compliments of FutureVisions^SM

creating sustainable results in growth and performance

There are four basic blocks to success:

Bored: if your overriding feeling is one of boredom, the chances are that your deep interests are not engaged. You may enjoy the activities themselves (even perform them superbly) but the content leaves you cold. When the content of your job proves deeply uninteresting to you, you must change the job.

Unfulfilled: sometimes your block stems not from a lack of interest but from a lack of fulfilment. You may enjoy the activities of the job, even perform tem well, but your values are not engaged. You know you are starting to find your work grating, but you may have to examine your feelings quite closely before realizing that what's missing is the value component.

Frustrated: What happens if your interests and your values are both engaged but your strengths are not in play? If you are naturally empathic, you can't stifle it. You can't make yourself not sense the emotions of those around you. Yes, you can learn how to channel this strength more productively, just as you can learn how to avoid situations where it becomes counterproductive fo you to express it - for example, don't become a collections agent for a credit card company because it's hard to succeed in collections if you are forever empathizing with the person who is refusing to pay. But what you cannot do is shut it off completely. At least, not for long.

If your role represses your strengths, you may be able to hold them in for a short while but every day the pressure builds and builds, until they burst out. At that level, your only recourse is to find another rle entirely, one that gives your strengths free rein. If you can catch your frustrations before they reach the red zone, another, less drastic course of action is open to you: tweak your role so that a part of it plays to your strengths, experience some success, and then parlay this success into a new, changed role that plays to your strengths entirely. (Yes, you will need persistence.)

Drained: you can quit or try to tweak the role so that less of it calls upon your weaknesses. But if you catch yourself early enough, there are two other options. First, you can find someone else to do what you have to do. There is always someone who loves to do the things you hate most. Most successful people have a partner who excels in their area of weakness.

Failing this, find an aspect of the activity that brings you strength and always keep this aspect at the top of your mind. This intervention involves mind games, but in some instances it is the only option available.

_______________________________________________________________________________________