The corporate ladder is gone, lifetime employment a quaint blurb in the history books. Scary as this may seem, it’s also enormously freeing to know who you are and what you do is your choice. A number of years ago, I gave a keynote address to the International Association of Career Management Professionals (now ACP) in Montreal, where I encouraged us all to partner with our clients to become Career Entrepreneurs, taking control and running our careers like a business. The rules I created then seem even more important now.
Rule 1: See yourself as a product or service worth buying
Rule 2: Identify your life’s work
Rule 3: Focus on outcomes; don’t limit your identity to a profession, title, or skill
Rule 4: Collaborate; develop strategic alliances
Rule 5: Brand yourself
Rule 6: Learn something new every day
Rule 7: Become a child again; laugh, play, skip and climb
Rule 8: Find the sunshine in your life and spread it around to others who could use a ray or two
Rule 9: Ask “Why not?” more often than “Why?”
Rule 10: Live your life in cycles rather than linear stages; keep learning, growing, playing and working at every age.
Great tips, Jean! I'm loving the new blog, keepup the good work. -Matt
ReplyDeleteThanks, Matt.....what do you see as the most critical challenge for people who are trying to become superstars in their current positions?
ReplyDelete# 7 is my favorite. Celebrate the child within and find joy in each day.
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