A formal education is a great place to gather information. To ensure we memorize that information, we are given homework and class assignments. Then the instructor administers tests to see how much information we retained. If you pass those tests, many believe they have earned the title of being the best at their craft. What those people fail to realize is that they only know information. To be the best, takes training and practice. In most cases, that requires a specific focus on initiatives to develop mastery of skills and competencies.
While a formal education is important, it is not necessarily the path to master one's craft. Education provides information and information does not cause action. For example, many people have information on how to lose weight. Yet, they take no actions to lose it. If we stay with that example, losing weight requires practices. Each day one takes on practices that support the intention. Too often, people believe the intention is to lose weight. This belief obscures both information and practices. While it's true the information about dieting may appear to be about losing weight, the information itself cannot make it happen. If you go beyond the information of weight loss diets, you will see that it is about being healthy. One step further could lead you to being physically fit.
The outcome of heath and physical fitness cannot be realized through information. There must be a training regimen in place to support the realization of proper diet and/or exercise. And you practice on a daily basis. What does this have to do with formal education? Everything!
As with a diet, information from books will unlikely give one mastery over their profession. If it did, that could be a problem since 42% of college graduates never read another book after they graduate. Therefore, like a weight lose program, one must be clear about the intentions of their profession. If a person simply wants a to have a job, that intention will produce one outcome. If it is to master a profession, it will require training during and outside of work to support that outcome. And the training doesn't stop because you have the job of your desire.
How do you train to master your profession? Like dieting, if you are only reading books, there is a chance you will have only information. And it does not guarantee you will be the best.
Those who master their profession learn to invent it. When you look at people like Muhammad Ali, Michael Angelo, Albert Einstein and Michael Jordan, you see examples of people who mastered their craft. Even though their professions existed before they were born, they invented the future of their craft. They may have studied books, watched competitors and imagined new ways. They also carved out time to contemplate outcomes that had not been achieved by anyone as well as time to experiment with new training methods. Without the commitment to produce results beyond what they read in books, they would have been just as good as everyone else who read the same book.
As you can see, information is not the panacea to achieve mastery. It might help you gain insight into an area of life that may interest you. It is not sufficient to distinguish you in a crowd a many. If you haven't guessed, the training that makes you a master will have to be made up or invented by you. It is the outcomes you seek that will determine the kinds of training you choose. Good luck!
What do you think? I'm open to ideas. Or if you want to write me about a specific topic, connect through my blog www.turnaroundip.blogspot.com. Ted Santos
Showing posts with label Career. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Career. Show all posts
Career Change Options - What's Your Best Way Forward?
Are you getting bored and frustrated in your job? Is it time for a new challenge? Are you wondering what career change options might be open to you?
Well, that all depends on how ready you are to take a big, bold step, or whether you want to play safe for now.
Many people are afraid to change careers, especially with all this talk of recession. A new career seems like a risky move, and discretion often seems the better part of valour.
But career change does not always have to involve a radical shift. Below, I outline the three main career change options open to you. Which is the best fit for you at this moment in time?
New job, same company
If you have worked for the same organisation for some time, they will know you well and will understand what your particular strengths and abilities are. A considerable amount of time will have been invested in you through formal and informal training, so it makes sound business sense for them to continue to take advantage of that investment and keep you on the team.
But if you are feeling bored, or undervalued in your job, why not have an honest and open discussion with your manager or with your HR team about the possibility of a move within the company? This might initially just be some kind of job swop or short to medium term secondment. This could be just the shot in the arm you need to revitalise your interest. It could lead to a permanent role switch or might just rekindle your enthusiasm for your work generally. Why not give it a try? If you don't ask, you'll never know what is possible.
New company, same job
This is an alternative strategy that will allow you to continue to take advantage of the skills and experience you have gained, but put them to use in a new environment. The main change here is the context in which you are working. This is not just about a change to a very similar situation, but one where you intentionally seek out an organisation that is very different. It could be much bigger or much smaller. It could be a switch from private to public sector. It could be a change to an organisation with very different values from your current one.
The advantage of this kind of move is that you can be confident about what you have to offer as you are building directly on your current experience. You can argue that your previous employment will mean that you can bring in a valuable new perspective. Does this sound like what you need?
Complete career change
This is the big one. You need to think carefully whether you feel ready and able to take this radical step and move out into completely new territory. Yes, this is a challenging step to take, but if the two other options listed above leave you feeling uninspired, maybe the time is right to be bold. Sometimes having the courage to take the bigger risk can result in much greater rewards in the long term.
I do not recommend taking an unplanned leap in the dark when you are considering a total change of direction. It is well worth spending time and effort exploring in detail what new career ideas are worth serious consideration. Remember, even a total change can still allow you to use many of the skills you have developed in your work and life so far, but at the same time it can also be an opportunity to develop new skills which have lain dormant in you up to now. Are you ready to give it a try?
And one more option...?
Well, you could always do nothing. Just put your head down and slog through another week in a boring and unfulfilling job. But is that really how you want to spend your life? No, I thought not. So it is down to you to take action, to make some kind of change so that you can feel that you are driving your career rather than your career driving you.
And if you are seriously interested in making a complete career change, then I invite you to visit the How To Change Careers website and download a copy of my free ebook 11? Ways To Kick Start Your Career Change http://www.how-to-change-careers.com/kick-start-your-career-change.html
From Cherry Douglas, Your Career Change Guide
Well, that all depends on how ready you are to take a big, bold step, or whether you want to play safe for now.
Many people are afraid to change careers, especially with all this talk of recession. A new career seems like a risky move, and discretion often seems the better part of valour.
But career change does not always have to involve a radical shift. Below, I outline the three main career change options open to you. Which is the best fit for you at this moment in time?
New job, same company
If you have worked for the same organisation for some time, they will know you well and will understand what your particular strengths and abilities are. A considerable amount of time will have been invested in you through formal and informal training, so it makes sound business sense for them to continue to take advantage of that investment and keep you on the team.
But if you are feeling bored, or undervalued in your job, why not have an honest and open discussion with your manager or with your HR team about the possibility of a move within the company? This might initially just be some kind of job swop or short to medium term secondment. This could be just the shot in the arm you need to revitalise your interest. It could lead to a permanent role switch or might just rekindle your enthusiasm for your work generally. Why not give it a try? If you don't ask, you'll never know what is possible.
New company, same job
This is an alternative strategy that will allow you to continue to take advantage of the skills and experience you have gained, but put them to use in a new environment. The main change here is the context in which you are working. This is not just about a change to a very similar situation, but one where you intentionally seek out an organisation that is very different. It could be much bigger or much smaller. It could be a switch from private to public sector. It could be a change to an organisation with very different values from your current one.
The advantage of this kind of move is that you can be confident about what you have to offer as you are building directly on your current experience. You can argue that your previous employment will mean that you can bring in a valuable new perspective. Does this sound like what you need?
Complete career change
This is the big one. You need to think carefully whether you feel ready and able to take this radical step and move out into completely new territory. Yes, this is a challenging step to take, but if the two other options listed above leave you feeling uninspired, maybe the time is right to be bold. Sometimes having the courage to take the bigger risk can result in much greater rewards in the long term.
I do not recommend taking an unplanned leap in the dark when you are considering a total change of direction. It is well worth spending time and effort exploring in detail what new career ideas are worth serious consideration. Remember, even a total change can still allow you to use many of the skills you have developed in your work and life so far, but at the same time it can also be an opportunity to develop new skills which have lain dormant in you up to now. Are you ready to give it a try?
And one more option...?
Well, you could always do nothing. Just put your head down and slog through another week in a boring and unfulfilling job. But is that really how you want to spend your life? No, I thought not. So it is down to you to take action, to make some kind of change so that you can feel that you are driving your career rather than your career driving you.
And if you are seriously interested in making a complete career change, then I invite you to visit the How To Change Careers website and download a copy of my free ebook 11? Ways To Kick Start Your Career Change http://www.how-to-change-careers.com/kick-start-your-career-change.html
From Cherry Douglas, Your Career Change Guide
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