Katie Darden – Page 16 – Career Life Institute

Spontaneous Fun

We've been programmed to believe that fun is just for kids. Remember when you were young and you just played and had fun. You might have done silly things and just laughed and laughed. So, when was the last time you laughed like that?

When we get older we tend to take everything more seriously and lose our sense of fun and adventure. We often take ourselves so seriously that we become engulfed in our own issues. We even forget to look outside to notice what is happening. We worry about "using" our time well. It's given us a schizophrenic approach to leisure and fun. Can we have fun without feeling guilty? Guilt seems to be such a part of our lives and it is now creeping into our leisure play. Some suggestions for having fun might include: setting specific time aside each day for just play, turn off the TV and go outside, meet a neighbor, ride a bike, break your usual routine and get out or the box you put yourself in. Bring in fun as part of your day.

I lead trips to the Big Island of Hawaii several times a year for adventure and fun. Now, believe me I can make this a very serious job. However, usually by day three we have moved to Plan F on the schedule and I'm wondering what to do next. Actually, I think it is very hard not to have fun in paradise. Yes, it is a state of mind. I think to some degree fun is about 'letting go" of preconceived ideas to notice what is available right now.

Let's just get on and live life. Maybe somewhere on your journey you might make a difference to your family, your business partners, and your overall sense of well being. It seems our choices are–staying just as we are…or surprising ourselves and having more fun.

Smile and laugh just a little more! Ask some older, perhaps wiser person you know, "What advice do you have about life?" You might just hear, "Have fun and enjoy life while you can!"

Getting That Perfect Job

There are several initial steps that you will take to discover who you are and what you really want in a career. Once you have completed a Career/Life Plan®:, or in some other way have completed an indepth exploration of you, your talents, dreams, potential, you will be ready to bring those unique talents to the attention of potential employers.

You will want to take time to create a resume that clearly states the tangible results you have accomplished and lets the working world recognize the benefits of convincing you to work for them. Employment is always a two-way street, and in any hiring situation you are both trying to discover how well you may be able to work together.

So, once you have your resume and cover letter in place, how do you get in front of the right people?

Be very clear about what you want in a job – that doesn't just mean duties and salary. That also means corporate culture, working conditions, people environment, personal skills you want to showcase, etc. The more clear you are here, the better the fit will be.
Research the companies out there that meet your criteria. Follow up the intial research by "informational interview" where you actually go into the company and interview someone there to find out about what they do, what kinds of employees they hire, how they treat their employees and customers, what their structure is, etc. Informational interviews may include managers, executives, secretaries, etc., whoever is able to give you the information you need about the company. Because these are busy people, always schedule your interview ahead of time, and be respectful of their time constraints.
After you have completed this research and identified one, two, or three companies you are interested in, contact them again. Forget about the newspaper ads (although they can give you an idea of what the market is like), most jobs are not advertised. And those that are advertised will generally have heavy competition (when I was a training manager for a software company in Silicon Valley my ads, regardless of the position, would pull in 90 applicants – minimum).
Network, Network, Network. You should always be doing this whether on a fomal or informal basis. Formally, any trade association that matches your market is a good place to start, so is NAFE (National Association for Female Executives), even Rotary and Soroptimist. Informally, become involved in your community and you'll be surprised the connections that "suddenly" pop-up when someone has a need. Take the time to identify everyone you know, and who THEY know that could be a help to you. You may be amazed at how large your network really is. Networks are the best places to give and receive help. Remember, networking is a two-way street, so ethically you will need to give back to the network in whatever way your particular gifts allow – this is the basis and foundation for networking. And by the way, networking is the best way to find jobs.
Along the same lines, volunteer for some project or position in your community that holds interest for you, gives you more/better experience, and gives you an opportunity to meet others. It's okay if it puts you in the limelight, too. This way folks get a chance to find out who you are, what you do and how well you can do it. Plus you'll be doing the community a favor, so the community will be more inclined to help you out when the time is appropriate. We all prefer to do business with people we know, this gives the rest of the world the chance to know you.

Even for the seasoned veteran with lots of experience, it often takes 6 months of active searching to change jobs effectively. So give yourself permission to focus on what you really want and take the time to put your best foot forward.

Create Reserves That Support You

NOTE: This article was originally written in 1999. It is still relevant today.

With Y2K looming, several groups encouraged us to have reserves of food and water available. Of course here on the Northern Coast of California we all know very well the importance of emergency supplies for power outages and earthquakes.

But how many of us have reserves in other parts of our lives? I sometimes buy the 4-pack so I have extras, and when I used to travel a lot, I had a full set of personal toiletries always ready to go. A couple of years ago I discovered the hard way that I need to always keep at least one extra month's supply of my vitamins – the supplier ran out and there was none to be had for a full month.

Well, how about in our careers and work life? Do you have an extra set of clothes ready in case you spill your morning coffee?? How about an extra set of car keys in case you misplace the ones you usually use? Do you fill your tank up with gasoline when it gets to half-empty? (I learned about that one with the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake that took out all the power in the Bay Area and my only vehicle was on empty!!)

How about work – do you make back-ups of your important files on a regular basis? Just think about how much of your daily work you would like to have to recreate, and that'll tell you how often to back-up your computer files. Do you start each day with a basic plan so you know how much time you have available for each project? Do you build in time (every day) for emergency interruptions? You know they're going to happen. Do you have extra vacation and/or sick leave built up in case you need to take it? Are you putting money away for retirement?

And do you allow yourself enough time to finish projects so you are not rushed at the end? One of the keys to making sure your "customer" is satisfied is to under-promise and over-deliver.

How do you do that? When taking on a project, build in a cushion of time. While it's true that you might be able to complete a task or project in a day or a week (if everything goes right), we all know about the unexpected things that happen – the fire in the building (that was us!!), the key person whose son gets ill and is unavailable for 3 days, the computer that crashes or locks up and won't let you finish, the materials that came in late.

By allowing extra time, we have room for the unexpected to simply be an inconvenience rather than a catastrophe. Because we've built in extra time, we are in a better position to discover another way to finish the project or resolve the situation.

And if we finish early, we get to be heroes!! How did you feel the last time someone told you they'd have something to you within a week, but you actually got it two weeks later? How differently would you have felt if they told you it would take three weeks and then you received it a week early? It's the same time frame, but the perception is very different.

There are many places in our lives where a reserve would reduce worry, provide more satisfaction, make life easier and let us feel more powerful. As you identify those areas, begin to take the steps to build that reserve for yourself. You don't have to do everything at once, just start somewhere. And notice how much it adds to your sense of wellbeing in the world when you realize you don't have to worry about things because you are prepared.

Completing the Year

As we move into each new year, it's smart to recognize who, what and where we've been. In our personal lives, as well as our careers, taking time to recognize and appreciate our personal foundation lets us continue to create goals in alignment with our vision for the future.

Here are some great questions you can use to:

remind you of what you've accomplished
recognize things that you have completed
create completion on things yet undone
recognize what you'd rather not 'do' anymore!
re-evaluate the vision of what you desire/want

We encourage you to play big here, jump in and have fun doing this…get some real answers and enjoy the process along the way.

Ready to play?

____________Completing This Year______________

Think about what you created this year. Which have given you satisfaction and joy? Which ones didn't turn out the way you wanted? Which would you like to change?
Now think about what have you completed (accomplished) this year. As you identify what you've completed, ask yourself what did you learn as a result? And how has that increased or solidified your foundation?
Is there anything that is incomplete for which you would like completion? What will it take to be complete, finished, over?
Now ask yourself, what are you through learning – that you don't ever have to learn again? And how has that added to your foundational strength?

__________Moving into the New Year___________
Now, think about who and where you are today. What do you want to create in the next year? What do you want to accomplish? What do you want to start?
What do you want to complete (from 1999 – or earlier!!) and what are you finally ready to let go of once and for all?
And finally, as you think about the next year, who do you need to become in order to have your life be exactly the way you want?

The most important step to creating the life you love is clarity – about who you are and what you want. Who you become creates the environment for having what you want. And remember, this as a work in progress, rather than a finished piece (just like life!!).

You can start whenever you'd like.Personally, I like to take stock each year on my birthday, rather than on December 31. It is the beginning of my Personal New Year. Many businesses use April 1 or July 1 as the beginning of their new year.

What matters is that you take stock and chose the path that takes you where you want to go.

Thanks to Business and Personal Coach, Alison Hendren (www.transitioning.com) for suggesting this process and providing some foundational questions that led to this article.