"Spark" Your Career

 

In a recent blog post, business coach Faye Hollands said that she "regularly work[s] with people who feel as though the spark has gone out of their career". Many people in this situation believe that a simple career change will solve their problems.

But if simply quitting your job was enough to reinvigorate you, then why is it that you often face the same problem later in your career? The question here is whether "spark" has more to do with your personal attitude than with the company environment.

Hollands states that identifying your "values" is pivotal for every person who has reached that fork in the road. "Values" are those things that you deem to be important, those core beliefs you genuinely and truly hold. Values are not tangible objects; we are often unaware or perhaps only have a "rough idea" of what they are. And we're not talking about religious beliefs here either. We're talking about the things which affect your attitude - What is it that makes you happy? What is it that makes you tick? These aspects can be fundamental in determining what your approach to people, work and life will be.

Hollands uses the term "emotions" to define "values". This implies that values are often incredibly sensitive and personal bits of information. To use an example, most people have been in situations where they have been completely taken by surprise. These can occur in any environment, whether it be within friendships, relationships, education or workplace. Often these events come about as the result of people or situations which have questioned or gone against our own values. The values which you hold may directly conflict with the values which another person holds. This does not make them any less valid, and it isn't necessarily a bad thing. Being open to new ideas and new values is important in developing yourself and your career.

What I am suggesting here is that by identifying your values, you will be able to better assess whether your current attitude is a phenomenon caused by internal or external factors. Is it simply as the result of your own personal attitude that you are currently stuck in a rut? Or are there other people, situations or events which have had influence?

Now that you can understand what values are, you may wonder how to apply these to your current work situation. If you have lost your "spark", ask yourself this question - Does your working environment question or go against your current values? If the answer is yes, you need to evaluate whether your job is the only factor and to what extent your job has contributed to your attitude. 

So if you're currently stuck in a rut, take a closer look at whether your approach is the result of your own personal attitude. We may not be able to anticipate what life will throw at us, but we do have some control over what our response will be.

 

[Source: Recruiter Daily October 2010]