What’s your passion?

This article is the third in our series following the recent interview that Karen Mason and I conducted with Dr David Fraser. David is the author of the excellent book “Relationship Mastery – a Business Professional’s Guide”.

One point that really struck home with me and Karen was when David emphasised the need for people in any kind of career crisis to live life on purpose. This struck a chord with us, because it was exactly the theme of one of our recent Monday Musings – Working on Purpose.

David told us a bit of his own story – that he had elected to step off the corporate ladder in order to pursue his passion – which is to continue to build his own skills in the area of relationship mastery, whilst sharing with others what he has learnt along the way. He acknowledged that whilst financially he might be the poorer for this decision, in terms of fulfilment and happiness he is undoubtedly richer.

David advised taking the following steps:

1. Think long term – what’s your real passion?
2. Ask yourself “what was I put on this earth to do?”
3. Shape your whole life around your purpose.
4. Then communicate this to those around you, and you will notice that the right kinds of people and opportunities will materialise in your life.

David Fraser, PhD, is a leading authority on relationship skills in professional and personal life. He is a business owner, chartered engineer, certified mediator, NLP master practitioner, and family man. Find out more at www.drdavidfraser.com

Out of The Frying Pan…

Out of the frying pan, into another frying pan

When you find yourself facing redundancy or other challenges in your career, the feeling of impending crisis means that the first step many of us take is immediately to contact the agencies to find another similar position.  But is this always the best course of action?  After the initial impetus, many people have regrets about this hasty step because it can be a case of “out of the frying pan, into the fire”.

I mean this in two different ways.  Firstly, if you are being made redundant then there is always a risk that market conditions mean that other, similar jobs may also be precarious.  One of our friends has recently been made redundant for the third time, and twice just in the last 12 months.

The other reason is that repeating what we know means that you miss the opportunity to take stock, to re-evaluate what’s really important in your life and what you really want from your next position.

So if you are facing redundancy, rather than jump into the next frying pan too hastily, take a moment to list out what your absolute ideal, perfect position would look like.  What would you focus on? What would you hear? What would you be saying to yourself when you establish yourself in the perfect role for you?  And how great will that make you feel?

Now, what role will give you all that?  Think widely and take your time, and be confident of creating for yourself absolute clarity over the right next step.