Getting Down To Business
It’s dog-eat-dog in the business world and only those tough enough to stand the pressure dare to enter. But why be stuck in a job you’re not satisfied in? Richard Harris from Sheffield looks at how he turned his Giro-fuelled life into promotion after promotion and how you can do the same.
It's that time of year, people dressed in rather odd clothing dancing around a large pole set in the ground - usually in a village green. Yes, Maypole Dancing has been a long standing tradition for us Britons and I've realized it can be a closer reality than we realize…
Sometimes life feels like Maypole dancing - you smile a lot, you're part of the group, you may even wear the same 'odd' clothes as others around you, but you don't really get anywhere. My life felt like that when I left school. I did what others around me did but knew I could achieve more. Whether you're stacking shelves or in an office that just doesn't bring the best out of you, here are my three keys to getting down to business and getting satisfaction out of your career:
Step Away From the Pole!
One day I realised I had a choice to stop running around in endless circles following a group of others doing the same. I left school with no GCSEs, and was unemployed for two years living off my fortnightly Giro. I wore jogging bottoms and trainers that cost a fiver from the market (I'm sure they are back in fashion now). I didn't know what to do with my life, and was fed up of getting up at noon each day without a purpose.
I grew up in a church boy's foster home that my parents ran, so decided to become a social worker - I didn't know of much else. I got a couple of 'A' levels, just, and decided to do Refrigeration and Air Conditioning course, which led to me working in a music shop in Cleethorpes - I had found my destiny! I made some very odd choices, but for the first time I knew I could shape my future by making decisions and then just doing it. The first step to changing where you're going is to step back from the things that are holding you back. It can be scary, especially if you've been in the same dead end for many years, but realize that things won't change unless you make them and take the first step. It may take a few go's to get it right, but a least you're heading in the right direction.
Let Go of the Ribbon
Three months after starting work in the music shop I got bored and applied to work in a Jobcentre. Like the Maypole dancers - you'll only keep going around in circles if you keep holding onto what is holding you back. Many of us carry baggage from previous employments or where we've come from that can hinder our progress. A bad report, an experience of bullying and feelings of inadequacy can become huge walls that we can't seem to move beyond when we decide to move on. You have to see that those things can only change when you decide to look past them and see what it is you can offer to an employer. Forget the past - it can't be changed - and all smart employers know that everyone makes mistakes and has regrets. What matters is what you do now. Will you take the opportunity and go for something you've always wanted - or will you stay where you are, let the opportunity pass by and stay unhappy, unsatisfied and unfulfilled? I realised that I couldn't change where I was going by looking at my current surroundings and what I knew today. I had to let go of my limits and take a chance on something new - forget the past and move on. Now I can see that, that decision was the most significant one of my life.
Move Off the Village Green
I worked in the Jobcentre for five years, got married and after five years applied for a promotion in Sheffield. I knew it was time to move away from what was familiar if my career was to go any further. I didn't see the full significance of that move to Sheffield then, but it was huge. I put myself in an environment totally unfamiliar and, if I'm honest, quite scary. Yet, it brought characteristics out of me that have meant I'm more appealing to employers. I've learnt how to adapt to change well, not because I had to, but because I chose to. When you put yourself through those experiences, you gain an independence and confidence that can put you leagues ahead of other candidates or employees.
For the five years after I moved to Sheffield, I was promoted eight times (not a usual occurrence), and ended up leading teams of over sixty people nationwide. Sometimes you have to move from your house, job, mindset or circle of friends to grow. Don't grow old stood on the village green thinking what is beyond, or you will never know. Make a choice, let go and get going - you just need to be you!