When you think about your career, do you think about your relationships?
I used to think that my friend group and my work colleagues were two very separate pieces of my life. Pieces that would never cross paths. Then I moved across the country — away from my circle of friends — so I was kind of forced to meet new people and form new friendships.
And they all came from my workplace. There were my colleagues, bosses, clients, and even counterparts from other companies.
Over the past 20 years, I have enjoyed the camaraderie and mentorship with amazing people who make up my network. And I consider myself incredibly blessed to have met and worked with this group of people.
They made me better. And I still look to them for advice, growth, friendship, and ideas.
We are now living in a time where a career is spent with many different companies, positions and even industries. The days of being dedicated to just one company or job are long gone.
This phenomenon is captured in the book “The Start Up of You” by Reid Hoffman (co-founder of LinkedIN) and Ben Casnocha. In it, they present the idea that each of us are entrepreneurs and that our careers are like a start up company. Here’s an excerpt from the book:
“To adapt to the challenges of professional life today and take control of our careers, we need to rediscover our entrepreneurial instincts and use them to forge new paths. Whether you’re a lawyer or a doctor, a teacher or an engineer, an Uber driver or even a business owner, in the twenty-first century you need to also think of yourself as an entrepreneur at the helm of at least one living, breathing, growing startup venture: your career.”
Such an interesting take. And a very real one. To adapt to the uncertainty of the global economy, we must change our perceptions. We must get comfortable with the idea of entrepreneurship and becoming the CEO of our own career.
Personally, this has been a hard thing for me to embrace since I’ve been hardwired into the old way of thinking. Entrepreneurship doesn’t come natural to me. How about you? Personally, I spent the majority of my career in the corporate world with one overall job, working for someone else on their ladder of success. That was what I knew, so I was comfortable with it.
Because of the economic uncertainty, many of us are working in several different jobs to create multiple streams of income to diversify risk. Although this concept has been around for a while, it has gained momentum with workers taking on multiple full time jobs. In fact, I just saw in the news that one man took on 8 full time jobs – all remote. And he planned on paying someone to be him whenever there was a need to be in person. Crazy stuff.
The world is speeding up. And it can feel overwhelming and uncertain with too many things moving all at once. So because of the incredible change happening and the increased speed of that change, we must lean on something for stability.
That is our network of friends.
Relationship has never been more important. Not only for our mental health, for downtime and fun, but also for our career and ability to make a good living.
Whether you are just starting out, or are in middle management or are on the last chapter of your career – or starting a completely new one, your relationships should be a strong foundation for you.
Turn on the news, read your Google feed or LinkedIN, and you will see how unstable the workplace is right now. Layoffs happening daily and en masse. AI is voraciously tearing through industries, disrupting and exchanging itself for current roles. And there is much, much more to come.
It is an uncertain time. It’s uncomfortable. And it can be scary.
I feel it too.
So lean into your network. We are always stronger together. Ideas form. Tasks are done quicker and better. We achieve more as a team than on our own.
And you are not on your own. You are surrounded by like-minded people who believe in you and are your network of friends.
🆕 Are you on the brink of breaking into a new career?
🪜 Are you ready to catapult yourself up the ladder of our organization?
🏢 Are you contemplating starting your own business?
📚 Writing your best seller book?
I hope you are. Because we are living in a time where our talents are needed and are being called out. We need to stretch ourselves and bring our voice to the masses. We have something to say or to share and it is time that we do just that.
So as you go into work tomorrow, instead of being bummed out that it is Monday or that you’re bored or scared for your job safety, start thinking about how you can lean on your network to spark the flame of your creativity, ideas, and growth. What is your start up?
You can Emerge Positive!
Positively,
deanne
