would you do with it? These are tough questions and their answers are part of the journey. Don't freak or feel guilty if you don't know the answers straight away. For the impatient and perfectionist people reading, this is not a test - there is no pass or fail. So don't treat it like one. The more you know about yourself, the more you will be able to start drawing your own map. 6. Head for the Life! (not the lifestyle) Do you know what the difference is between having a life and maintaining a lifestyle? A lifestyle is something we are told we need by society, advertisers, and parents. Life's luxuries, although nice to have, can be expensive financially and in the energy spent getting them. Perhaps the energy spent maintaining a lifestyle might be better used turning your life into an expression of who you are. A lifestyle buys comfort. A life buys satisfaction and contentment. The best bed in the world only makes for a comfortable sleepless night if you lack contentment. If your lifestyle impedes you being who you are then dump it. 7. Go for your ideal If it turns out that you drop out of your rat race and into your perfect life, would you even know it? Create a vision of where it would be, who you're with, what you're doing. Design it around your passions, beliefs, values and loves. Remember, just like spending your money, if you don't know what you want from your life there's plenty of people around who will be only too glad to tell you. 8. Look out for the rough bits. Choosing to live your life in your own way is tougher than staying in your rat race. People you know may be understanding or incredulous, and won't hesitate to give you their opinion. Temptations will abound to take a few laps round the old racecourse when the going gets tough. Our old comfort zones are traps waiting to lure us back into our old ways. By being aware of this and planning for how you'll cope you will get through. Anything different can be scary. But it can also be fun too! 9. Enjoy the trip! You've recognised where you don't want to be any longer and identified where you do. Now live where you are. Learn from the past and move on. Plan for the future but live in the present. You can't do anything about yesterday, so stop worrying about it. If you spend every minute think about tomorrow then you'll never enjoy today. And that's where all the action is! 10. Go for it. No more excuses. Nothing more to say. Just do it. Sometimes the only way to "win" a race - where there can be no winner - is to just stop running. Megan Tough, Director of Action Plus, is passionate about helping people enjoy their businesses. She works internationally with business owners to systematically remove the stress points from their business, giving them more time and space for - well -whatever they want! Visit her at http://www.megantough.com for more information on taking the stress out of your business.
MORE RESOURCES:
Employment - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Four Important Questions to Ask Your Interviewer; Do You Really Want to Work for This Person? Many job seekers miss a golden opportunity when they are asked towards the end of an interview if they have any questions. If they feel the interviewer adequately explained the position, they make the mistake of answering "No" to this question. 3 Cover Letter Secrets Revealed Writing a cover letter can be like cleaning your garage -- you don't know where to start .. When Your Job Goes Away: Seven Tips Q. "What do I do after a job goes away?"A. How To Pick The Best Career For You, Part 1 In Part One we'll look at how Positioning or "Coming to a Theater Near You" simplifies and expedites your employment hunt by reinforcing employer buy-in through justification of the sale.Rapidly gain employer agreement that you're the right person for the job by proving how their organizational needs are met through your specific abilities to solve their identified problems. Aptitude Tests Reveal the Difference Between Your Aptitude & Ability Aptitude tests measure your skills, abilities, values, interests and personality in order to help you determine which careers you might be best suited for and eliminate those that you are not.Aptitude tests are some of the most important tools to anyone considering a career change. Do You Need Help Writing A Winning Cover Letter? Your cover letter is critical to your success. It sets the tone. Writing Powerful Resumes - 10 Golden Rules Your resume is your sales letter. It may not get you the job. Stop Whining and Ask For What You Want! When you want something, the best way to get it is to make your request in a straightforward and positive way. You should not expect your boss or co-workers to read your mind and know what your expectations and desires are. Are You Eking Out a Living, and Cant Get What You Want from a Job? Many people are working at jobs they don't want and they hate to go there every day. Are you one of them?Let's start by examining how you got into this kind of "pickle" to begin with. Children At Work: Looking at Child Labor in the Victorian Age Today, it isn't that uncommon for some children and teenagers to work. They may earn extra money by baby-sitting, doing yard work, or maybe even walking dogs. Ebook Review: Winning a Job is Easier with Job Secrets Revealed IntroductionThere are literally thousands, if not tens of thousands of books about writing resumes and job application letters. Why should Brierty's be any different? Well, Brierty came from a copywriting background - sales and marketing. How to Deal With Workplace Inflexibility You've been a model employee: responsible, industrious, creative and productive. You've gone the extra mile time and again, with a smile. A Day in the Life of a Freelance Copywriter Ever wanted a job where you could spend all day, every day, writing clever and inspiring prose? Yes? Well don't become a freelance copywriter!Don't get me wrong, it's a great job, and for some of us it's a calling that won't be denied. And you definitely do get to write clever and inspiring prose. Career Change - Is Your Career A Good Fit Or Is It Causing Pain? Do you leap out of bed in the morning looking forward to the day ahead?Do you love your job and find that your working day goes past in the blink of an eye?Are you a solicitor, secretary, scientist or social worker because your parents or your careers teacher thought it was a good idea?Would you choose to do your job, even if you were not being paid? No?Well, take heart because the same goes for others! So many individuals are working in jobs which they find unfulfilling and meaningless. Many work in jobs which are inappropriate for them, simply because the pay is good. Hello Work World, Im Un-Retiring For many years, you looked forward to that day when you would bid the world of work a fond farewell and ride off into the sunset of your golden years.Initially, it felt wonderful not to have to go somewhere each morning. The 10 Biggest Career Change Mistakes - And How to Avoid Them Career change is no walk in the park.If it was easy, the castle gates would have burst long ago under the stampede of restless corporate warriors. Dissatisfied With Work? Perhaps Its You Just about every month, there's a new research report detailing the seemingly higher and higher degree of worker dissatisfaction. Whether it's a Gallup poll or a Conference Board report, the results are strikingly similar -- workers are becoming more and more dissatisfied with their work. Stand Out From the Crowd with Simple Marketing Methods Although today's job market can be very competitive, many job seekers overlook simple techniques that will catch potential employers' attention. Apply these eight ideas to stay ahead of your competitors and get hired now!1. Successful Job Seeking - The Importance of Your Cover Letter As an employer I receive many job applications each week. Some cover letters are so well written that I am compelled to review the attached resume even if our company is not currently hiring. Moving From A Weekend Hobby To Career In The Arts Building a career as an artist takes hard work. Because the field attracts so many talented people, jobs in this field remain competitive.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
