Your Mission If You Choose to Accept It

3 min read

How you see the world becomes your world.

If you are thinking you are stressed, overwhelmed or running on the daily hamster wheel wanting more peace, your results will be the same.

If you don’t control it, why worry about it?

Because you don’t control it.

And if you do control it, why worry about it?

Because you control it.

~Warren Rustand

What can you control?

Sometimes looking back at the path you've taken to better see yourself and see objectively all the good you've brought to this world can be the fuel you need towards the results you want.

The resume and LinkedIn profile are public flat reflections of your career and how you want to be seen by others.

What about a re-think on your career history that comes from a place of deep celebration. If not you, then who? To recognize what makes you uniquely you.

Not shameless self-promotion, but an exercise in building belief in you and what you’ve created and accomplished...so far. The takeaway, as I find with all of my clients, is more confidence and joyful recognition that helps them see more clearly.

People don’t take the time to acknowledge their accomplishments.

All they’ve achieved.

What they’ve created.

Their impact.

The difference they’ve made.

The forward-thinking leader uses their past as evidence to become a stronger leader.

Awareness is a powerful tool.

Call it a mining exercise to uncover your diamonds to wear with pride. This exercise is a proven performance booster to help you let go of diminishing thoughts to see, really see, what you’ve achieved.

With awareness comes clarity and with clarity comes more control over how you show up every day.

By thoughtfully taking the time to map out and write in full detail your story, you can begin to see clues, patterns and a compass forward.

Take out a sheet of paper, lay it vertically and draw a horizontal line across the middle of the page. On top of the line write the name of each job you have held as far back as your first job. You may need more than one sheet! Above the name of the job list all of the job characteristics as you might find them in a job description. Below the line, list how it felt to work there. When you were in flow. The little things you remember most about who you were at the time and what you were most proud of and learned. Describe the environment. How you honed your skills. What worked, what didn’t and also your never agains.

Each new job, new job title, new business launch, product developed was transformational in some way to your story. Transformational to your growth, your development, expertise, knowledge and learning. And, unique only to you.

Then step away for a period, and when you step back with fresh eyes, observe from the 30k foot view. Go through a diagnostic:

What stands out?

What surprises you?

What fits?

What doesn’t?

Where does your best show up?

Why?

Why was this important?

Then answer …

Why that was important?

This exercise will move you away from the words on your resume and into the deeper recognition of what is important to you and the feelings from your past work experiences and past results.

Doing this exercise, I rediscovered that I was an early leader and there was a consistency in my drive to teach and inspire others to be better. Even as early as high school working as head waitress at a local Italian restaurant and another as the night time supervisor for a research company in 11th grade, I got huge satisfaction from showing others how to make more money — how to earn higher tips and how to generate more commissions on surveys completed. I also saw in times of crisis how I managed to manage others to come out stronger.

Doing a deep diagnostic on how I felt, how I showed up and the little wins helped me know myself better to take forward with pride and renewed commitment to pursue my purpose.

Give it a try.

Don’t wait for the re-write of the resume.

How you see the world today becomes your world tomorrow.

Seeing yourself and all of your diamonds may just be the thing you need to gain clarity and take back control of what you want most.