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Managing Change -- Endings Are Just Doorways to New BeginningsEvery May we celebrate Mother's Day-a time to tell mothers everywhere how much we love and honor them. In the midst of all the holiday revelry we should take some time to reflect on just what this day represents-the end of nine months of waiting and the passage through birth's doorway to a new beginning. When I became a mother, this holiday took on a whole new meaning-especially when my daughter graduated from college. Graduation ceremonies at her university were always held on Mother's Day as a special tribute to the mothers who labored hard right along with each student and who rejoiced to see the ending and new beginnings. I was one of those mothers and 27 years prior to that day, my mother rejoiced on Mother's Day to see me graduate from the same university. Yes, Mother's Day creates happy endings and memories; but endings in and of themselves are not always happy occasions. We live in a world of new things. Endings almost always produce longing and melancholy, and new beginnings engender a powerful combination of joy and trepidation. What We Don't Like About Endings
What We Like About Beginnings
Endings Are Doorways to New Beginnings Stop looking at your endings as negative things that happen to you even when they bring pain and stress. Instead, see them as doorways to new beginnings full of blessing, new possibilities and fruitfulness. The bridge between our endings and new beginnings is like a growth spurt. Every human on the planet experiences a growth spurt every now and then. They don't stop just because we're all grown up! What is a growth spurt and how do you know you're going through one?
Identifying Your Endings, Growth Spurts & New Beginnings What's happening in your life right now? Are you going through a growth spurt, and if so, what's ending for you? Have you identified any new beginnings yet? All these questions can be answered with a little soul-searching and some effort. Use this simple tool to help in your search: A Final Word of Advice Don't allow growth spurts to rob you of your confidence. Remember, they bridge your endings and new beginnings. Without them, you become stale, lose ground and fail. With them you grow, develop and succeed. Althea DeBrule, entrepreneur and seasoned human resources executive, has focused for more than 30 years on helping people achieve their career goals. Creator of The Extreme-Career-Makeover? and a founding partner of RADSGroup Organizational Consultants, she is recognized for her bottom line and practical application of career development and management strategies in a way that penetrates hearts and compels action. She speaks and teaches with inspired talent, humor and contagious zeal at management conferences and leadership retreats nationwide, and has been featured in CFO Magazine, Strategy@Work, Human Resource Executive Magazine. Althea is the author of Bosses & Orchards, a compelling and candid book about how to make your work relationship with your boss succeed. To discover how you can take your career to a new level, visit http://www.extreme-career-makeover.com/ |  | | | RELATED ARTICLES Building a Solid Network A client who has a fine arts degree wanted to move out of his successful career in advertising and into the real estate development business. He had already enrolled in a top notch MBA program to learn more about the field. In addition he had found work with a bank doing real estate appraisals. Out Recruit The Competition We hear from our clients that they "hope the candidate takes the job." Hiring a candidate shouldn't be a guessing game. After you interview a candidate thoroughly, and spend a great deal of time and money getting them through the process, you should not have to worry about "landing them." Make a Good Living Doing What You Love Don't let anyone talk you into going to college when all you really want to do is be a chef or tear apart a car engine. Career in the Toilet? Individuals not within their target career field may feel insecure, doubtful, or maybe even ashamed of their current job title. Career changers make up a large portion of the job-searching population. Although people (in general) are "creatures of habit," they thrive for change ? especially when unhappy in their current position or industry. Continuing with educational goals or transferring to another industry can alleviate these feelings, yet shouldn't be the only remedy administered. Rekindling Passion for Work Passion comes in many forms. I'm focused on the version of passion that is "boundless enthusiasm". Looking up enthusiasm in the dictionary, I learned it is derived from the Greek root entheos, which means inspired by god. Hmmm, boundless inspiration by god! When's the last time you experienced your work or career that way? Not lately? Never? Read on! Discuss Your Accomplishments During the Interview When preparing for your interview, you need to be ready to discuss your accomplishments. Surprisingly, many people are reluctant to talk about their accomplishments. But this is exactly what the interviewer wants to hear from you. Great Salary Negotiation Tips 11 Commandments For Smart Negotiating What You Should Never Put on Your Resume Liars Get Caught! What NOT to Put on Your Resume The Myths of Career Change Chances are you already have many ideas about what it takes to successfully transition into a new career, even if you have never done it before. Some of those ideas might be useful ? most probably are not. In this article I would like to expose The Myths of Career Change, which might actually be holding you back. How to Improve Your Work Situation buWhy are so many people unhappy in their work situation? Why do people, who are successful at one career, have such difficult times coping with their new career? These problems frequently occur, because conflicts exist in their work relationships. Job Search Blurts I coined this word to draw attention to the nervous and apprehensive way of saying something in the job search that makes you feel like a buffoon. A "blurt" is a catchy way of saing: Gaffe. What to Do if You are Over 40 and Have Lost Your Job Unexpectedly loosing your job can be a very traumatic and distressing experience at the best of times. If you are over 40 and can't find the job you deserve, you will need great inner strength and self belief to come out on top. Top Career Advice ... More Choices and A Better Way of Life Why Career Advice Is So Important Focus On White-Collar Crime: Accounting Fraud and Computer Crimes Creates Need; Qualified Investing An epidemic of white-collar financial crime has resulted in the development of specialized education programs focused on economic crime investigation and fraud management. These college-level degree programs attract students who are interested in law enforcement and are attracted by the very unique nature of these types of crimes and the special investigative techniques required to solve them. Lost Your Job? Ten Ways to Bounce Back! Whether you've been right-sized, downsized, underutilized, or just plain fired, looking for work is a life-changing experience that rocks your world. Regain your equilibrium with these ten strategies and get back to being your best. How To Answer Your Call In Mid-Life Hank Bochenski's story proves it is never too late to walk away from a life you feel trapped in and do something that you really love. Travel Light to Work As a frequent traveler, my goal for each trip is to travel light. Despite thoughtful planning, sometimes that goal is shattered when I go to close the suitcase and realize I need a larger, or even second one. I can't always get my packing right and end up taking more than I need. When that happens it's frustrating. I hate lugging extra baggage and feeling encumbered. Mystery Shopping - An Excellent Part Time Job Or Additional Income Source Though the name itself may seem a bit mysterious, the concept of mystery shopping is actually straightforward. Also referred to as secret shopping, performance evaluations, service checks and frontline evaluations to name a few, mystery shopping allows companies to obtain a "snapshot in time" by trained researchers who know in advance what they are to evaluate. It provides management a method to quickly yet efficiently evaluate their business practices, deliverables, and employees from the perspective of a non-biased consumer. Auto-Disqualification - When Your Resume Never Reaches the Decision Maker How would you know if your resume did or didn't reach the appropriate decision maker? You can truly never know for certain. However, there are steps you can take to ensure that your resume does not get "auto-disqualified", or provide obvious reasons not to be hired. Do What You Love, Love What You Do Everyone dreams of a life full of love and adventure. But we fill ourselves with reasons not to follow our dreams. Instead of protecting us, they imprison and hold us back. Life will be over before we know it, so now is the time to really live life and love. |
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