At a career crossroads? What YOU can do about it.

Recently, a young, ambitious, 30-something millennial and I had a candid conversation about how she is at a crossroads in her career. She was lost, felt purposeless, and was impatiently waiting for her plans to ‘take off’. 

This discussion took me back to the start of my own career and some of the words of wisdom that I received from people who have helped me on my career journey, as well as some of the experiences that I’ve gathered along the way. I hope these will be useful, regardless of what stage you are at in your career.  

“Courage does not mean you are without fear, it means you don’t let the fear stop you”

1. Bet on unerring courage: My role as CEO at Thomas Cook was not handed to me on a platter. It came from courage and self-belief. The courage I mustered, despite not having any experience or background in travel. And the belief I had in my experience with organizational transformations which was the need of the hour. I wrote to the Group Chairman at the time. I explained why the organization needed me and why he should consider me for the role of CEO. Two months later, I got the job! 

“With the new day, come new strengths and new thoughts”

2. Develop resiliency: There is not much that throws me so off the track that I cannot function. A while ago, I wrote a piece on building personal resiliency. Having lost my father as a child, I nurtured my resiliency to believe that time would heal everything and things could only get better from here onwards.

“Feedback can make us bitter or better. Choose better. Always.” 

3. Acknowledge feedback as a gift: As a young, mischievous and sometimes difficult child, I was baffled when my mother gave me so much feedback. I thought of it as her way of confining me and putting me in a box. Over time, I realized that feedback, if delivered well, is a gift. Always listen to what others have to say and look out for a theme in feedback received. Adapt yourself to it and strive to be the best version of yourself. 

“Do the right thing, do it in the best way you can, and find the right people to do it with.”

4. Invest in people: In our kind of business, people are always at the core of everything we do. I love people – I love working with them; I am intrigued by what drives and motivates them and what brings them together. It is easy to be bogged down by negativity in the hyper-transparent world we live in. So, it is important to always look for the good in people and leverage it for the good of the organization. Also, it is important to whole-heartedly believe in the person you work for – the person who will in some way influence the way you develop your personality and career.

 “Respect and follow your principles, no matter how small they may seem.”

5. Develop your own set of principles: One of the most important work principles I follow is to be as responsive as I can be. I get hundreds of emails a day on a zillion subjects. I make it a point, a rule in fact, to keep aside several hours in a day just to respond to every mail – and usually do so within 24 hours. This has worked well for me as it sends the most symbolic ripple through the organisation – I set the pace I want my team to work at. This makes everything more efficient for me and them. It is imperative that we learn how to energise people around us and consistently deliver high quality work repeatedly in high quality sprints and spirits.

“Good decisions come from experience and experience comes from bad decisions.”

6. Savour every experience: Everything we experience in life – the good and the bad –influences us in ways we may not even realise at the time. I have learnt more by living and working in different cultures than I have from anything else. If there’s something new and something you have not tried before, put your hands up and volunteer! When you do become a leader at some point in your career, the goal is to be a ‘big, fat, well-rounded one’ and not just a ‘done-only-one-or-two-things, spindly’ kind of a leader. 

In today’s digital and social media driven world, it is easy to lose sight of what really matters, to get thrown off the track by the ‘super successful and happy’ lives portrayed by others. But, it is important to understand that most people have a story of struggles, hardships and insecurities we know nothing about. So, in a world where you can be anything, be kind – to yourself and to others.