Have you ever asked yourself the question; do I love what I do? Or, am I passionate about my career? No matter who you are, we all have bad weeks. However, some people experience bad months and even years. Unfortunately there are a lot of people out there doing what they do because they feel they have no choice. This frame of mind couldn’t be further from the truth.
We all have the opportunity to choose again, sometimes you just need a catalyst to do so.
But what if you could change again without something so major happening? Or, what if you could transform your role now into something you do like more or dare I say, even love.
Change can happen, usually one step at a time, and make what you currently do better.
- Assess what you do like about what you do
There is always something that you like, whether it is the people, the tasks, the contact with clients. Whatever it is, it is a big indicator of your passion. Focussing on these tasks could lead you to what you really should be doing. Make a list of the things you like, and rate the percentages of how often you get to do them in an average week.
- Write a list of what you don’t like about what you do
Jot down all the tasks that you don’t like to do. Is it admin, the people, or the hours? Whatever the gripe is, write it down and apply the same strategy as before by placing percentages against how often you do each task. Also try and think about how much of this is necessary and how much you do because you have not really thought about how to change the current situation. For example, can you delegate some of this to someone else or even outsource it to a third-party? - Now crunch the numbers.
Figure out how much of the things you love make you money. No doubt some of the tasks you enjoy are revenue producing. Start to assess how you could do more of them and replace the other tasks with other roles. If you own a business, this could be an easier (and profitable) task. Once you have created a timeline and revenue forecast, assign roles to the tasks you don’t like, particularly the less profitable tasks.
For those in a defined role in an organisation, this may mean a frank conversation with your boss about the value you could add if a new role was given to you.
Many people believe things can’t change, especially in large organisations. But if you make a logical enough case, backed up by revenue assumptions and a way forward, you may be surprised at your ability to create the perfect role and create a win/win for you and the company. Life is too short to accept the status quo. Start making a change today.
Vanessa Stoykov is the founder of No More Practice, and the founder of the parent company, evolution media group in 1999. She has over 20 years’ experience in financial services as both a journalist and business owner. She is an award winning chief executive who is passionate about creating education and communications to help the wealth industry and consumers fulfill their prosperity potential.
