Want that dream job? Cut off these 4 things

I never in my wildest dreams imagined myself as a teacher. As an A student, teaching was not a glorified path to pursue. My grooming was to be a doctor so I could carry on the family legacy, or an engineer or a lawyer and become rich fast. Nothing new here. Parents my age are still holding such dreams for their children. Humans, we don’t learn.

Fast forward, math and physics failed me. Thank god. And the local university board took me around the circles.

Finally, my uncle took a deep sigh’ You know what, enroll for a Bachelor's in Education and specialize in Early Childhood Education which is a new degree. Because worse comes to worst, as a teacher you will never lack a job’

I signed the papers. I never had my own dreams explored anyway, so who cares?

So you’d be shocked if I told you for the last 6 months (since corona happened), I have been hosting art classes for about eight 3 to 9-year-olds in my estate. Bored and with few activities going on, kids showed up one day at my door as I was painting and asked to paint. We paint Thursday’s and Saturday’s

I love to watch how their creativity and exploration of color and ideas are evolving. Yesterday, one painted the piece below.

I guessed: ‘Wow, could this be about the world and its many beautiful people of different colors?’

Before I could jump in...

One of the other 8-year-old girls: ‘Or it could mean a lot of people have a lot of talent. And they are happy with their talents and their bodies.

I was totally shaken that these kids literally painted my world. Human Potential and Global Diversity. Just like that.

So what does this have to do with your dream career? Nothing really. But it got you distracted for a bit from your own elusive dream career right? Now below are some ideas and mindsets you got to let go of if you are truly committed to pursuing and building a career you love.

All that humility stuff is not helping

Someone I know likes to say ‘ If you did it, it’s not bragging’ In one of my career programs, we have a module where participants curate their brag sheets. Here they document every single achievement and success story that makes them proud in their career journey so far.

Let me tell you, these humans make me sweat as I try to draw the juicy meaty stuff out of them.

Seriously.

‘Oh but we did it as a team’ Me: Sure, but a team is a concept made up of individuals, so what exactly was your contribution? The role you only played and how did that impact positively on the project? ‘Oh if I say I did it myself, I will be seen like I am bragging’ Me: But you did it so what exactly is the problem? ‘Oh, you know how we were raised, told not be proud. Because that is showing off’ Me: ‘How is mentioning that I have built an amazing community of ambitious like-minded career professionals over the last year showing off?’ ‘ I did it right?’

‘Oh, I don’t want to be in the spotlight. Me: ‘Then honey you better forget the dream job’

‘Oh but my work can talk for itself’ Me: ‘Sure if it’s louder than everyone else screaming about the 1 little insignificant thing they did’

In short, stories. Drop them.

You did something great? Did something succeed because of your unique abilities to add value? Because you went the extra mile to make it happen?

Talk about it!

You may not know it, but the exact person holding your dream job is sitting somewhere waiting to be inspired by your story!

Stop running away from your genius. Things can be easy.

A few weeks ago I was chatting with my friend about how I have mastered my craft in delivering some tasks, that stuff that used to take me 2-3 hours just a year or so back can today take me 15 minutes.

She looked at me and said; ‘It took you 10 years, not 15 minutes’

This past weekend with this same friend and another friend we explored how we’ve been socialized/conditioned to believe everything we pursue must be hard. And so even the things that come to us easy, the things we can do so well with our eyes closed, we find ways to make them look and feel hard to accomplish.

We are running away from our zone of genius.

As a result, we experience internal resistance that makes work feel so frustrating.

If I can deliver my work in 10 minutes and paint for the other 50 minutes. Why not? I am an entrepreneur I can do this.

If you are employed, if you can get your work done at half the time, what would you do with the rest of the time to propel you towards your dream job? Volunteer in a different department? Take another job? Up-skill? Work on an innovation project?

But you won’t. You stretch the task just to fill your time and fake busy appearances. Otherwise, you feel guilty.

Sounds familiar?

Anyone?

Downplaying Yourself

You are smarter, talented, knowledgeable, skilled, gifted, and able than you think.

There are some studies out there about how we humans underestimate or overestimate our abilities. I haven’t read them because I know this as a fact. We rely sometimes too much on research, while the truth is standing right there at our feet.

Ever accomplished something and wondered how the heck you were able to do that?

Ever been invited to give an impromptu speech and been shaken by your own content?

Ever been asked to step into a problem-solving meeting for a project that’s stuck and you just well figured it out in minutes? Even though you were shivering all through?

Also ever found yourself googling stuff or listening to a thought leader only to realize everything they are saying you already know?

Or flipped through a motivational/self-help book to realize; ‘Oh but there is nothing new here, what’s the fuss about this book exactly?’

Shut the naysayers. Those managers especially making you feel bad in your performance reviews. You know the ones who pick the one thing that went wrong and make it the only point of discussion?

That's noise.

Drop the circles that won't acknowledge your greatness because they are threatened by your light.

You are smarter, talented, knowledgeable, skilled, gifted, and able than you think.

Saying yes to everything

I have this rule. You ask me to do something using a close-ended question, that is a question that requires a yes or no answer…my answer is and will always be NO.

For example. ‘Martha do you want to take on this project?’

Me: No

I was happy without it before, why do I need it now? In addition, I have not thought about what it will take me to take it on. I am a very intentional person, before saying yes to something I must sit down and consider all factors. Hence right now if I was to respond with a yes I would need to do that, which increases my to-do list. Or maybe I just prefer to continue sipping my tea and not engage my brain.

By saying no, the person asking has to go back and review what value they see me adding to the project and why I am the best person for it. Then I can consider it.

What things, tasks, people, conversations, communities, jobs, extra projects, side hustles, and training programs, and so on are you saying yes to, yet deep down you know these are total derailers that are driving you further and further away from your dream career? 

List them. Cut them off one by one. You know what to do with the blank spaces you just created.

I will leave you with this quote.

“The closer you come to knowing that you alone create the world of your experience, the more vital it becomes for you to discover just who is doing the creating.”

― Eric Micha'el Leventhal