I am a big supporter of being able to help people find who they really, truly are. Years ago, when I was taking my business programme, one thing stuck out in my mind, and has never really gone away. This thing is something that would not surprise anyone, but is all too true. Only approximately 4% of people love their job. The other 96% are not satisfied with what they are doing. In other words, their needs are not being met. When this occurs, you are creating a work environment that is hostile, only because you have ‘disgruntled’ employees. And guess what: if you are not happy with your job, you are part of the problem. Crazy, huh? How many of us go to work, have to look at the same things all the time, and not get any satisfaction out of it at all what-so-ever?
Why does this phenomenon occur? Perhaps instead of why, we should look at how. When we are toddlers, toddling around, our parents and family have already decided what we are going to be. It is predetermined what we will be able to do or not do. Don’t believe me? Look at it this way. How many of us looked at our own children, as toddlers, and said, "she/he is stubborn," "she/he loves science, they are going to go into science," "she is a tomboy," "he likes to play with dolls." It may seem to be insignificant, but when you get down to brass tacks, you are creating the environment that is developing your child's self-esteem and self-worth. You are creating the foundation that is ultimately going to decide your child's future. We put pressure on our children to become the best that we want them to be. It is really not a bad thing, but our true intentions are not what they appear to be. I know that I have mentioned the ego before, but it is something that really needs to be put in check when you are dealing with people.
Helping people is something that I enjoy doing, with some exceptions. Those exceptions really are when I am using my own judgement and I know that person would be much better off by me letting them do whatever it is on their own. They might not agree with my decision, but so far, I haven’t been wrong. Discovering your own potential is more important than you think. I truly believe that finding out what your potential is is a key to happiness. When it comes to parenting, perhaps employing this idea would create a confident person who knows what their potential is. Don’t ever leave them guessing. Hey, they could end up like me, a million ideas, but no solid leads. This past year, I have developed and honed in on my ability to write, and write well. I am finding my potential, and for me, at 34, it feels great. One piece of advice I heard a long time ago started with one question. The question was quite simple but extremely difficult to answer. It was, "What do you love to do?” This question was followed with, "So now, think of the thing that you love to do, and imagine how you could make money doing it?" It is not easy to look at yourself and really, and I mean really, understand what it is that you truly love doing. On top of that, coming up with a plan to make money off of it is the soul-sucking aspect of the question. For myself, personally, if I find something that I love to do, and I can live comfortably (you know, the basics; roof over head, food on table, and warmth when I am cold), that truly would be awesome. I mean, the truest meaning of the word of awesome, a "take my breath away" moment. What would the world look like if we all decided to live our lives like that? Could we function in a society where everyone was doing the one thing that made them happy? I bet the divorce rates would drop. I bet violence and impoverished places would be lessened. People may stop feeling sorry for themselves, and stop comparing their lives to others. After all, they have created their own personal utopias.
I know this is not possible, right? No way, no how. Well, I declare that it is possible.
Here is a story for your entertainment. When I was living in Cape Breton a few years ago, one of the jobs that I had was being a customer service representative for a call centre. If ever there was a more soul-sucking job out there, it is the life of a customer service representative, who has to call people and offer phone service to them. I used to refer to it as modern day slavery. You are working in an economically depressed area, and the business industry is offering jobs that barely pay more than minimum wage, with no benefits, and the business encourages their employees to do things that for me were morally questionable at best. I hated calling people. They obviously had phone service; I was calling them. Quite frankly, for me, it is almost impossible for me to be forced to believe that I am able to help these people when I know that all the company cares about is the bottom line. The best thing that happened to me was that that particular call center lost their contract with the "major phone company from the US," which in turn caused me to be unemployed. During my time at the call center, one thing that was prominently shown to me every day that I was there was that there was a whole bunch of people who had great talents, and they were in a situation that reinforced in them that this was not true. Like I said before, one of the things that I did was I graduated from NSCC with a two-year diploma in Business Administration, with a concentration in management. One of the many talents that I do have is the ability to sell people through their resume. Actually, when my supervisors realized that the account was being shut down, well, I wasn’t on the phone at all. They instead had me creating and writing resumes for them, to better themselves for their next jobs. It was easy enough for me, but extremely difficult at the same time. The real challenge when doing this is attempting to inform people that they are underselling themselves and that they should really think outside the box when they are applying for jobs. You could ask me anything about you, and I will be honest, but for some reason, I have this knack for "spin lingo," and I have the great ability to sell.
Remember the saying, "One man’s trash is another man’s treasure?" Well, we are all unique individuals with unique dreams and aspirations. That call center job that I absolutely hated, well there is someone out there for whom this is truly a dream job. Although a lot of people are against outsourcing, in India (where a lot of our call center jobs were relocated) that job that I hated has changed the lives of thousands of Indians. Those who were impoverished are now living in beautiful apartments, and are living quite well.
Look deep into your own self and discover your potential. Figure out what it is that you are truly meant to be doing that will satisfy you in every way possible, but most importantly, do what makes you happy. After all, we only have one shot at this (unless you believe in reincarnation), so let’s make this one count.
Remember, the person who is the most critical of you, and who can do the most damage, is you. You are your own potential. You just have to find it inside you.
As Always,
Happy Does It! :o)
Why does this phenomenon occur? Perhaps instead of why, we should look at how. When we are toddlers, toddling around, our parents and family have already decided what we are going to be. It is predetermined what we will be able to do or not do. Don’t believe me? Look at it this way. How many of us looked at our own children, as toddlers, and said, "she/he is stubborn," "she/he loves science, they are going to go into science," "she is a tomboy," "he likes to play with dolls." It may seem to be insignificant, but when you get down to brass tacks, you are creating the environment that is developing your child's self-esteem and self-worth. You are creating the foundation that is ultimately going to decide your child's future. We put pressure on our children to become the best that we want them to be. It is really not a bad thing, but our true intentions are not what they appear to be. I know that I have mentioned the ego before, but it is something that really needs to be put in check when you are dealing with people.
Helping people is something that I enjoy doing, with some exceptions. Those exceptions really are when I am using my own judgement and I know that person would be much better off by me letting them do whatever it is on their own. They might not agree with my decision, but so far, I haven’t been wrong. Discovering your own potential is more important than you think. I truly believe that finding out what your potential is is a key to happiness. When it comes to parenting, perhaps employing this idea would create a confident person who knows what their potential is. Don’t ever leave them guessing. Hey, they could end up like me, a million ideas, but no solid leads. This past year, I have developed and honed in on my ability to write, and write well. I am finding my potential, and for me, at 34, it feels great. One piece of advice I heard a long time ago started with one question. The question was quite simple but extremely difficult to answer. It was, "What do you love to do?” This question was followed with, "So now, think of the thing that you love to do, and imagine how you could make money doing it?" It is not easy to look at yourself and really, and I mean really, understand what it is that you truly love doing. On top of that, coming up with a plan to make money off of it is the soul-sucking aspect of the question. For myself, personally, if I find something that I love to do, and I can live comfortably (you know, the basics; roof over head, food on table, and warmth when I am cold), that truly would be awesome. I mean, the truest meaning of the word of awesome, a "take my breath away" moment. What would the world look like if we all decided to live our lives like that? Could we function in a society where everyone was doing the one thing that made them happy? I bet the divorce rates would drop. I bet violence and impoverished places would be lessened. People may stop feeling sorry for themselves, and stop comparing their lives to others. After all, they have created their own personal utopias.
I know this is not possible, right? No way, no how. Well, I declare that it is possible.
Here is a story for your entertainment. When I was living in Cape Breton a few years ago, one of the jobs that I had was being a customer service representative for a call centre. If ever there was a more soul-sucking job out there, it is the life of a customer service representative, who has to call people and offer phone service to them. I used to refer to it as modern day slavery. You are working in an economically depressed area, and the business industry is offering jobs that barely pay more than minimum wage, with no benefits, and the business encourages their employees to do things that for me were morally questionable at best. I hated calling people. They obviously had phone service; I was calling them. Quite frankly, for me, it is almost impossible for me to be forced to believe that I am able to help these people when I know that all the company cares about is the bottom line. The best thing that happened to me was that that particular call center lost their contract with the "major phone company from the US," which in turn caused me to be unemployed. During my time at the call center, one thing that was prominently shown to me every day that I was there was that there was a whole bunch of people who had great talents, and they were in a situation that reinforced in them that this was not true. Like I said before, one of the things that I did was I graduated from NSCC with a two-year diploma in Business Administration, with a concentration in management. One of the many talents that I do have is the ability to sell people through their resume. Actually, when my supervisors realized that the account was being shut down, well, I wasn’t on the phone at all. They instead had me creating and writing resumes for them, to better themselves for their next jobs. It was easy enough for me, but extremely difficult at the same time. The real challenge when doing this is attempting to inform people that they are underselling themselves and that they should really think outside the box when they are applying for jobs. You could ask me anything about you, and I will be honest, but for some reason, I have this knack for "spin lingo," and I have the great ability to sell.
Remember the saying, "One man’s trash is another man’s treasure?" Well, we are all unique individuals with unique dreams and aspirations. That call center job that I absolutely hated, well there is someone out there for whom this is truly a dream job. Although a lot of people are against outsourcing, in India (where a lot of our call center jobs were relocated) that job that I hated has changed the lives of thousands of Indians. Those who were impoverished are now living in beautiful apartments, and are living quite well.
Look deep into your own self and discover your potential. Figure out what it is that you are truly meant to be doing that will satisfy you in every way possible, but most importantly, do what makes you happy. After all, we only have one shot at this (unless you believe in reincarnation), so let’s make this one count.
Remember, the person who is the most critical of you, and who can do the most damage, is you. You are your own potential. You just have to find it inside you.
As Always,
Happy Does It! :o)
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