Top 5 Mistakes People Make During Their Career

I’ve wasted the last 10 years. I should’ve made changes, but I didn’t.

Now it’s too late...

People are tough on themselves

During 1:1 sessions, I talk to my clients about self-belief and the mindset required to achieve their goals.?

Why do you feel you can’t achieve what you want?

Where do these limiting beliefs come from??

We discuss workplace self-confidence. We talk about real issues like unfulfilled potential and how to live a happy life.?

Last year, one of my clients was filled with self-doubt. He believed he couldn’t change.?

He thought he’d wasted his career opportunity. He felt like he’d thrown his chance away.?

This is the reality for many professionals and in today’s Newsletter, I’m going to give you the Top 5 Mistakes People Make During Their Careers.?

1. Working for a company that doesn’t match your values

Since 2021, I’ve coached over 75 people. Often through career problems.?

I’ve worked with CTOs and directors. Project Managers and Solutions Architects. High performers from a range of different backgrounds.?

They’re dissatisfied with their career trajectory. Often their values conflict with their environment.?

Values are emotions, principles and qualities you believe are important. If you experience your values, you feel happy.

If you don’t experience what’s important to you, life becomes frustrating.?

I coached a C-Suite professional last year who valued autonomy and leadership. She naturally led by example and people loved working for her.?

When we met, she was low on confidence. She doubted her abilities after experiencing burnout.?

During our 1:1s, it was obvious her working environment didn’t give her a sense of autonomy.

She couldn’t take action on her ideas, constantly having to check everything with the board. She felt trapped.?

What she wanted was freedom. She wanted to experience the value of leadership.

In this example, my client realised that her current job couldn’t make her happy.?

If she wanted to enjoy work again, she needed to find a new job that matched her values. This was her route to personal success.?

Working for a company that doesn’t match your values is an easy mistake to make.?

2. Wasting time in jobs that don’t match your strengths

You’ve been blessed with strengths and natural abilities. If you don’t believe this then you’re missing self-belief.?

To live a high-performance life, you must use the assets you’ve been given. Work on your strengths and you have the opportunity to become exceptional.?

But,? you need to understand what you’re good at first. I speak to so many talented people who’ve lost touch with their strengths.?

Work on your weaknesses, I hear this a lot. But, this mentality could be holding you back. Especially if you find yourself in a job where you’re focusing on what’s wrong, as opposed to what’s right.?

Here’s an example from someone I coached this year—an Operations Manager doing 3 jobs instead of 1.?

He was burned out and overwhelmed. A high performer burdened by an excessive workload. He was a jack of all trades and master of none.?

During Covid, his company went through redundancies. They held onto the best staff and let the rest go.?

Those who stayed found themselves in back-to-back meetings, drowning in emails. Unable to perform at their best.?

My client couldn’t articulate what he was good at. “I suppose I’m an all-rounder”.?

He lost confidence because of the situation. He lost sight of what made him special.?

He was natural at creating strategy and delivery transformation. He loved this work. It energised him.?

During our coaching sessions, he realised the situation had to change if he was going to perform at a higher level.

So, he leant into his strengths again. He set stronger boundaries with his bosses, explaining why he didn’t want to do 3 jobs. He refused to be average in 3 areas.?

He insisted on being a specialist in 1.?

Remember, specialisation is the key to greatness. You have niche skills, discover what they are.?

It’s a mistake to waste your time in work you’re never going to be great at.?

3. Overworking and burnout

As a Burnout Coach, I work with stressed-out high-performers, unable to handle the day-to-day chaos of life.

I hear people saying ‘yes’ to requests they can never fulfil. Unessential activities like extra reports or additional meetings.?

These ‘extras’ mount up and it can feel like you’re suffocating.

You begin to feel overwhelmed and exhausted.?

Repeatedly burning out from excessive work-related stress is a big mistake.?

Things you should be taking care of:?

• Your physical well-being (through exercise and a good diet)
• A life designed around values, what makes you happy
• Mental wellbeing (through mindfulness and balance)
• Healthy boundaries (enabling you to feel in control)

You go to work to feel a sense of fulfilment. Of course, you need money, but you also need purpose.?

Experiencing career burnout not only makes you feel awful but also creates cynicism. Resentment towards your employer, your career, even yourself. ?

These states are counterproductive. This environment will hold you back from fulfilling your potential.?

Burnout is awful for your career. It’s a big mistake to suffer it.?

4. Forgetting work-life balance and missing out on having fun

There’s dedication to the job and then there’s plain obsession.?

We all live short lives. Please don’t waste yours in a job sucking the life out of you.?

I worked with a Solutions Architect in 2021 who’d lost himself. He worked too much. He’d lost his identity.?

He worked remotely, logged on at 8 am and then clocked off at 6 pm. He didn’t leave the house. Returning to the sofa before falling asleep.?

It was depressing. So, I gave him the task of listing 50 things that made him happy.

He made it to 35. Good job.?

He was shocked when he realised he didn’t do ONE SINGLE activity he listed. Not one.?He didn’t do anything that made him happy.?

This was a huge awakening for him. He realised he focused too much importance on his job. His career had become his identity, and there was nothing left to show for himself.?

One of his immediate actions was to start playing Pool again. Something he loved to do.?

He joined a Pool team for his local pub and was immediately connected to a circle of friends he met twice per week.?

You see, it’s not all about dedicating your entire existence to your career. There’s more to life.?

Make sure you have more to your identity when your career is over. Find balance.?

Doing too much work is a big mistake.?

5. Being critical for wasting time or not taking opportunities

Everyone is self-critical from time to time. I say the nasty thing to myself now and then.?

“You idiot, why did you forget to pick up milk from the shop?”?

It’s normal human behaviour.?

But, this becomes a problem when the negative remarks get out of control. You start being cruel to yourself about almost everything. Including your job.?

Like my client said: “I’ve wasted the last 10 years of my career… Now it’s too late.”

A constant story that lived in his head. Rent-free.?

This small but significant story knocked his confidence. Rocking his self-esteem.?

He never tried anything new. “What’s the point? I’ll fail anyway”, he’d say.?

In his mind, time was already up. He’d already wasted his career.

But this simply wasn’t true.?

Being in your 40s means there’s so much time left. He has another 20 years to fix this.

The critical part of your mind doesn’t see the opportunities you have in front of you. It lacks self-belief. It fails to rationalise that you can have a great career, and you can fulfil your potential.?

One of the biggest mistakes you can make in your career is limiting yourself to what you can’t achieve. Instead of what you can.?

If you feel like you’re trapped in a spiral of self-criticism, I’d highly recommend hiring a coach to help you overcome these issues.?

This can be the key that unlocks the door to your greatest potential. This, for me, is exciting.?

So, there you have it: The 5 Mistakes People Make in Their Career

The question for you is: am I making any of these mistakes?

And if I were to challenge myself in 2024, what actions would I take to start living a more fulfilled life?

If you need any help directly, send me a DM.?

Alternatively, you can schedule an Introduction Call with me by clicking HERE

On Wednesday 3rd January, I’m releasing FOUR available 1:1 coaching spaces.

Make sure to register your interest beforehand as this will go quickly.?

Otherwise, have a great weekend.?

Tom?