Busy is good. That’s my favorite response to entrepreneurs who express that they are busy.
You see, we have all been there when there is nothing to do. No job. No contract. No financial inflow. What frequently follows is sadness, apathy, boredom, inability to meet financial obligations and the list goes on. For sure that ain’t good for our mental state and wellbeing.
Among Others
An 80-year-old grandmother was busy going to the gym, church, shopping, Medical visits to the doctor. Those activities kept her busy. It made her feel alive. Then suddenly her husband also retired. Now they both sit at home watching golf, tennis, jeopardy and wheel of fortune on TV. This past weekend she spent time in the hospital. Latency had stepped in.
The Deal
That’s what happens when we are not busy. It happens to entrepreneurs, workers, student or retirees. There’s no respect of persons.
The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide you’re not going to stay where you are
J.P. Morgan
My youngest turned and asked if we could go on a road trip. Absolutely yessss! Until she said she wanted to go immediately. It was Christmas Day. Brunch with the family was divine. An experience we relived year after year. Thought the little one would be satisfied. But she wanted more. Time with her mom right after the family gathering. Mid afternoon. Christmas Day.
So I sat next to her. Shared how much I loved her. Then explained what a Road trip meant. Planning. Knowing where we’re going. The path we would need to take. She was disappointed. But I used it as a teaching moment. I told her to search ski resorts (yep, she wanted to go skiing) and come up with the top 3 places she would like to visit. That turned into a yearlong project.
In Search Of Snow
There were many places to choose from but we wanted early snow just before peak season. She had never skied before so that meant even more research. We chose Breckinridge Ski Resort in Colorado. Early December. Just as the season was about to begin. We found A beautiful cabin near the peak. We invited her older sister and her two boys.
Being from Florida we had to get the right gear. Rented the ski attire but bought everything else. It was an experience that lasted a life time and kick started our many holiday rendezvous.
Strategies To Find The New
But can the same strategy be applied to other things? Indeed it can.
Investigate. Research. Study. Whatever your goal its important to find information. New knowledge opens minds. Personally I find new things amazing! Are you curious about a different career path? Job search (yes there’s a difference), a research project, a new house, new car? Whatever your prowess, the new is exciting even when it’s dreaded. Here are tips for the novice.
7 Tips for the Novice Researcher
If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there. And who knows where you’ll end up.
Unknown
Know what your needs are. What do you want? Think about it
Start with a general Search to see what’s out there. What exists
Do a quick scan of key resources found on your topic or area of interest
Compile the most useful pieces found
Do a deep dive. Read through and highlight things that are important to what you’re searching for (YouTube videos, articles, discussions) whatever works
Organize the flow. What’s important. What’s nice to know. Discard the rest
Then Act. Gathering data is nice but putting it into action is what’s important to any project or task
Hope these tips will help to kickstart your next project. Any missing that you would like to add? Do share. We would love to hear.
Get an education. Become a lawyer, doctor, get a cool career! Marry Prince/Princess Charming. Buy that nice big house. Have the perfect kids. These are some of the wishes that moms and dads often want for their children to Jolt them to success or to Restart. But I have always stressed that you should not let anyone define what success means to you. It’s entirely your decision.
Brian Tracy asked the question “What Does Success Mean to You?” Responses came in Opaque forms including:
Doing what I want when I want and helping others so that they can to help themselves
The highest level of success is happiness
Do the right thing and be a great person or human being
Not caring if it is Monday or Friday. Loving every day of the week the same. Having a good relationship with people. Making a difference. Continuously learning and…
CNN Headline news posed the question to fathers. Tune into my Conversation with Senior IT Expert Daveyton Blake who is a Father, Coach and Community young adult Mentor. Dads of all kinds will be intrigued by the intense truths explored in this interview.
Listen in now and share with a dad this Father’s Day.
The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are.
J.P. Morgan
The Regret Minimization Framework is a simple mental model to minimize the number of regrets in the long run. Jeff Bezos after a conversation with his boss asked himself what he would regret more when he was 80 years old: Trying to build something he had strong conviction in and failing, or failing to give it a try? He realized that not trying would haunt him every day (Utkarsh Amitabh HBR).
Walking away from a great job is not an easy decision. I know that because I did it. I walked away from a great career in the pharmaceutical industry. Naturally, this decision came with it’s fair share of ups and downs but when you decide to make a decision based on purpose, all you need to do is weigh the consequences. Like Bezos did, he considered himself at age 80 and thought about it in the context of regret. If you know Amazon, then the rest is history.
As a Certified Professional Coach who specializes in career transitions and people management, I have help many leaders become clear on the next step in their career journey. It may not mean that you want to venture out into entrepreneurship. It might very well be that you want to shift into a new career in the same company or another. I reflect on a client who left his career in the financial industry to venture into a new career in social work. Hmmm, pretty drastic change, right? But the change proved satisfying.
So what’s your plan? What’s your purpose? What’s your passion? Can’t figure it out? Let’s connect.
Have a success story? Do share, we would love to hear.
The most beautiful things are not associated with money; they are memories and moments. If you don’t celebrate those, they can pass you by. – Alek Wek
I love challenges. I set goals, and do everything to accomplish them. Then when I do, I move on to the next goal. As the head of Head of Human Resources for many years, I relentlessly celebrated the achievement of others on the job, but I never stopped to celebrate my own personal achievements. In recent years I came to value the importance of celebrating life’s triumphs. I guess it comes with maturity. There is something gratifying to it. Besides, it leaves a lasting legacy on those close to me.
Oh how to celebrate? The question was asked and many Bravely Expressed and jumped in. But I found Sarah Starrs list of ways to celebrate insightful. Here I share my top favs!
Plan a Solo Day. Yep, a Getaway all by yourself. Unaccompanied. But be very careful though, you may become a solo convert.
A Solo Getaway can be used for well needed Relaxation. A Writers retreat. To reflect on a major decision; to Plan or Strategize a Career Move or Entrepreneurship venture
I was asked to speak with students who were about to graduate and take the steps as they embark on their career. In my curiosity to find out how to deal with their needs, I followed up with the enquiry to ascertain the major challenges they face as I spoke on the topic of Burst The Fear. I took the opportunity to share my own personal journey in the hopes that the graduating class would gain some inspiration of my own fears and how I countered them. Sky Dive anyone?
Here I share the top 10 challenges as gleaned and brief insights on how students and graduates can address them.
1.Lack of Money For Tuition
Lack of money is a common concern for students and graduates who wish to pursue further studies. There are many opportunities to combat this…
Mom, in your shadow is where I choose to be. I reflect on how much you sacrificed, how much you cared. I used to hate those calls which came sporadically. Calls that seemed to come at the wrong time… when I’m in a meeting, or at a function, or just plain busy with work. Yet all you wanted was just to say hello, I’m thinking of you.
Years later when you became sick, restricted by the pains and incapacitation of physical movements brought on by a stroke, I longed for those calls. I longed just to hear you say hello…, but it was hard for you. All I had was the look in your eyes which said, I still love you my child. I still care. I returned the love and care with more force than I ever could. This warmed your heart and brought the sparkle in your eyes. You were happy…
Know where you want to go and make sure the right people know about it.
Meredith Mahoney
Are you one of the many who are reluctant to attend Networking events? Then when you do, sit quietly in a corner with no interaction just green with envy? That’s the story of many who hate networking. But it’s a necessary thing to do especially if you are planning to Ditch your Job or Switch it to entrepreneurship. Networking is interacting with others to exchange information and develop professional or social contacts.
Dr. Marcia Ballinger shared her article titled I Hate Networking and tips to do it right. Here I share 3 favs:
Networking Tips
Learn from and Focus on Others. A networking meeting is meant for you to learn from and focus on the other person. Not yap about yourself
Get To Know and Build Relationships. The people you are connecting with will almost never have a job. They will, however, have wisdom and ideas, connections and information. Networking is about getting to know the person and making/building a relationship. Job possibilities follow
Engage in Meaningful Conversations. Networking is about having meaningful questions to ask the person you’re meeting. You actually end up doing very little talking.
This Question was posed by Think & Grow Prosper. It sparked my interest so I decided to read a synopsis of the over 4K Visceral responses. Some Synchronized, some humorous, while others left readers in deep thought. Here I share:
No Apologies
I don’t know
God’s Journey
Nope,Wrong Book
Sunshine
Dreamer
Fate of Tragedies
Where’s the Donut?
Burnt Desires with regrets
Journey of Mistakes
Uprising
The Chronicles of Surviving in Today’s Society
The Endless Possibilities of a Life Lovingly Lived
Why me?
Wasted Years
Don’t Have your Children 16 Years Apart and Here’s Why
