Managing Careers through Introspection

Olivia was a carefree, fun-loving, emotional yet practical headed, young girl of 23. During her school days she aspired to work in a Multi National Company when she grows up. She dreamt to fly high and live life on her own terms. Unlike any other girl of her age, she never thought of chocolates-candies-red roses-laced gifts coming by her way to win her heart. She always felt that she needs to establish her own IDENTITY, before she thinks of anything else. With blinkers on, she embarked into the journey of a materialistic life with extremely clear focus of Do’s & Don’ts set by her own myopic understanding of the World. Besides these, she always lived in past & was anxious about her future.

 Little realizing that she is missing the Present Moments….

She fared well in her academics and well equipped with professional certifications, she got selected in a top notch company for her “dream role”. So don’t you think that its time now for her to feel happy, sit back & enjoy? The simple answer is NO.  Olivia began worrying about the tomorrow & restlessness starts slowly creeping into her. While she started settling with her professional accomplishments made so far, the wedding bells charmed her and she decided to begin her picture-perfect family life as well.

Olivia is 26 now. She has got a loving & caring family. She has a decent job. She got a promotion at the age of 25. She achieved all that she initially thought of. But she is unhappy. She is sad. She is unable to contribute meaningfully either to her personal or professional life. She felt being at crossroads & not knowing where to go with her unrest mind. She was blind to the walls that was brightly painted; instead, she started looking at the cracks in it. She felt suffocated with office politics. She failed to smile and greet her peers. She felt claustrophobic in meetings when her ideas were mooted. She resisted failures and started to pay attention to rumor mongering. Similar was her reflection in her home front and she got agitated at the slightest of disagreements.

It was during one of those gloomy days, where her thoughts wavered from quitting her present job to relocating to another city that she happened to be one of the fortunate participants to attend a lecture session from a life coach Mr. Gabriel Allon

Mr. Allon spoke with aplomb & could instantly connect with the issues that Olivia was suffering from. He began asking how much of our time do we invest in THINKING.  We are all in the mad rush to clear our inbox, attending to meetings, taking notes, delivering assignments. He acknowledged the fast pace of life but in order to be with the tune of changes, he asked to take an hour or two out for oneself on a weekly basis. In this hour, it is important that we connect to our SELF and pen down our thoughts to know us better. So, here you are actually talking to your SELF to know what is it that you are looking for.

His second advice was on restricting oneself from CREATING SILOS. You need not only value add to your own vertical but also take the extra step to know what’s happening in the other desks as well. Be it over a cup of coffee with your peers from other departments, or on a lunch out to know more of the various activities that the organization is involved into.  Each time, we are paying the price of Ignorance. So access to information is vital for success.

Mr. Allon’s other thought was, that RESPECT cannot be commanded. Respect is earned. As people move on with their careers, it is important that in this journey they should connect with their peers in such a way that you are respected across. He went on to say that its very easy to please your boss, but it’s quite tough to earn respect from your peers. So, invest in yourself in a way that you are loved & respected.

Next, is CREATING INTELLECTUAL CAPITAL.  It is important to be known to people, and this will not come laid down on a platter for you. You have to work hard to build your own portfolio. He went on saying that our knowledge pool is limited to creating Power point presentations, delivering what is asked & managing crisis. Hardly, we can think out of the box or innovate. We have limited our potential by erecting walls instead of bridges. To be known to people, it is important that we know ourselves first. Invest in reading & writing in the domain that you are connected with. Develop a passion for your Profession.

He also addressed the major issue of Office Politics, that people often take a cue on the same & quits an organization. He went on saying that there is no point in wasting energy to foresee which camp will help me get the next promotion or pay hike faster. Instead, it is better that we channelize our energy to Work with Changes. It is important to have the ability to learn & unlearn faster for greater good. If we constantly keep focusing on our past and carry a baggage, it will be burdensome. He further went on mentioning that there is point in bragging about the “Glorious Past” as it is a passé. Instead, move ahead with open thought process and prepare yourself to embrace Change as Change is the Most Permanent Thing in this World.  

Above everything else, there was great connect in the session by Mr. Allon with all the participants. And there cannot be no other reason but he being a great communicator. So, the message was loud and clear, that whatever you do, however you do, no one will know unless you COMMUNICATE. Clear Communication is again very essential in your everyday work.

It was a 2 hour session & Olivia came out with a thought provoking smile. Seeing her one can understand that she was in a contemplative mood. Retrospection was on her priority list. She felt the need to empty her cup to fill in freshly brewed tea.

One month later…

Olivia’s workstation was adorned with few one -liners

1. Live in Today as it’s the POWER of NOW that drives
2. See beauty in darkness & Listen to the dumbest
3. Paint your Life in such a way that each day is a masterpiece

She has found direction to live her life and has embarked on the journey to realize her inner Energy that lights up the world with myriad forms and colors with a SMILE, the curve that sets everything straight.