What will it take for you to shift?
by Angela Loëb
They say that those entering the workforce today are destined to have an average of 14-16 jobs before they retire. I personally think the average number will be higher than that. I also predict that those same workers will have 3-4 different careers in their lifetimes as well. Why? Because the experts say that as our average life spans grow so will the years we’ll spend at work.
Lately I’ve been thinking about how some folks know exactly what they want when they’re young, and they dedicate their lives toward that pursuit. They are fulfilled – or at least they seem to be. The rest of us go through what I call “The CareerFinder Journey.”
It might be that you don’t want to keep living with choices made by your younger self. Maybe you’ll change careers because of boredom, frustration or a priorities shift. It doesn’t matter what your reason is, when you’re ready, you’re ready.
Or are you?…
I remember when I started to notice my little nagging voice telling me that it was time to start exploring other options. I was ready – yet I wasn’t. I was happy in my job, so I didn’t do anything about it at first. I tried to ignore the rising feeling of discontent. For me the desire to change careers came because I wasn’t using all of me. I wasn’t developing my natural core gifts. I don’t like being nagged so when an internal “why?” pops up in my life, I get doggedly determined to answer it. I started to explore, but I didn’t change anything at first. That came later… after a lot of time spent exploring and then goal setting and planning the baby steps into my future.
But that’s me. What will it take for you to shift?
- Emotional pain that’s too unbearable?
- Losing your job so you feel like you have nothing else to lose?
- Life-threatening health issues that make you remember your days on Earth are numbered?
In case you don’t know, I’m a big fan of Dr. Wayne Dyer. In his 2004 bestseller, The Power Of Intention, he shares the lovely poem above by 13th century poet, Rumi.
You were born with potential.
You were born with goodness and trust.
You were born with ideals and dreams.
You were born with greatness.
You were born with wings.
You are not meant for crawling, so don’t.
You have wings.
Learn to use them and fly.
Beneath it, Dyer juxtaposes it with an opposite interpretation:
You are an accident of nature.
You are subject to the laws of luck and chance.
You can be pushed around easily.
Your dreams are meaningless.
You were meant to live an ordinary life.
You have no wings.
So forget about flying and stay grounded.
What will it take for you to shift?
If you’d like some helpful tips on how to take some first baby steps like I did, read “Career Change: What do you have to lose?”
Jay also shared his thoughts about this topic in “The Hard Part Is Getting Started.” In that article he mentions an e-booklet that we compiled called “Taking the First Step: Dialogues from The Job Search Boot Camp Show.” Click here if you’d like a copy of it.
