Careers stuck because people don't know what they want
"Where do you see yourself in five years?" We all know this question. Heck, when I was young I had no plan or just wanted to say: "I want your job, your money, your car!" Interviewers ask this because they want to see your motivation and what drives you.
Waking up each day and going to the 9-5 jobs and paying the bills isn't a very good motivation. This is a real-life obligation of the minimal standard without any aspirations. A poor goal. Becoming rich and powerful is a goal, but it's lacks a plan. And what about actions?
There is a nice correlation between dreams, goals, plans, and action:
with a date becomes a goal.
A goal broken down
into steps becomes a plan.
A plan backed by action
makes your dreams come true.
"The Secret of happiness" - Greg Reid
Let's dive into how to make come dreams come true, especially in the job game.
"Setting Goals Give You A Purpose"
There is this story about Arnold Schwarzenegger and his girlfriend Barbara Outland before he was famous. They celebrated New Year's Eve, drank a glass of champagne, and then Arnold sat down and started writing. His girlfriend was wondering what he was doing.
He was writing a list of 5 - 10 goals for the recent year. He said it is not a big deal and then they took a look. She realized that some of the goals were ambitious even unrealistic. Arnold explained that this was only to keep him motivated and he knew he would not reach them. The astonishing fact was that by the end to the year he reached almost all his goals.
How did he do that?
"Pick a goal you can chase."
Chasing a goal means it is specific! Arnold puts it in a nice way for sports - define a goal like: 'I want to go from 95 kg to 85 kg' (Clarity). Now, it's almost November and in June you go to the beach you want to be slim (Motivation). How to reach this goal - (Specificity).
Write down what you have to do:
- the exercises
- the repetitions,
- the cardio,
- the nutrition,
- for every day!
Then you mark it off - (Satisfaction). This is instant feedback and motivates on a daily basis. "Well," you will say, "it's easy with the gym stuff. How about the job."
It is the same with the job.
"For goals to really move you, [...] they must be worthy."
Regarding the job ask yourself: Why am I doing the things I do? A 9-5 job to get the bills paid? That doesn't move me.
If we don't know, then we will stuck, and our careers will stuck.
Goals describe the person we want to become.
How do you want to become? There are so many things: Being slim, lean, rich, successful, expert, powerful, admired etc. But we need to write them down to have clarity and to be able to do extraordinary things. And we seen that the motivation is always the same: Recognition, Feeling of winning, Family, or Benevolence.
Here are some guiding questions:
- What do I want to be?
- What do I want to do?
- What do I want to have?
- What do I want to achieve?
They are many questions. Don't limit yourself. Put down all things which come to your mind - even a "Mercedes S Class." That's OK. Now, we need to build a realistic plan and to execute it.
Example: I want to become a leader in 2 years.
Leading people is still a very appealing goal (clarity). Leaders have power over people, you inspire, and you are admired (motivation). The best is: Leadership is not a title. Ask Coachs and Experts and they will tell you:
Leadership consists of many things to learn. Starting with self-awareness, communication skills, decision-making, coaching habits, time-management, etc. (specificity).
With ChatGPT, it is easy to find all things that are relevant. Use it to create a plan. Here is my prompt to get a list of skills, (free) courses, books and a recommended timeline:
ChatGPT Prompt:
List 10 things you have to learn to become a leader. Put these 10 things in a table. In the second column suggest open courses to learn these things, in the third column book recommendations, and in the fourth column a timeline that I can learn all these things in total of two years.
| Leadership Skill | Suggested Online Courses | Book Recommen- dations | Time- line |
|---|---|---|---|
| Self-Awareness and Emotional Intelligence | Emotional Intelligence by UC Berkeley on edX Developing Self-Awareness by University of Virginia on Coursera |
Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman | Q1 (Months 1-3) |
| Communication Skills | Effective Communication by University of Colorado on Coursera Public Speaking by Rochester on edX |
Crucial Conversations by Kerry Patterson, et al. | Q1 (Months 1-3) |
| Decision-Making and Problem-Solving | Decision-Making and Problem Solving by University of California on Coursera Critical Thinking and Problem Solving on LinkedIn Learning |
Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman | Q2 (Months 4-6) |
| Strategic Vision | Strategic Leadership and Management Specialization by University of Illinois on Coursera Business Strategy by Wharton on edX |
Good Strategy Bad Strategy by Richard Rumelt | Q2 (Months 4-6) |
| Delegation and Trust-Building | Delegation Skills by Alison.com Building Trust in a Team by University of Washington on Coursera |
Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek | Q3 (Months 7-9) |
| Adaptability and Resilience | Resilience Skills in a Time of Uncertainty by University of Pennsylvania on Coursera Becoming More Resilient by LinkedIn Learning |
The Obstacle Is the Way by Ryan Holiday | Q3 (Months 7-9) |
| Accountability and Integrity | Ethical Leadership Through Giving Voice to Values by University of Virginia on Coursera Accountability and Ethics on edX |
The Speed of Trust by Stephen M.R. Covey | Q4 (Months 10-12) |
| Coaching and Mentoring | Coaching Skills for Managers by University of California, Davis on Coursera Mentoring Others on LinkedIn Learning |
The Coaching Habit by Michael Bungay Stanier | Q4 (Months 10-12) |
| Conflict Resolution | Conflict Management by University of California on Coursera Negotiation Skills by Yale University on Coursera |
Getting to Yes by Roger Fisher and William Ury | Q5 (Months 13-15) |
| Time Management and Prioritization | Time Management for Personal & Professional Productivity by UC Irvine on Coursera Work Smarter, Not Harder by LinkedIn Learning |
Eat That Frog! by Brian Tracy | Q5 (Months 13-15) |
| Review and Practice | Leadership Masterclass (Select topics of interest) on Coursera, edX, or LinkedIn Learning | Measure What Matters by John Doerr | Q6 (Months 16-24) |
Heck, now there is no room to be stuck. You have a goal - Leader, a motivation - Inspire, you have a plan - Table, and now execute, execute, execute.
One last thing: There is no shortcut in life about this. All the people you know have been through the same. The only ingredient left is DISCIPLINE. But this is another story/newsletter. Let me conclude with one quote about discipline:
One more about discipline - my favourite one:
Sources:
[1] The Secret of Happiness, Greg Reid
[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZK2gzQKkxs
[3] 7 Strategies for Wealth and Happiness, Jim Rohn