Career Job Satisfaction - Get Off the Treadmill - Exit Your Rat Race!
Get Off the Treadmill - Exit Your Rat Race! We can all get in a rut from time to time. Who hasn't had a moment in their lives where you've asked yourself the question: "Why am I doing this?" Whether it's who you've become, the business you are in, your career, relationships, where you live or all of the above - sometimes you realise you're just not where you want to be ? and you're not sure how you got there! It sure feels like your own version of a rat race though. If where you want to be in your life is not where you are, then maybe it's time for you to drop out of your very own rat race. We are conditioned into believing that we must continue to strive, to take more on, and to do more, in order to be "successful". But this is a limited and ultimately self-defeating definition. If we can only be more successful by what and how much we do, then we have created our own treadmills to run on. 1. Redefine SuccessRedefining success for yourself can be the first step in taking a fresh perspective. Try this exercise by completing the following sentence. " I know I am successful when??." You may not complete the sentence with anything to do with work or material goods. Here are some examples. I know I am successful when?.?I laugh every day with my children?I bounce out of bed enthusiastically every morning ?all of my relationships give me great joy?I inspire others to make positive changes By redefining what we believe makes us successful, we begin to strive for different things in our lives. This can be instrumental in slowing down the treadmill enough for us to take stock of where we are. 2. Springclean your mindIf you feel as though you don't have time for anything, especially thinking about ways to do things differently, it's time for a time-out. When we are busy and occupied all the time, we are usually reacting to things going on around us, rather than acting out of choice. So make an active choice to take a rest, a vacation, talk it out with someone you trust, blow off steam, do whatever it takes to get some perspective about your situation. Just this simple step will make you feel more in control, and can help to streamline the energy you'll need for the changes ahead. The idea is not to just get out of your rat race but to go towards a more fulfilling way of living 3. Get realThe reality is that you can't change anyone else's behaviour but your own. So it's a good time to stop wishing that people would act differently so that you could feel better. Also, it's time to make alternative plans just in case you don't win the lottery or get a salary increase. This sounds harsh, but people who wait for things to happen to them are usually waiting a long time. Don't wait for chance or fate to step in. Figure out what it will cost (in time, energy, money, etc.) to make the changes you know you need to make. Then figure out what it will cost not to. 4. Pack lightThere's something very cathartic about taking time to clean things out ? getting rid of the old to make way for the new. You could start with a room in your house, your email address list, or old beliefs that aren't adding value to you any more. In every situation there is a good lesson to take with you, something of value to keep. Even if it's only, 'Well that's a place I know I never want to be again'; there is something worth keeping. Any situation, and your perception of it, is part of who you are. Identify specifically what it is you want to keep and what you'll leave behind. Be brutal. You may even miss some of the things you choose to leave behind ? that's all part of the process. What you will find is renewed energy for new things that you want to include in your life ? a great start to exiting your rat race and beginning on a new journey. 5. Create a mapWhen was the last time you thought about where you wanted to be in 5 or 10 years time? We get so caught up in "doing" things - for the business, for work, for others ? things we think we should be doing, that we take no time to consider what we really want. Forget the race. Think journey. Take the time to think about yourself, and where you would like to be. Nobody else's map will do here ?it's time to do some hard thinking for yourself. What are the core values that you'd like to base your life around? What do you love to do or to be? What gives you a sense of purpose? What do you stand for? What could you not be dissuaded from believing in, no matter what? If you had one life to live this time round what would you do with it? These are tough questions and their answers are part of the journey. Don't freak or feel guilty if you don't know the answers straight away. For the impatient and perfectionist people reading, this is not a test ? there is no pass or fail. So don't treat it like one. The more you know about yourself, the more you will be able to start drawing your own map. 6. Head for the Life! (not the lifestyle)Do you know what the difference is between having a life and maintaining a lifestyle? A lifestyle is something we are told we need by society, advertisers, and parents. Life's luxuries, although nice to have, can be expensive financially and in the energy spent getting them. Perhaps the energy spent maintaining a lifestyle might be better used turning your life into an expression of who you are. A lifestyle buys comfort. A life buys satisfaction and contentment. The best bed in the world only makes for a comfortable sleepless night if you lack contentment. If your lifestyle impedes you being who you are then dump it. 7. Go for your idealIf it turns out that you drop out of your rat race and into your perfect life, would you even know it? Create a vision of where it would be, who you're with, what you're doing. Design it around your passions, beliefs, values and loves. Remember, just like spending your money, if you don't know what you want from your life there's plenty of people around who will be only too glad to tell you. 8. Look out for the rough bits.Choosing to live your life in your own way is tougher than staying in your rat race. People you know may be understanding or incredulous, and won't hesitate to give you their opinion. Temptations will abound to take a few laps round the old racecourse when the going gets tough. Our old comfort zones are traps waiting to lure us back into our old ways. By being aware of this and planning for how you'll cope you will get through. Anything different can be scary. But it can also be fun too! 9. Enjoy the trip!You've recognised where you don't want to be any longer and identified where you do. Now live where you are. Learn from the past and move on. Plan for the future but live in the present. You can't do anything about yesterday, so stop worrying about it. If you spend every minute think about tomorrow then you'll never enjoy today. And that's where all the action is! 10. Go for it.No more excuses. Nothing more to say. Just do it. Sometimes the only way to "win" a race - where there can be no winner - is to just stop running. Megan Tough, Director of Action Plus, is passionate about helping people enjoy their businesses. She works internationally with business owners to systematically remove the stress points from their business, giving them more time and space for - well -whatever they want! Visit her at http://www.megantough.com for more information on taking the stress out of your business. | | | | RELATED ARTICLES The Squirrel Effect An industrious black-tailed ground squirrel has his home beneath a stump not far from my office window. I've been watching him squirrel away provisions for winter. He reminds me of people I've worked with. The Dog Days of Job Hunting Does a headline like this scare you? How You Can Find Freelance Writing Employment How can you find writing jobs? Do you have proven skills that can propel you in the right direction? If so, then why are you looking for fresh vacancies? The best tool to those who have employment histories is to look to the companies that you have already worked for. There, they can help provide you with more work, or point you in the right direction. Online Resume Tips and Secrets I manage a website for corporate flight attendants that features resumes prominently listed on the first page of the site. Unlike some careers, corporate flight attendants must promote themselves overtly in order to find work especially if they are contractors. Since adding this feature two years ago, I have learned that an online copy must be arranged differently than that of a hard copy primarily for security reasons. Let's review some of the 'best practices' you need to accomplish in order to successfully and safely promote yourself online. Do You Need A Mentor? And How Do You Find One? Whether you're self-employed or you work for someone else, you're new to business or a seasoned expert, one of the best ways to get ahead in business is to find a mentor. And some highly successful people even have more than one. Do You Have the courage to ignore the experts? Do you have the courage to ignore the experts? Do you have the willingness and ability to understand and use the power that is within you? Courage is that state of mind when you do something that you know is right for you and your loved ones and the rest of the world thinks you're mad. The ability to make the decision and then make it happen. Courage is not progressing through life with gay abandon, ignoring all the fears. Quite the contrary. Courage is an understanding of fear. An understanding of what to fear and what not to fear. Courage is the ability to challenge what is deemed to be common sense. How to Reach Outside Yourself to Advance Your Career When flipping the channels of your TV, you are bound to come across a Public Service Announcement (PSA) endorsed by a celebrity asking children to approach their parents, teachers, or someone they trust when they are at a crossroads. Through these PSAs, children are told that asking for guidance, encouragement, and support is a sign of strength. They don't have to go through a transition alone-help is just around the corner. How to Get Paid More Without Being Pretty or Good Looking Guess what. The results are out they are ugly. Pretty people do get paid more money. What You Cant Ask a Job Candidate is as Important as What You Can Ask As a human resources professional or business owner, you face many challenges during the hiring process, from sorting through stacks of job applicant résumés to making an attractive offer to the one person you believe best matches the specifications of your open position's job description. The whole procedure is more than time-consuming; it can be stressful as well. How To Win the Job-Hunting Game When I got over the initial shock of being urged to "seek alternative employment" I found myself, like so many others, out beating the bushes looking for a job. I found that I was just another one of the sheep following the same traditional job-hunting procedures as everyone else. Finding Freelance Writing Jobs - Join Us On The Job Search Finding freelance writing jobs require great skill, dedication and lots of patience. There are many qualifications that businesses look for prior to hiring an individual to fill their job vacancies though. When the potential applicant arrives, he or she must possess a good working knowledge of the tasks that the business person needs. If they don't there is sure to be someone else who does. Therefore, when looking for writing jobs, the applicant simply must make sure that they are the most qualified for the employment opportunities. Why Are 95% of Job Applicants Not Called Back? Have you been desperately looking for a job and keep coming up short? Despite all that you do, does every attempt you make seem to fail? Are you at that point of quitting? Ever wonder why you have not been called back? Not long ago, I was right where you are. I was all over the place, running here and there looking for the magic pill to help me. Then it hit me. Have you ever noticed that some people always seem to have employers chasing them? If you are like me, you probably wondered, what's their secret? Mystery Shopping Mystery shopping is an excellent way to make extra money. In fact, some people make a full time living doing it. A Concept That Could Double Youre Income in Mystery Shopping Do you want to double, or increase significantly you're income in mystery shopping? If yes, I'll be sharing to you an age old concept. Now you might have learned this already or you may consider this common sense. But is a concept that's worth drilling on for more knowledge or for the sake of repetition, mind you "Repetition is the mother of all skills". Finally The First Online Job Agency in Mauritius Mauritius is a small island in the Indian Ocean with a population of 1.2 million inhabitants. It is well known primarily as a tourist destination. Its economy is based on 4 major pillars: Agriculture, Manufacturing, Tourism and Services sector. Unlike many other African countries,Mauritius political climate has been very stable. Moreover its economy has been booming and becoming more diversified in the last 20 years. The economy was traditionally dependent on Agriculture. Nowadays textile and tourism are the driving force for the Mauritian Economy. The labour force requirements of Mauritius had to accomodate with all those changes. 50 Things To Do To Your Boss That Are Fun For You, But Not For Them 1. You're eavesdropping and you hear your boss has reservations at his favorite restaurant. You know, the one you can't afford. Call them back and cancel his reservations ? say you're his wife. Corporate World: Jungle Or Paradise? The road to the top is not easy, it is bumpy and dirty. Along the way, we meet interesting creatures. There are seasons in life when we will be at crossroads and choose a path based on what is important in our life. Either way may lead us to our goal, but the means to get there is different. While we have control over the choices we make, we don't have control over the consequences. The cost of our actions are governed by natural and spiritual laws that were set in place a long time ago. How To Write A Resume Cover Letter That Will Get Your Resume Read A Resume Cover Letter has only one purpose - to stimulate the recipient of your resume to review your resume. This free resume cover letter tutorial assumes that you will be sending your resume and resume cover letter by email. My Landscaping Business is Better Than Your Lanscaping Business... Yesterday I was having a discussion with Mary who I know from a mother's group that I attend with my daughter Sammi. Through previous conversations I have determined that this woman is very talented in the areas of landscaping and interior design. College Labor is Available in Ohio Ohio has always been big on education and that means a bright, energetic and reliable workforce for expanding businesses. A business which wants to expand its number of outlets should be looking strongly at the Ohio market place as there are many very strong and economically viable areas to do business.
|