As each year comes to a close many executives and professionals start to reflect on their successes and disappointments. Oftentimes they use these experiences to decide if they had a “good year” or a “bad year.” These thoughts might even influence their future new years resolutions. Do you beat yourself up about things that went wrong during the year? Instead of judging yourself harshly, think about any setbacks you had as lessons to learn from. I’ve compiled a list of the top lessons our career and business coaching clients learned this year.
1. Explore your personality
What are your unique preferences, tendencies, and thoughts that determine how you view the world? How has your personality helped or hindered the results you’ve received? Many clients that took an honest look at their personality, created strategies and plans to achieve success in a way that is easiest to them and with less stress.
2. Reject what doesn’t apply to you
Opinions are a dime a dozen these days. You are bombarded on social media, television, and in the workplace with standards you should have and material things you should desire. Consciously rejecting the thoughts, opinions, and attitudes of others is usually necessary to determine what you truly desire.
3. Discover a new frontier
It often feels like change happens quickly, even faster than just a few years ago. Having the courage and determination to discover a new frontier or path in regards to your career or business can be a catalyst to getting in tune with yourself and set you a part from everyone else.
4. Be willing to do what others won’t
Doing what everyone else does will get you where everyone else is. Are there any places in your life where you go above and beyond what others normally do? The willingness to apply for more jobs, or reach out to more prospective clients, over a period of time is what leads to success. The key is to stay focused, even when you aren’t seeing results yet.
5. Don’t be afraid to ask for help
Research shows that despite seeming so connected online and via social media, people have never felt more alone. Higher rates of depression, jealousy, and overwhelm are also common among teens and adults. Moving through any fear or shame around asking for help can be vital in your overall level of happiness.
6. Develop your plan before you need it
Now, more than ever it’s important to have plans or frameworks for how to navigate through challenges to reach your goals. The expansion of the internet has helped in many ways, but its also added a layer of complexity to things such as the job search process and business development. Creating a solid plan can help you stay positive and focused.
7. Be open to the 30 degree shift
Most areas of our lives don’t go exactly as planned. I often talk to clients who’ve been stuck with a goal for months or years before reaching out for coaching help. Many times they’ve been so focused on the specifics and how to make everything work, that they’ve overlooked a 30 degree shift in another direction. That shift could produce what they’ve been looking for.
8. Cultivate your resources
Whatever goal you have in mind, you will need resources to attain it. Common resources include time, energy, effort, money, and other people. Truly considering what resources you need and acquiring them can be a first step towards taking meaningful action. How many times have you believed that you didn’t have the time, support, or money to do something?
9. Collaborate with like-minded people
Everyone is responsible for their own results when it comes to their career. Actively collaborate and surround yourself with positive, like-minded people. Having those people as part of your network and immediate environment, will allow you to develop the space and confidence to reach your goals.
10. Have faith in what you can’t see
There will be times when nothing seems to be working and no progress is being made. Complex goals involving career and business usually don’t happen over night. It might take 3, 6, or 9 months to find your dream job. It could take years to develop your business in a way where you are happy with your profits and the amount of hours you work per week. There isn’t a way around having faith and being committed to what you want.
Someone asked me, what’s the one thing I need to know to achieve this goal. The truth is there isn’t just one aspect that changes everything in the life of a professional or executive. Its easy to get caught up believing that transformation is simple and one thing will make you a success. In contrast, I wanted to share the 10 lessons that I’ve seen help clients make a big shift this year. What is one lesson you learned that will make a big difference next year? Do you want to want to make a major shift next year? If so, you can schedule a Vision of Success Session here!
Porschia Parker-Griffin
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