[CEATIVE CAREERS UNLEASHED] CAREER CONUNDRUMS - Part 1 http://ezezine.com As we move into Summer, I’m going focus on answering Career Conundrums raised by you, my readers. CREATIVE CAREERS UNLEASHED! From Turning Point Strategies and Lyle T. Lachmuth Please do FORWARD Creative Careers Unleashed to Interested colleagues in your network. You’ll find links to join and leave this newsletter at the end. CAREER CONUNDRUMS -- or How to Spend Your Summer Creating the Life You Want First, WELCOME to Summer to all my readers. And, for my readers in the US, Happy July 4th and, finally, for my fellow Canucks – Happy Canada Day! Summer is a time for relaxing, rejuvenating, and refocusing. And, as you read this missive I’ll be celebrating Canada Day and my mom-in-law’s 75th birthday. Ah, nothing like a good old fashioned Cape Breton lobster boil on the beach to restore the soul and spirit and widen the waist line. Summer is also a great time to step back and think about where you want to be or what you want to be doing with your career and life. Here goes... ======================================================================= HOT LINKS Read CREATIVE CAREERS UNLEASHED in living colour and with live links here: http://www.creativecareersunleashed.com/2005/06/ccu_career_conu.html Check out Louisbourg, Nova Scotia, established in 1495 by the French, named after King Louis XIV, now home to the authentically restored Fortress of Louisbourg, a great place to visit, and also home town of my mom-in-law --> http://snipurl.com/fp6t Richard Nelson Bolles companion site to What Color is Your Parachute --> http://www.jobhuntersbible.com/ Explore your interests. Discover your Occupational Type. Are you an Artistic, Investigative, Social, Enterprising, Realistic, or Conventional type? --> http://www.careerkey.org/cgi-bin/ck.pl?action=choices Recapture your zest and your life. Learn how to Manage Your Energy™ http://www.uc.dianalindstrom.com ======================================================================= CAREER CONUNDRUMS I’m going to use this newsletter and my Blog to answer some of the Career & Life questions recently posed by newsletter readers. TL, an ‘artistic-type’, writes: “I mostly like what I’m doing. It’s challenging and I’m learning lots and there’s more I could learn. But, there are challenges with my boss. So, I’m trying to decide: should I stick with this job for another year or should I try something else? And, if so what would it be?” That’s an important question. And, one that deserves an in depth answer. Time doesn’t permit me the depth you deserve here, but, here are some steps you can take, TL. #1 Get clear about what you REALLY Want That can be tough for artistic types. Why? Artistic-types are often multitalented, with multiple interests. So, they struggle trying to figure out where they should focus and how to STAY focused. They have trouble choosing between apparently equally appealing alternatives. For example the apparently opposite choices raised in TL’s note. I used to think that ambivalence was a neutral feeling. Ambivalence comes from the Latin words, both and value, suggesting equally valued. I’ve learned thought that ambivalence can be anything but neutral. The tugging values can actually be very strong and the resulting ‘ambivalence’ very painful. Either way, strong or neutral, how do you sort out apparently equal choices? Some suggest meditation: going deep inside to find the answer. And, for some that works. For me the answer lies in poetry. When ever I’m stuck I ask myself a question, get still, and write a poem. The answer IS inside, as Steve Jobs suggested. Other strategies include making a collage, making a pro con list, drawing or painting, flipping a coin, going for a walk, imagining yourself in each alternative to see what they ‘feel’ like. Whatever works to get you in touch with your inner voice… do it. If you feel ‘ambivalent’ about a choice you are facing, particularly a career/life choice, do try one of these. It will help you become clearer. So, now that your are clearer about What’s Important, what do you do next? ======================================================================= QUOTES "Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And, most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” – Steve Jobs in his commencement address to Stanford University “Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be live forwards.” – Soren Kierkegaard ======================================================================= CAREER CONUNDRUMS - continued #2 Get Specific About What You Want Paint a clearer picture of your desired outcome, whether that’s in words or an actual painting or a poem or a story or… Richard Bolles, author of the perennial career guide, What Color Is Your Parachute, suggests we create a Career Flower which describes: What we want to do (how we want to use our Interests, Talents, Abilities and Skills); Who we want to work with (the kind of colleagues and customers); Where we want to live and work (which country, city vs. country, indoors vs. outdoors); our Values (what’s important to have/not have in our work and work environment); Outcomes and Results we want to produce; and the Spiritual and Emotional components we want in our work (and life). That’s a lot to think about. But, it IS worth thinking about. To get a quick snapshot of your Ideal Life and Career I suggest using the Career Flower tool created by my friend and colleague Rumi Tsuchihashi. Click here to request a copy --> mailto:LyleTLachmuth@Gmail.com?Subject=PleaseSendCareerFlower NOTE: Since I will be out of town till July 13th, please don’t expect a copy before then. #3 Make a Plan Your career is a journey, not a fixed place or space in time. Your career journey begins with a plan. And, your plan doesn’t need to be detailed. Conventional career planning tends to require you to write detailed, step by step plans, that won’t work for artistic-types. Artistic-types will benefit most from loose plans that focus on key steps, actions, or phases. Plans that chunk and lump together important places to visit on their career journey. And, plans that are visual not list based. So, when you make your plan – draw it up, make a collage, paint it, sculpt it, use whatever taps into the Inner Artist and captures your visual, Right-Brain creative self. After the plan comes… The answer in a minute… but first a word from a valued affiliate. ======================================================================= DO YOU WISH YOU HAD MORE ENERGY? Do you drag your self through the day? Do you wake up tired? Go to bed exhausted? Has your life lost its zest? Sadly you’re not alone! More than 20,000,000 Americans and 1,000,000 Canadians lack the energy they need to live their lives. Are you one of them? You can get your energy back. And, you can add more zip to your life. I know because I did. And, I did it through the simple, easy to learn, tips shared with me by a wonderful colleague Diana Lindstrom. Diana knows what it’s like to have to carefully watch every step and monitor every move. You see Diana is a Post Polio Survivor. If she doesn’t manage her energy… she doesn’t walk! She doesn’t get out of bed. And, she doesn’t get to do what she loves. Over the last year Diana was kind enough to share he story and her secrets with me. And, now you can learn how to manage Your Energy™ Read more about the Manage Your Energy™ program here: http://www.uc.dianalindstrom.com ======================================================================= CAREER CONUNDRUMS - continued #4 Do It! A career journey is about traveling, not just planning. Imagine planning a vacation (have you noticed that’s on my mind) but not taking it. The same is true with your career plans. Making them is important – following them, acting on them is CRITICAL. Try them out. Take a step. See what happens. Do you get closer to your dreams? Or, farther away? Does it feel good? Or, does if feel lousy? #5 Evaluate and Learn As you take steps to move your career along, pay attention. Evaluate, that means measure and assess, the experience. And, learn from it. I don’t mean learn in the sense of gathering information. But, learning in the sense of actually changing your behavior as a result of the information you acquire. I’ve just described the essence of the fundamental process that underlies my approach to Creating a Rewarding Career and Fulfilling Life. It has 5 Key Elements (Phases): DREAM --> PLAN --> ACT --> EVALUATE --> LEARN The beauty of these 5 Elements is that you can spend as much or as little time exploring them. The key is to keep moving in and between them. See you July 15th when I’m going to answer more CAREER CONUNDRUMS, Lyle Lachmuth MSOD, CDP, CRT (Hons) The Unsticking Coach (TM) Your Talents > Your Career >> Your Life >>> Your Way! Turning Point Strategies Box 72140 RPO Glenmore Landing | Calgary, AB CANADA T2V 5H9 T: 403-390-4768 | E: LyleTLachmuth [at] Gmail.com =================================================================== ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER Join or leave this list here: http://home.ezezine.com/72/ Past issues here: http://home.ezezine.com/72/ PRIVACY POLICY: I collect your name and contact information solely to enable me to send you this newsletter and other information on a periodic basis. I will not rent, trade, or sell your name and contact information to anyone, at any time, for any reason! CAVEAT: CREATIVE CAREERS UNLEASHED and its publisher, are not engaged in providing therapy. This newsletter is provided for informational purposes only. CREATIVE CAREERS UNLEASHED may be reproduced and distributed in its entirety only, including copyright, legal, and contact information and with live links. Copyright 2005 Turning Point Strategies and Lyle T. Lachmuth