Skip to main content

Pay Attention to the Guideposts

A career is a tender thing. Derailing is so easy and yet a few basic steps can help you stay on the right path. These are the things on which I'm focusing:

1. Sleep. Work to get myself to bed on time as much as possible with an aim to getting 7-8 hours.
2. Nutrition. Of course the 3pm cookie seems to be the only solution to the stress, however, the roller coaster it takes the body on can cost a fortune later. Better to bring the carrots and have them handy.
3. Networking. The work on the desk is critical. The people I know in my industry who do my function and their managers in other companies are invaluable. The lunches, breakfasts and associations are critical to building a career. People hire people they know, and the current job is no guarantee of career development or continuance.
4. Breaks. Whether it's a bathroom break or a well deserved couple of days off, take them. The pause allows the muscles that have become taught in doing to relax and repair, become more effective when next engaged.
5. Kindness and Courtesy at Work. It's too easy to be brusque. A breath or smile can help interactions go more successfully, building goodwill and good days in a bank for those moments when exasperation comes from left field.
6. Pacing Myself. Probably the hardest. Life is a marathon. Look out across a year of time and adjust the goal settings if they become too aggressive and point to burn out.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

A Profitable Man

How do you define a successful life? I think, post-holidays, this idea of what this year should be comes to mind. What if it's in the quality of sleep each night, and the love you enjoy from those closest to you? What if any profit is really from having enough time, money, and other stuff to enjoy the love around you? Then, how do the actions you take this year, this month, this week align with that vision you have for yourself as a viable human being and then your career? Reminder: we spend the most time at work. How does work time move the dial forward for the total being of you. If it goes against, it detracts from what you want to be in the world. Is that a worthy sacrifice? Challenge. Write about it this year. Talk with trusted friends. If you need to adjust the work you do: mold the current work, find a new position within the current organization, or seek new frontiers, do it, for life is short and the years they roll along quickly. Happy New Year. Live and Work ...

I came home HAPPY tonight

Life will never be perfect. I left the office today with a pile of "to-do" on my desk that makes my head spin. And yet, I carved out time today to do the following: 1. have a powerful yet shortened work out this morning that cleared my head and got my blood pumping. When I hit the office this morning, I hit it hard and strong, muscling through an anxiety of mammoth proportion about how I was going to get ANYTHING on my plate done. 2. pause and do networking at an industry conference. That raised my sights, beyond my little desk and day to day concerns and showed me the bigger picture. Seeing folks at a career fair quickly snapped me back to reality: I'm lucky to have a job I love in the industry I am most fond of, and in the function I care deeply about, working with people on my team I love and with colleagues to serve whom I respect. Bollywog that it's overwhelming: I'll find healthy, collaborative ways to slog through this period. 3. I managed my netw...

what a day what a day

start your engines. 25 days to glorious Rowe http://www.rowelaborday.com/ the fellowship and reflection on the year.  the dancing.  the good food.  rest.  the laughter and tears.  men asking the hard questions and grieving the losses, cheering each other on and empowering each other to tackle life well.  we'll talk about our challenges and form plans to meet those challenges in the coming year. i'm excited. today, i jump in.  sessions for employees, and a big project to work on.  went to the gym and wrestled with iron and pushed my body for endurance.  and now we begin. work well.