How to be successful.
As an HR Executive I often get employees or interns in our company inviting me to coffee. They all have similar questions...
How can I be successful in my career?
What do I need to do to get promoted?
Can you tell me what I have to do to be an executive like you?
I'm always excited to get these invites and look forward to the conversations. Nearly everyone who approaches me is younger and earlier in their career than I am. And they all have a passion, energy and a desire to succeed and are willing to ask for help and then work to get what they want. They are moldable and eager to listen. I love helping those who want to be helped!
Once we've gotten our coffee I always start by asking a series of questions...
Why are you working?
Why do you want to be more successful than you already are?
What does success look like to you? Is it a big title, a fat paycheck, leading people, prestige, what?
What are you doing in other aspects of your life to ensure success?
For most, this is the first time they've been asked to define success. And for nearly all, this is the first time success has been offered as something potentially different than a big title, a fat paycheck, many direct reports, etc. Additionally, few have thought of success outside of the workplace.
Now things get interesting as I ask them to think about their lives as a timeline. Their work lives will account for approximately 25-30% of their lives, a big chunk for sure but not the majority of them. What are they doing with the other 70-75% of their lives to ensure success? I contend if they want to be successful in their careers, then they must first focus on being successful in life generally. What are they doing to ensure their relationships are in order? What about their physical and emotional well-being? What about their spiritual and financial well-being? Success will vary for each of us as we all are different, with different levels of drive, ambition and abilities. However, if we ensure our "houses" are in order outside of work, most often our work will be in order as well.
The next questions I usually get are...
How do I ensure my life is in order outside of work?
What steps can I take today, tomorrow, this week or month to ensure I'm on the right path?
I'm glad you asked. :) Tomorrow, I'll tell you about what I call the Four Pillars of success.
How can I be successful in my career?
What do I need to do to get promoted?
Can you tell me what I have to do to be an executive like you?
I'm always excited to get these invites and look forward to the conversations. Nearly everyone who approaches me is younger and earlier in their career than I am. And they all have a passion, energy and a desire to succeed and are willing to ask for help and then work to get what they want. They are moldable and eager to listen. I love helping those who want to be helped!
Once we've gotten our coffee I always start by asking a series of questions...
Why are you working?
Why do you want to be more successful than you already are?
What does success look like to you? Is it a big title, a fat paycheck, leading people, prestige, what?
What are you doing in other aspects of your life to ensure success?
For most, this is the first time they've been asked to define success. And for nearly all, this is the first time success has been offered as something potentially different than a big title, a fat paycheck, many direct reports, etc. Additionally, few have thought of success outside of the workplace.
Now things get interesting as I ask them to think about their lives as a timeline. Their work lives will account for approximately 25-30% of their lives, a big chunk for sure but not the majority of them. What are they doing with the other 70-75% of their lives to ensure success? I contend if they want to be successful in their careers, then they must first focus on being successful in life generally. What are they doing to ensure their relationships are in order? What about their physical and emotional well-being? What about their spiritual and financial well-being? Success will vary for each of us as we all are different, with different levels of drive, ambition and abilities. However, if we ensure our "houses" are in order outside of work, most often our work will be in order as well.
The next questions I usually get are...
How do I ensure my life is in order outside of work?
What steps can I take today, tomorrow, this week or month to ensure I'm on the right path?
I'm glad you asked. :) Tomorrow, I'll tell you about what I call the Four Pillars of success.
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