{"id":194,"date":"2009-11-09T14:01:00","date_gmt":"2009-11-09T14:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/career-advice\/do-what-you-do-best\/"},"modified":"2019-10-19T07:47:05","modified_gmt":"2019-10-19T14:47:05","slug":"do-what-you-do-best","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/do-what-you-do-best\/","title":{"rendered":"Do what you do best!"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>By Craig Kitch<br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-4754\" style=\"vertical-align: baseline;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/11\/Do_what_you_do_best.jpg\" alt=\"Do_what_you_do_best\" width=\"132\" height=\"209\" \/>When I was a kid, I thought I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life.\u00a0\u00a0 I knew the things I enjoyed and I knew what I was good at.\u00a0 But somewhere along the way I lost that dream.\u00a0 Looking back, I realize that it was conditioned out of me.\u00a0 Well-meaning people who loved me and cared about me nudged me in more sensible directions and I conformed to their wishes.<br \/>\nRemember when you were in school?\u00a0 You brought home a report card with varying grades.\u00a0 Lets say you made an \u201cA\u201d in History and a \u201cD\u201d in Arithmetic.\u00a0 What was the response from your teachers and parents?\u00a0 You were told to \u201cwork harder on your arithmetic\u201d.\u00a0 Now when it comes to school, that is clearly the appropriate response.\u00a0 The fact is we will not do well in society if we cannot balance a checkbook, read instructions or any number of other necessary skills.\u00a0 However, that system conditions us during the first 18 years of our life to be constantly working on the things we are not so good at doing.\u00a0 Additionally, our parents want to see us in secure jobs with benefits (no matter what the task is or how well it fits our natural skills and personality) and so they influence our job search after school as well.<\/p>\n<div class=\"content_ad_right\"><\/div>\n<p>Aristotle said, <em>\u201cWhere your greatest talents and the world\u2019s greatest needs cross, there lies your vocation.\u201d\u00a0<\/em> You should end each week saying, &#8221; I can&#8217;t believe they pay me to do this!\u201d Unfortunately, most people say they would <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/quitting-your-job-how-to-leave-your-job-on-a-high-note\/\">quit their current job<\/a> if they won the lottery. Chances are you won&#8217;t win the lottery, but the truth is you CAN earn a living doing something you love. Your work should not only provide for your financial needs, but should also reward you inwardly.<\/p>\n<p>BE ENCOURAGED.\u00a0 If this sounds like the situation you are in, you can do something about it.\u00a0 Here are five basic steps you can take to move into a career you will be passionate about.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/dream-job-can-you-answer\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Determine what you really want to do<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0 I recommend getting away for a few hours or even a day to a place where you are undisturbed. Now daydream.\u00a0 As possibilities arise, write them down.\u00a0 Do not judge them at this point.\u00a0 Simply write down everything that comes to mind.\u00a0 You my end up with a list of 15 or 20 ideas, that\u2019s okay.\u00a0 You may end up with a list of 3 ideas, which is okay as well.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Eliminate the unreasonable.<\/strong>\u00a0 Begin to scratch off the ideas that you don\u2019t really have the natural ability to do (you may want some feedback from a spouse or close friend for this).\u00a0 As an example, I would love to be a Rock Star with incredible sex appeal.\u00a0 The problem is that I am a middle aged, balding, overweight guy that cannot sing or play an instrument. So, Rock Star gets cut from the list.\u00a0 As you pare down your list, you will begin to see a pattern form.\u00a0 You will end up with a handful of career interests that you would enjoy and they will most likely share some of the same functions that you have a natural ability to do.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Make a plan.\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0 Set some specific goals to methodically move you toward your dream.\u00a0 How long this takes depends on where you are now and where you want to go.\u00a0 If you decide you want to be a physician, you will have some schooling ahead of you.\u00a0 If you simply want to transfer your management skills from one industry to another, you may be able to make that happen pretty quickly.\u00a0\u00a0 Whatever your desire, you will have a much greater hold on success by writing down a specific plan and then following it.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Visualize your dream daily.<\/strong>\u00a0 Most people fail to step out in faith and make the necessary sacrifices to realize their dream because they can\u2019t really see their dream coming true.\u00a0 Spend a couple of minutes every morning and every evening seeing yourself living your dream.\u00a0 Visualize your success, your happiness and excitement in working at what you are truly passionate about.\u00a0 Visualizing the end goal and seeing yourself progressing towards it will help you get through the potholes of life as you move toward your dream.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Stay focused.\u00a0 <\/strong>This is simply the most important and the most difficult of all the steps.\u00a0 Most people that fail do so because they lose focus.\u00a0 I will admit that I get sidetracked myself and I have put some systems in place to keep me focused.\u00a0 I have checklists that I follow and a wonderful wife who is not afraid to ask me what I accomplished towards my goal today. Whatever your method, make sure you get up every day and stay on track as you move towards your dream.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>YOU CAN DO IT!\u00a0 As I write this, I am aware that a number of people will disconnect somewhere along the way because they think they have missed their chance, not gained enough experience or some other self-disqualifier.\u00a0 WRONG!\u00a0 You are not too young. You are not too old.\u00a0 You are not too short, too tall, too skinny or too fat.\u00a0 You are standing in the perfect place to begin.\u00a0 Bill Gates dropped out of college his junior year\u00a0 to start a company that has revolutionized the world.\u00a0 Colonel Sanders didn\u2019t get the right fried chicken formula until he was 66 years old.\u00a0\u00a0 Grandma Moses (arguably one of America\u2019s most renowned painters) did not start painting until she was 74 and her paintings did not become popular until she was in her 80\u2019s.<\/p>\n<p>I love the old Chinese proverb that says:\u00a0 \u201cThe best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago.\u00a0 The second best time is now\u201d.\u00a0 So what are you waiting for?\u00a0\u00a0 You can do whatever you want to do.\u00a0 Don\u2019t waste this wonderful blessing to become everything you were meant to be.\u00a0 Whether it takes you 6 months or 6 years to reach your dream, it won\u2019t happen if you don\u2019t get started.\u00a0 By the way, the journey is not bad either.<\/p>\n<p>Craig Kitch works with managers to reduce conflict and improve communication so that everyone can stay focused on their jobs.\u00a0 He began his professional life as a broadcaster, where he learned the power of the spoken word. He took those skills with him into the hospitality industry where he had a very successful career for over 20 years. Working in management, Craig developed the skills necessary to pull teams of people together and lead them to accomplish ambitious goals. He eventually became a \u201cturn around specialist\u201d, using those skills to remedy problematic properties.<br \/>\nToday Craig runs his own business, Kitch and Associates, and is dedicated to improving the lives of managers.\u00a0 He serves on the Board of Directors for the Greater Nashville Hotel and Lodging Association and he is President of the National Speakers Association for the State of Tennessee.<\/p>\n<p>For more information go to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.CraigKitch.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">www.CraigKitch.com<\/a> or call 615-378-0120.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Related to Do what you do best!<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/quitting-your-job-how-to-leave-your-job-on-a-high-note\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Quitting Your Job &#8211; How to Leave Your Job on a High Note<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/dream-job-can-you-answer\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Dream Job: Can You Answer?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/career-planning-goals-make-some-resolutions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Career planning goals &#8211; make some resolutions<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When I was a kid, I thought I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life.   I knew the things I enjoyed and I knew what I was good at.  But somewhere along the way I lost that dream.  Looking back, I realize that it was conditioned out of me.  Well-meaning people who loved me and cared about me nudged me in more sensible directions and I conformed to their wishes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[11],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=194"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6554,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194\/revisions\/6554"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=194"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=194"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bcjobs.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=194"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}