I have been a working woman all my life! Apart from a few breaks here and there, I have had a job. Each of my job experience has been enriching and has taught me lessons for life. So for today I decided to chronicle my learnings from my jobs!
- Try everything that comes your way – When I started my career, I used to take on any job that was thrown my way. I was keen to learn and there is no better way to learn than on the job. So I tried every opportunity I could get. I was not afraid to ask questions from anyone nor was I bothered about people’s remarks. I was in it for myself! That is the only way you can grow in your career and as an individual.
- Failure is the stepping stone to success – Failure is the starting point of your success. I don’t even remember all the mistakes I made but every time, I learnt from it and moved to a better position. Humans are born to make mistakes but our role is to learn from them and become a better version of ourselves.
- A job is part of your life, not your life – I have seen a lot of people tying their identity and their whole self to the job that they do. In fact, I have made the same mistake. It is very easy thing to do when you are passionate about your work. But my mentor taught me how to break the pattern – she drew my circle of life and when we started chatting, job was a small dot in that circle. It had its place but it was not the whole circle. It has completely changed my outlook!
- Believe in yourself – I know it is a cliche phrase but this is my foundation stone – rock of my life. I am extremely self critical and set too high standards for myself. I am always surprised when people come and tell me how I have contributed to their lives and careers. My strong belief in myself and my values have helped me over the years.
- Don’t sacrifice your health – Burnout is common these days amongst working population. I used to be a workaholic and worked insane hours. But I am a changed woman now – no amount of success or wealth is worth my health. I now place my physical, mental and spiritual well being at the top. I still deliver my best performance at my job, but it is balanced with my personal needs.
- Don’t compromise your values – While a job and the money coming with it is important, it should not be at the expense of your values. A friend taught me that the true measure of success for her job was that she could sleep straight at night knowing that she has delivered her best with full integrity. That is my life mantra – I would rather leave a job than compromise on my values.
- Life is short – My jobs have given me immense pleasure and have a huge part in shaping the person I am today. But I don’t intend to make my job my life mission. Life is too short and I want to spend it with my loved ones. Of course I need a job to fund it 😊
Agree
Great post, Sonali