Want that Dream Job? Make a Plan.

Want that Dream Job? Make a Plan.

This past week I had the opportunity to meet a couple of mortgage brokers an engineer, an educator, a pharmacist, a CFO and several others from various occupations. On the surface each one was so different from the next. They all had very diverse backgrounds, special stories, skills, successes and failures. They were of dissimilar cultures, nationalities and races. They were both genders and a variety of ages. On the outside they could not have been more poles apart. Deep down inside, where it counts, they were quite similar. They all were unhappy with their chosen professions. They felt that they had been pulled in to them more by circumstance than by choice, they verbalized being trapped, miserable, helpless, without value, and saddest of all, each one of them was hopeless.

Something they also shared was none of them had ever thought to make a career plan. None had taken the time to sit down and map out their life intentions. It is quite rare to arrive some place if you don’t have the first clue of where you are going. “Duh” right? Maybe, but then why do so few of us plan our careers. Most often I hear: “That would remove all spontaneity!” Nice rationalization, but life has a funny way of providing enough of the unexpected to supply an abundance of spontaneity.

With all of our education, almost never does anyone teach us how to plan a career. We are taught that having a good paying job is better than being happy. How many times have you been told that if you are doing what you love, the money will come? How many people actually believe that? Fortunately, I have been blessed with too many examples of this being the case not to believe. But then again, I believe in Santa. I also believe that when we open ourselves and our creativity, are willing to commit and to persevere we can achieve our dreams without having to sacrifice fair compensation.

To succeed we must be willing to fail. Growth does not come without challenge. I say “take a chance to achieve your dreams, decide what you want today and tomorrow to look like. Make a plan that will make this happen. If we are willing to ask ourselves the right questions, we will probably find the correct answers.

By the way, it’s ok to change your mind.

Steve Krohn

TTG Consultants