Find the Gap in Your Career

From nonprofit boards; to university; to businesses; to better jobs…

The real reason we don’t ACHIEVE...is because… Of who we are!

Some people think it’s mysterious force (like luck or fate), or there’s a secret ingredient.

But it comes down to our character traits.

Yes, character traits (or who we are) often determine what we do and don’t do.

Here are 10 Character Deficiencies that Could be Holding You Back

? Prideful, Overconfident or Overly Independent

Do you find it hard to ask for help? Fun fact, is that many DON’T find it hard to ask. But they DO find it hard to ask for help from the right people.

And it’s not only about asking, it’s about searching for information.

I can only demonstrate this by asking 2 questions:

(1) If you found some information, but you didn’t get the results you wanted, would you keep searching with an open mind? Or would you become closed?

(2) Do you cherry-pick the information you get; basing the information on appearance, irrelevant metrics, and your own emotions?

In short: we can often seek what we want to hear from who we want to hear it from. Which is bad.

? Inability to Concentrate or Focus

Many let their current job get in the way of future opportunities. Some focus on too many opportunities at once. Others cannot break their goals down into smaller tasks, and focus on consistently executing on those smaller tasks.

? Poor Time Management Skills

Many find it hard to switch between tasks (even me) to get everything done. I don’t encourage multitasks, but sometimes it needs to be done. In addition, you have to know when enough is enough… When too much laying around is too much; when to turn off the TV.

Even sleep should be kept track off. Ask yourself, Why am I sleeping so little? Why am I sleeping so much?

? Poor Communication Skills

Some find it difficult to write emails and letters; posts & articles; attractive text messages; etc. Even making videos is important these days!\

You need to communicate your passion, interests, empathy, and soft skills to the world. But many can’t.

? Slothful & Lackadaisical

We need to be proactive, consistent, industrious, and taking initiative to create opportunities.

? Being Shy or Antisocial

Often, we need to take initiative to build relationships with people who are complete strangers. Usually, it’s important to promote ourselves & build our personal brands.

? Misdirected Belief

Some people ARE working hard, but they’re working hard on the wrong things.

For example:

Someone can be working hard at their job, thinking that the right opportunities will naturally come to them.

Someone can be filling out hundreds of job applications thinking the right position will naturally come to them,

Both of these are wrong, and their beliefs are misdirected. Life often doesn’t work like that.

? Too Risk Averse

We need to be willing to look like a know-it-all. We need to be willing to look like a fool. We need to be wiling to be judged. We need to be willing to be rejected.

We need to be willing to take a chance.

Getting out of our comfort zone is fundamental to success.

? Not Humble

We need to be working hard, serving others, and having childlike curiosity.

If you’re someone who doesn’t believe that you have to work hard… If you’re someone who doesn’t believe that you need to serve peers in your network, future colleagues, people in your community, your customers, or you coworkers… If you don’t enjoy learning and trying new things; don’t enjoy becoming a novice again…

Then you may not be humble.

?? Impatience

You need to realize that things will not come immediately, and you need to consistently executive on a series of smaller tasks until your opportunity comes.

Expecting big results from 1 application, 1 connection, or 1 interview is a fatal mistake.

Closing Thoughts

There are some people who have very positive characters traits, but a big issue is that they lack the right knowledge. However, that is also a character trait issue because anyone can use Linkedin search, Google, search, ChatGPT, and ask for help.

Ideally, you want to be a person that’s doing a lot of things right but just needs that extra push to k*ll it.