Is 2017 a distant memory for you now? Have you reflected on the year just gone? What were your career highlights and low lights in 2017?
I have put some thought into mine and am happy to share, albeit mine are a double-edged sword!
My highlight was an obvious one. Whilst I started my biz mid-2016, in May 2017 was when I went SOLO and left my corporate gig to pursue my biz solely! WOW! I still cannot believe it. And what an exciting ride it has been. I am truly blessed to have found my passion and I love what I do and cannot wait for my biz to grow and ideas to unfold and come to fruition.
There have been a few lowlights, but there is one that really nailed it for me. First some context, one of my resolutions I set last year was to have more family dinners at the dinner table (sounds simple, right? But it wasn’t in our family due to work & travel commitments). This resolution was achieved, and we had many family dinners together at the table. It was here, that I experienced my 2017 lowlight.
There we were, on a Sunday evening Husband home cooking dinner and I managed to get a couple of hours work in whilst he was home, I thought I was winning! He managed to get both daughters at the table ‘Mum, dinners ready’ ‘yep ok’, I was there in a flash.
Then my 4 year old comes out with it, “Mum, why are you allllwaaays on your Puter working? Don’t you like playing with us anymore?”
Yep, it was like a knife to the guts and a big twist….
A double-edged sword! My highlight had become my lowlight. I had created my biz for flexibility (and more family dinners) yet I worked more and in my daughters’ eyes I was always working.
2017 has taught me a LOT! Here are a couple key learnings:
- Starting your own business is HARD work and endless hours. It’s similar to when we bought a house, it was our dream to own a house and renovate it to make it ‘our own’. Then you realise the never-ending amount of work there is and think what have I done? 😊 The end result and reward is totally worth all of the hard work though.
- The value of ‘my time’. When I am working to help others (which I love to do) I am sacrificing my time. Whether that be family time, me time, time with the husband, the list goes on. How do you find the balance? This is something I am still working on. Tips anyone?
- Patience. I wanted to achieve a lot of things last year and I did, but I have definitely learnt that it can’t happen all at once. As long as you are taking ‘baby steps’ you are still moving forward.
Now, it’s your turn. What do you want to achieve in 2018?
Let’s get clear on what you want.
> Are you happy in your current job?
> What do you enjoy about your job?
> What do you NOT enjoy / What frustrates you?
> Do you values align with the company’s?
> Does your job or the company’s purpose interest you?
> Why do you do what you do?
> What will it take for you start enjoying your job again?
Is its more flexibility? Or variety / challenges you are seeking? Are you ready for a promotion? Personal / professional development or Further education?
Grab a paper and pen and start writing some notes. Putting pen to paper is the first step to working out your career goals.
Next, tell the world what you want to achieve. You can start with your cat, dog, partner or bestie or tell me.
Comment below and tell me what your 2018 Career Goals are – I would love to know.
Here’s to you.
Sally
