In the hustle and bustle, your true self comes out.
He mentioned this excellent sentence to a CEO who was trying to explain what he had learned about ourselves over the years. In this situation, he says, there is no way to pretend. I can’t pretend to have the patience to hear people’s opinions because they are too slow for me, and the pressure around me simply doesn’t allow me to waste any more energy on pretending, on being nice. I don’t really believe in it, so why should I try…
If on a normal day we can pretend and make an effort, on stressful days it just comes out of us, almost out of control. Our shaky places that are managed out of fear or shame, everything we try to hide from the world and ourselves, our weak points that are uncomfortable to admit.
Many of us work for years in jobs that don’t really suit them, investing a lot of energy and time to achieve goals that don’t really interest them, and after a few years find themselves paralyzed and having trouble moving, whether it’s because the status they’ve reached puts them in a golden cage, or because the fear of change after you’ve gotten used to living a certain way sticks.
What is your true motivation? What are your strengths? And for which profession or field of conduct are they more suitable? Whether it is excellence or creativity, money or learning, autonomy or teamwork, understanding what really motivates us helps us to make our choices more precise. True, we have both in us in different doses and in different aspects of life, but the questionnaire allows you to understand what is more, what activates you more easily and naturally, according to your prominent motivations to connect and choose a career and job that suits you better. For example, if your motivation is achievement, it would be right to be in jobs that require daily coping, with an emphasis on excellence, deadlines, management or at least self-management. If your motivation is more in the therapeutic aspect of communicating with people and helping, the type of people who will spend a lot of time listening to others and being there for others, it would be right to be in positions that will allow working with people and helping them on a daily basis. For example, a freelance programmer would be less suitable for such skills and motivations…
What are your characteristics? And your professional identity? What really motivates you? There are various tools that can help pinpoint both strengths, personality characteristics, and motivations. These tests are done online, some free of charge and some for a fee. But what you do with them after that is the most important thing. How you analyze and connect to your personal reality.
Work is our life, but not for us...
We live in an era where a significant portion of our waking hours are spent in work settings. Giving up meaningful work that is connected to skills, values, purpose, and substance is effectively giving up living your life your way.
Self-fulfillment is not an egoistic thing, but a distinct human need. The process of professional personal training for building a career is definitely not a luxury or concern for “me” alone. The process of self-fulfillment in a career requires thought and understanding about the meaning of life in the way it is expressed in practice. We can ask it the other way around, what is the meaning of living a life that is not yours? If it is not your voice, your opinions, doing things your way, your authenticity, then what is your name?
Work is a significant part of our lives, and therefore it is important that we get the most out of it, for ourselves. For the enjoyment, personal development, achievement, sense of value and belonging, and, no less importantly, livelihood. But it is not the only parameter in a meaningful career. And yes, it is true, work can only be work and not a career, but over the years it becomes very frustrating.
Examine your career from several angles
You don’t have to stop everything to examine what’s really important to me at this stage of my life. You don’t have to change jobs or take time off from everything to give yourself time to think deeply. On the contrary. The lack of pressure to find a new place can be an excellent time to examine things deeply. Ask yourself questions like, am I in the right place for me right now in terms of interest, role, influence, organization. Do I connect with what’s happening, do I care? What works for me and what doesn’t.
To help and pinpoint what career best suits my character, my values and principles, my way of thinking, my personal characteristics, and my motivations, a number of tests have been developed in recent years that help map strengths, motivations, and bring from global research and statistics what people with motivations like yours would be right to associate with themselves as a career. What are the central characteristics that are important to you and how do they connect to the characteristics of the various professions.
People whose most important motivation is independence at work will develop a different career than people whose main motivation is security.
"People whose work doesn't reflect their skills tend to suffer from depression..."
This is what a 2013 Gallup poll found, and the implications of this are clear for both the organization and the individual. Why stay in a job like this and pay a high personal and social health price? All the correct answers will begin with the phrase fear of…. Financial or class success also does not necessarily lead to a sense of satisfaction. Surprisingly, money is not a satisfying factor in light of time.
And what happens to people who are satisfied with their careers? Satisfaction of enthusiasm and accomplishment on a personal level, but also involvement of interest and high motivation to perform at an organizational level. What is the difference? The main difference is between a person who takes responsibility for his career, understands what is right and seeks ways to realize his abilities in the workplace, and someone who flows with what is without examining what is truly important and meaningful to you, what arouses your passion in the workplace, what your personal motivation is that will make you do more. Because after all, each of us has a different mix of desires and motivations. When we are in places where our motivation is welcomed and appreciated, we do more and enjoy it more.
So what's the secret?
The secret is to know what really motivates you. Whether it’s excellence or creativity, money or learning, autonomy or teamwork, understanding what really motivates us helps us make our choices more precise. True, we have both in different doses and in different aspects of life, but it’s important to understand what is more, what activates us more easily and naturally, depending on the interest, your strengths, and your prominent motivations. Because if your motivation is achievement, it would be right to be in jobs that require daily coping, with an emphasis on excellence, deadlines, management, or at least self-management. But if your motivation, your interest, your curiosity, is more therapeutic, helping people, listening to others and being there for them, it would be right to choose a career path, a role, that will allow working with people and helping them on a daily basis. For example, an independent programmer would probably be less right. The difficulty begins with our unique combination of human beings with a variety of skills, and worldviews regarding what work, money, and other values affect decision-making.
