Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans. Simply put, when you stop focusing on those things that matter most to you and what you believe in - then you allow life to pass you by. Do you strive to be relevant as a leader, business owner or entrepreneur - or do you allow the marketplace and what others want you to be dictate your career destiny?
Exceed your Career goals
We all have career aspirations to achieve; yet many of us do not hold ourselves accountable enough to build the right foundation to achieve our aspirations.
Accomplishing goals, whether personal or professional, is often difficult. To begin with, you have to commit to goal setting - which many people would rather have others do for them. People may want to improve their lives and careers but don’t always know how to start the journey. Others are fortunate enough to be awakened when least expected -- to discover the gifts (unique talent) bestowed upon them. When you experience the latter, it feels as if you have a secret that you are reluctant to share because you believe that no one will understand or appreciate the magnitude of this defining moment.
Unfortunately, we have a lot of talented people in the workplace who - because they lack courage - have become jaded by others that were envious, disrupted their goals, and never had their best interests at heart. As a result, these people have stopped believing in themselves and instead only listen and act upon what others need from them - for the benefit of others rather than the advancement of themselves. This explains:
• Why so many people would rather be accountable to do for others - rather than think for themselves.
• Why leaders have become followers and have lost their identity in the process.
• Why dreams are broken, momentum is easily lost, and progress slows down.
• Why people are so skeptical and earning trust is so difficult.
• Why there is more animosity, remorse and anger in the world….and so on.
If you are leader, your responsibilities are to open doors and create opportunities for those who have earned it. Stop slowing down progress and allow individuality to take flight. Let’s face it, the workplace and the marketplace are telling us that it is becoming less about the business defining the individual and much more about the individual defining the business. What are you doing to allow others to discover their gifts and reach their full potential?
Opportunities are everywhere, but few have eyes to see them.
To assure that you not only see and seize previously unseen opportunities - but also avoid the traps of complacency along the way - here are eight ways to exceed your aspirations throughout your career and life’s journey.
1. Don’t Allow Negative Judgment to Disrupt Your Goals
The only one that stands in your way - is yourself. Don’t ever second-guess your ability and capabilities. Life is about confronting constant disappointments. Not everyone will value you or understand why they should. Rather than get frustrated, take a moment to understand their different perspectives. Write these down and create a journal; perhaps you will find a common thread over time as to why you are being negatively judged. Appreciate feedback, whether good or bad - and learn from it. But never let it disrupt your focus, attitude and motivations.
2. Take Ownership and Strive To Be Relevant
Most people become irrelevant in their careers because they listen to those that don’t understand what makes them unique and give them distinction. This is why it is incumbent upon you to take ownership of your career by doing everything possible to outwork and outsmart everyone else. This will require you to challenge the status quo and become more mindful about whom you associate yourself with.
Taking ownership requires action. The action you take in pursuit of being relevant may often be met with failure, envy and misunderstanding of your points of view. I’ve experienced many times throughout my career that the best measurement of success in your pursuit of relevancy - is when the marketplace moves in your favor. In other words, the perspectives you share become valued - and you are welcomed into ecosystems where what makes you relevant equals the demand you were seeking to create.
When seeking to be relevant, you will either create new marketplace demand or you will latch onto a marketplace segment that is still maturing. If you don’t experience either, you are off track. But never stop believing in yourself and never ignore what the marketplace is telling you.
3. Work Harder and Smarter Than Everyone Else
Get your hands dirty and learn to work harder than your competitors so they can never outsmart your efforts. Be courageous and take well-thought out chances. Allow risk to be your best friend. Aspirations fade when people are tempted to give-up and stop trying. It’s much like the person that has a new year’s resolution to assume a healthier diet but can’t stay away from the temptations of fast-food.
Success isn’t easy. Being significant is even harder. To achieve both, you need to stay focused and work harder to understand everything about the goals and aspirations you seek to achieve. You need to become a subject matter expert; to know your competition; and to understand why people have failed in the past with similar ambitions. If you do your research, you will know everything you need to know to earn the credibility and respect necessary to break down barriers of doubt - as you begin to build bridges of hope and see opportunities previously unseen.
4. Stay Away From Envious People
Most people spend their lives battling the gulf between assimilation and authenticity. They struggle with being more of what others want them to be - rather than what they seek to be themselves. Envy has the ability to cloud your mind and make you question your own intentions. Don’t let envy define your future or sway your aspirations.
Dealing with envy is oftentimes a validation that you are on the right path towards achieving your aspirations. It is an indicator that you are evolving - and as such you will be confronted by people who are not.
As you begin to build momentum, you will know who has your back and your best interests at heart. When you detect envy, navigate around it so it doesn’t become a distraction. The key is to remove yourself from it quickly before it clouds your decisions and slows your progress down.
5. Associate Yourself with People That Genuinely Have Your Back
Stay away from leeches and loafers (the envious ones) and learn to gravitate to the leaders and lifters (those who genuinely have your back). I’ve learned that in business and in life that you can’t go at success alone. It’s impossible. You have to surround yourself with people that have your best interests at heart. For they are the ones that will be the most objective about telling you the truth and guiding you in the right direction.
The types of relationships you have are indicative of your level of success. If you associate yourself with those that pull you down, rather than lift you up - you will find it difficult to evolve and achieve your aspirations. In the end, it’s all about people and you must know yourself well enough to be a good judge of character - to make the right decisions between the relationships you choose to invest in long term and those that don’t add any real value.
6. Diversity of Thought Is Constructive Disruption
To exceed your aspirations, you may have to choose unconventional ways to get to your desired end game. I am not referring to unethical acts - but rather the ability to connect what appears to be unrelated into a well thought-out cohesive plan.
For example, how many times have you dealt with long-standing employees that are so set in their ways that it makes it difficult to introduce new ideas and ideals? These days, quite frequently! These are the types of people that don’t value differences and are against new ways of thinking. They are comfortable doing things the way they’ve been done for years and maintaining the status quo.
Instead, embrace diversity of thought and be a constructive disruptor. Don’t allow people to confuse diversity of thought as a form of disorganized thinking. It is only disorganized to those that have grown complacent and lack courage to challenge the status quo. You can’t be aspirational without being a constructive disruptor.
7. Wisdom Prevails During Times of Adversity
How you respond when faced with adversity is what defines your ability to achieve your career aspirations. Adversity is very big when it is all you can see. But it is very small when in the presence of all else that surrounds you. The key to overcoming adverse circumstances is a matter of focus. Zoom in on it and you will see no opportunity. Zoom out and you will see it in the full context of all else that surrounds you - and many opportunities previously unseen will come into view.
Adversity is a matter of perspective. It’s about tapping your wisdom (knowing what to do with the insights and knowledge that you have) to make the right decisions, keep the right attitude, and deal with complex circumstances and diversity of thought.
Successful people have mastered the ability to think on their feet by allowing their wisdom to prevail during times of adversity.
8. Don’t allow other’s Ignorance to Misguide You
Don’t ever allow the ignorance of others to misguide you - or assume that someone who has an important title or works for a large company has all of the answers. Oftentimes they know a lot less than you might think.
For example, think of those who tout their accomplishments and act with a sense of entitlement - as if they made the investments with their own money, assumed all of the risk, and did all of the thinking that led to a particular success story. I’ve learned that many executives have artificial power that is being lent to them by the organization (or brand) they serve. The position and role they assume has the power, not necessarily the person occupying it.
With this in mind, never stop testing your ideas and ideals - or start letting other people’s ignorance get in the way of achieving and exceeding your career aspirations.
I am absolutely convinced that everyone has the ability to be good - if not great at something. But I am equally certain that most people are thrown off-course and lack the courage to get back on track and define the course that will enable them to strengthen the belief, self-trust and potential in themselves. Every successful person has had to make a choice to be courageous. And every courageous person opens themselves up to the opportunity to exceed their goals and aspirations - by not only being successful, but significant.

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