What do you believe it takes to have your dream job or career? For many of us, we automatically assume that to have the success we truly desire, it must come at some cost.
Ultimately, cutting away any part of your integrity, values or desires in order to fit a role or job won’t work out in the long run. “Lies have short legs“ and if you are not honest with yourself or your employer, mistrust and disillusionment can quickly build, and the assumption that sacrifice and compromise is inevitable in the pursuit of success will rule your mindset, undermining your happiness.
What if you could be fully committed to yourself, your authentic and personal power and have the job or career that makes you truly happy? Here are some steps you can take to retain (or reclaim) what matters to you and having the dream job, too:
Get over being a people pleaser
We are often more concerned with fitting in with what other people need, require, and desire than allowing ourselves to express who or what we truly are. Most of us are conditioned by our parents to please them, to seek acknowledgment from them, and to try and make them happy. We then apply this pattern of being the good girl, good boy or people pleaser, in all kind of roles and situations. Is now the time to get over the job of being a people pleaser and choose something different? What choice can you make today to prioritise your desires, needs and requirements?
Allow yourself to be happy and start choosing for you
So, what is more important to you – being happy or making other people happy? What if it’s not an either/or scenario? When you are happy, it invites people around you to get happy, too. When you start choosing your happiness, you literally set the pathway for others to choose that, too. Choosing your happiness can be a contribution for people around you being happier, if they desire to choose that as well.
Get clear on your priorities
To create the job you really want, be clear on your priorities. What are you looking for in a job? Something that allows you to easily support your family and relationships? Something that allows you to express your creative talents and abilities? Does it include travel and allow for recreation times? Do you desire your work to contribute to people’s lives all over the world? Do you desire to make an amount of money per year that is fun for you? Whatever it is, get clear on what you are truly choosing and be aware of your priorities.
Let go of your limiting past experiences
Often, we can use negative experiences in the past to limit our choices in the future. For example, if you have the experience of being sexually harassed in a specific job and conclude that women in that kind of role always get sexually harassed, so you decide that you will never work in that position again. Is that really true? If you never had your past experiences as a reference, could you choose that job again if it was right for you? If you no longer let your past dictate the future you create, what choices would you have that you hadn’t considered?
Say what your interviewer can hear
What if it is not about selling yourself in an interview, but rather saying whatever it is your interviewers are receptive to hearing? Have you ever noticed that you tend to tell people stories different ways depending on with whom you speak to? We all do that unconsciously – and it is not about lying. It is a natural capacity you can begin to use consciously to your advantage. Instead of lying or compromising yourself, say what is true for you, but be willing to say it in their words so that they can hear it and receive it. Now that you know about this dynamic, you could choose to be, do, and say whatever is required for them to offer you the job position, while remaining true to yourself.
Be willing to be and do whatever it takes
Have you ever really wanted something in your life and made sure you got it, no matter what? Most likely, when you were being truly determined, you made it happen. That is one of the differences between the successful and unsuccessful people in business. Successful people are making choices and committing to being and doing whatever it takes within their set of values to get there. Are you truly choosing to commit to having your dream job without compromise and are you determined to be or do whatever it takes to get it?
Finding a job that makes you happy is not about sacrificing and compromising yourself. Be clear on what you are truly looking for and then go for it. True happiness and fulfillment in your job will occur when you commit to choosing for you. When you are uncompromisingly happy in your job or career, you become a dynamic contribution, inspiration and invitation for others to realize their dreams and aspirations, too.