Advice

The Fake You And The Real You

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I'm guessing there's a very good chance that, in your career you're not quite "yourself."  You've got a lot of things you do to get through the day, a lot you put up with, a lot you do or don't do that you dislike.  My guess is you do these things to protect the "real you."

You know what I'm talking about.  You're not taking that initiative at work because you don't want to make waves.  You're not relocating to that place you want because it takes too long to plan.  You're not taking that class you want to take because you want to be in the "right frame of mind."  You don't speak your mind to people because people won't get the real you.

Know what?  You've got a Fake You defending the Real You.  You're probably busy protecting the Real You right now so some day that Real You can get out and do its things.  Except you've got it backwards.

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Role Models and The Power Of Mistakes

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Role Models.  We look to them to guide us with the examples of their lives.  We look to them to inspire us with their stories of success.  We look to them to to remind us of our potential.

They also help remind us about screwing up.

If you have a good Role Model, it's important to look at them and learn from their mistakes.  They probably have a spectacular amount of them if you only look.

The great blunders of our Role Models are important because:

  1. They remind us our Role Models are humans, just like us.  Realizing that helps us see them as people.  When we see them as people we relate to them better, learn from them better, and also treat them better.
  2. They teach us just how common making mistakes is.  It's too easy to forget just how often all of us create absolutely spectacular messes of our lives.  Remembering that keeps us from being to harsh on ourselves.
  3. They teach us how to recover from our foul-ups.  In fact, they remind us of how it is possible to recover from truly wondrous blunders.
  4. They keep us humble.  If those we admire can mess up, it reminds us how we too can make mistakes.

So next time you're looking up to that Role Model, look down a bit and see the mountain of mistakes, the fields of foul-ups, the sea of screw-ups, at their feet.  It'll help you a great deal.

– Steven Savage

In Defense of Boring Jobs

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It's time to defend boring jobs.

Sure I want people to do the jobs that excite them.  I want people to have the kinds of careers that truly let them be themselves.  I want people to – let's face it – turn hobbies into lifelong occupations.

However there are times to do that boring job.  To work at that boring company.  In short, there are times to do things that aren't as exciting as your dream career – because they'll let you reach that career.

  • Perhaps that boring job lets you get valuable skills that you can use elsewhere.  In fact, maybe that job is one of the few jobs that lets you get those skills at all.
  • Those less-than-exciting jobs may let you have experiences that you'll rarely have anywhere else.  Perhaps you go to other countries, or work with technology that's not common.
  • That seemingly uninteresting job could let you make connections that you wouldn't anywhere else.
  • The mind-numbingly dull job you're facing can help you travel or relocate or get to know another area you may want to live.
  • The job you're suffering through may let you step up in your position to a level that would let you transfer your skills and knowledge to a more interesting job or company.

So, yes, we may face jobs that are boring.  But let's not knock them – sometimes that boring job is just what you need to get your more interesting career going.

– Steven Savage