How To Lose Your Job And Still Win — Day 16 of 365 Leadership Blogging
Many moons ago I was super focused on the trajectory of my career. It’s the main reason why I embarked on professional training for my area of work. I was clearly trying to keep up with the Joneses. Status meant a lot to me and my career was my pride and joy. I treasured it, I would even go as far to say I worshipped it, in my own twisted way. It’s the kind of revelation you get when you look back over your life and think ‘oh boy’. I Never knew it then but I sure recognise it now.
Fast forward a few years and life had hit me and Vanessa, with several tidal waves, almost enough to drown us. But they didn’t. My much-loved career took a sharp left turn and nose-dived into the sandy banks of a deserted island in the middle of nowhere. My attitude smelled like a bad fish and recruiters wouldn’t even prod me to see if I was alive.
Vanessa pleaded with me to get my act together, to fix up and look sharp like I used too. I couldn’t shake off this bug of doom and gloom. Maybe that’s a slight over exaggeration but it felt like this was the end. As much as I dusted off my suit, steam pressed my shirts and kept my shoes army polished, I couldn’t get my act together.
Fast forward again past the minor details, midday tantrums, late night film binging and early morning motivation techniques, came one long day and an epiphany. In truth, the penny had dropped on what Vanessa had been telling me for months before. This is not the end.
So what if my career had taken a long pause and I couldn’t find my mojo and my confidence had divorced me. It’s wasn’t the end. My career was not the total sum of who I was and more importantly who I was going to become. I chose at that moment to put down my sad stories, excuses and rejection and pick up hope, optimism and confidence (we tore up the separation papers).
In the time since I made my decision Vanessa and I have pursued several business avenues, learnt how to invest, become self-taught in web design, launched a digital magazine with my amazing wife, dipped into publishing, led teams in global organisations, and always somehow managed to get by. Not everything in my life is as perfect as I would like it to be but that is the point. The twists and turns of our lives help to shape our character and prepare us for the adventures to come.
You may be reading this and facing challenges at work like redundancy or having to fight for your position. Maybe you have fallen out with your business partner and it’s now personal and not just business. Or the leadership role you’ve been reaching for is finally yours, only to realise you now have to deliver the goods with all eyes on you.
If you are still reading this, then I’m here to say it’s OK. The sooner you get your mental mind back on the right path, the better. This is not the end.
