Recently there was a discussion at the Gartner Catalyst Conference where a question was asked to share approaches and strategies of survival and career transformation. As you know, your profession is not a one-time decision. You need to consistently transform to survive in our ever-changing environment. With this question in mind, I would like to share my thoughts and approach.
The only thing that is constant is change. I have embraced this statement with a passion in both my professional and personal life. Over the past 20 years, nothing has remained static and a couple of the keys for me are manage my state, never stop learning and continuously reinvent myself. It is stated that one only controls 10% of everything in their life. With this in mind, the focus becomes how do I think, act, respond and change to survive in a past paced ever-changing environment.
A couple of key things come to mind:
Never stop learning. Every day I spend at least an hour learning something new. When it comes to projects, I could spend 2-5+ hours a day researching and learning how to approach, frame and develop my ideas for execution.
Always look forward. The past matters, but look in the rear-view mirror only to learn from the past as living in or dwelling in it will get you nowhere. Keep an eye on the future to figure out where you are going and what you need to do to get there.
Invest in yourself. I am always investing in myself. Whether this is knowledge, health, family, career, etc. it is critical that you take time to invest in personal and professional growth. Without this I would be unable to continuously transform. Much of my investment has been through reading books on diverse subjects to accelerate my thinking and improve my approaches.
Learn from others. Hire a coach, find mentors, start a mastermind group. Growth and transformation cannot be done in isolation. Reach out to people and learn from their successes, failures and overall knowledge. Always ask questions.
Play. This is required for both survival and transformation. Play clears your mind, distresses you and sets the stage for the next challenge and growth. This is an essential component that many forget.
Aspire to greatness. We are capable of just about anything we put our minds to. Always think “do”. Nike’s slogan “Just do it.” is perfect for this. Take time to read inspiring books, watch inspiring videos and think positive to be positive, then take massive action.
Career transformation and survival for me comes down to preparedness and more importantly what I focus on. I learned long ago that much of my ability to survive and transform comes down to my “state”. State being what’s going on inside my head. The above is a simple recipe to managing state and being able embrace constant change and uncertainty.