This week Scott and Mark talk about determining what you want in your career. They discuss several techniques you can use on your own to understand better what you want in your career — be warned, it’s not always what you think it should be!
What You Want
Often when people think of what they want, they think of it in terms of what they don’t want. In order to truly know what you want, you need to list what you don’t want, then use that as a starting point for what you do want. Follow this 3-Step Process to discover what you truly want:
Step 1: Get out a piece of paper, walk to a whiteboard or open up pages, word or google doc. It’s extremely important that you take the time to write this down. It makes it real and forces you to think through it at a different level
Step 2: Start with the things you don’t want. Write them down. Make a list. Go job by job, experience by experience with what you have done in the past and get on paper/board/digital screen each thing you don’t want. This serves two purposes, it is a place to start when thinking through what you want and serves to distinguish very clearly that these are not what you actually want.
Step 3: Once you have down all of those don’t wants open up a new screen, take a picture of your whiteboard and erase it, or get out a new piece of paper. This new writing surface will serve as a defiantly separate place to start forming what you want. In order to understand what you really want, you’ve got to do the “hard work”. When you think you’ve answered the question, go two steps further than you think you need to.
Find an accountability partner–or a 3 year old to push you. Someone to ask you “Why” until you get to the real things you want out of your life and career.
On the podcast Mark tries this technique live! If you think this technique is useful, you’ll definitely want to sign up for our upcoming free email course!!!
SIGN UP FOR OUR UPCOMING EMAIL COURSE HERE!!
Ready for Career Happiness?
What Career Fits You?
Finally figure out what you should be doing for work
Join our 8-day “Mini-Course” to figure it out. It’s free!
Featured Episodes
View all episodes
April 17, 2017
174: Add Value, Grow Your Career with Michael Bigelow
IT’S ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT THE LIKABILITY AND CONNECTION CERTAINLY DO HELP. BUT IT’S ONE OF THOSE THINGS THAT I REALLY DO FEEL THAT IT’S BOTH WHO YOU KNOW AND HOW YOU’RE CONNECTED TO THEM, AS WELL AS WHAT YOU KNOW. MICHAEL BIGELOW Whether you’re looking to make a lateral job transition to a […]
Listen Now
January 21, 2019
267: 3 Creative and Strategic Ways to Show Your Strengths to Interviewers
Everywhere you look these days, you can find articles sharing why focusing on your strengths is more valuable than improving your weaknesses. Using your signature strengths in your role means you can be energized instead of drained, engaged instead of bored, and successful instead of struggling. When it comes down to it, working in your […]
Listen Now