Good find from Dad

Something he got from somebody else. Good stuff. Dad is cool.

It's funny, too, about the car thing. I knew what I wanted, did my due diligence, still wanted it. And inasmuch as a car is (or can be) a representative of the self, I'm really, really pleased with my car.

I realized I put more thought into the purchase of an automobile than I did in my career. For my car purchase, I defined what I wanted, did research and got recommendations. I discovered I could do the same with my career.

I ask myself two sets of questions to develop career requirements.

Where would I like to be in my career in three years? How would I spend my day? What would be a success for me? What would be a failure? What would make me absolutely miserable? What would bring me joy?

What am I known for? What types of things do people come to me for? When people hear my name, what do they think of?

I then look at the responses. Do the things I am known for support the career I want?

For example only, let's say I want to be a java development team leader. I am known for my creativity, independence and working opposite hours from the rest of the team so I can get more done without being disturbed. What I am known for does not fully support the career I want. This is where I have to be honest with myself. If I really like working independently, do I really want to be a team leader? This is how meaningful career conversations begin.

Start with yourself. It's always easier to ask for directions when you have a destination.