Career wise I want my children to focus on service: whom do you serve, how do you serve, why do you serve. Employment will provide "sufficient for our needs," but service pays the extra dividends of happiness and fulfillment.
Think of this in terms of Jacob Ch 2 in the Book of Mormon: Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added unto you. That's a loose quote. But it contains what is important. In our employment we seek first God's Kingdom, not wealth. Seeking wealth never did anyone any good.
What I am suggesting is that through service we seek the kingdom of God. Find work were you provide service that people cannot do for themselves. Serving those who can and should do for themselves is demeaning and will not bring joy, but misery, unhappiness, low self-esteem, etc. By the same token, don't hire people to do for you what you should do for yourself. If you do hire someone to care for your children, clean your house, etc., pay them more than they are worth. Most of the problems we have in the lower economic sector comes from people not being respected, not respecting themselves. Don't hire someone who doesn't know how to respect, and don't disrespect someone by not paying them more than they are worth to you.
In your employment, give more than you are asked, or than is required. This is the best job security. But beyond that, this is the best path to integrity, honesty, and happiness in your line of work. When you make it your goal to give more than you get, you will never fall into that pit of thinking you are being mistreated. If you are actually being mistreated, get out.
Do not work more than you are able. Set secure boundaries on your time commitments to your work along with secure boundaries on your family time. We work so that we can support the family; the family supports work, if and only if it is not robbed of parental time and spousal time. If work is requiring you to sacrifice family time, leave. Let some other sucker to that. Your family will be your eternal reward. Don't trade that for a temporal reward--no matter how large.
Dedicate some of your work time to the study and perfection of what you do. The best professions have built in professional development plans and will encourage it and even pay for it. Stay on the crest of new technology, new practices, etc. Always improve what you do. Always find better ways to do what you do.
Have and exit plan. That means that you should save money until you have enough to leave your job without worry. It also means planning for retirement--having enough to live on for the remainder of your days. It means planning for a senior mission or other church service in your retirement years. These things are not inexpensive.
A final note on careers: no one is an expert at anything until they have ten years of ernest effort at improving at that thing. In other words, when you begin a career, don't expect to be the expert. But study what you do. Learn for the best in the field. Find a mentor. Make friends strategically. That means, you should make friends with those who can help you become the best in your field, or who inspire you to be the best in your field. Schmoozing is the creating of fake friendships for gain. Form real friendships. Have a ten year plan. Remember that we over estimate how much we can accomplish in one year, and we under estimate how much we can accomplish in ten. Have a strong ten year plan that is founded on your core principles--gospel principles.
Here are some pitfalls to avoid:
1. Some of us avoid confrontations. We can't afford that. Never avoid a confrontation with an underling or a peer. If you feel that you can't have the tough conversations with your superior, then consider if that is your fear, or the superior's ego. If it is the superior, leave. Find a new job. If it is you, grow up. 2. If you can't perform a given task, get help. Don't fail if you know you will fail. Speak up. Ask for help. Get the training, get the skill, or get someone else to do it. Don't hide your incompetence. That will kill you and the company you work for. 3. Don't focus too much on your weaknesses. Focus on your strengths. Weaknesses can be eliminated, but we progress farther and faster when we focus on what we already do best.
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