The alphabet of your career path – D is for Dare & Doubt

Playing it safe in life is boring. Playing it safe in your career can be not only boring but also catastrophic. What makes life worth living is taking risks and embracing change. However, this is even more true in your professional life, when people feel self-doubt and anxiety when they step out of their comfort zones.

One question I ask my coaching clients is “what do you do for professional development?” The answer many times is “not much” or “nothing” and they follow it with “I don’t have time”, “I work long hours” or “between work and family, I’m stretched”. However, if you put in some time for professional development, you could learn new skills or improve existing ones, open your mind to new solutions to a problem, and/or get a better position. Doesn’t that sound great?

Even if you spend 15 minutes a day, six days a week developing yourself, do you realize that by the end of the year you will have accumulated 4,680 minutes or, in other words, 78 hours of learning? Think of the possibilities!

However, to be truly successful in your career, you must go further. Continuous learning along with taking some risks is the key. Dare to do something new or do something you failed to do a long time ago is important to grow professionally. As an example, I was an exchange student when I was in high school. It was a domestic program, so this New Yorker lived in Santa Barbara, CA for a semester. I was asked to give presentations to my school of 1,800 students, as well as other schools in the state, about my experience. I know my talks were a bit boring and stiff. Fast forward 20 years and now I wanted to become a corporate trainer and presenter. Anxiety and fear of rejection almost stopped me, so I took baby steps. Initially I invited friends to listen to my presentations and later offered to do others for free at career transition group meetings. I also closely watched other speakers, either in person or at Ted Talks. Over time I continued to hone my presentation skills and now speak at a wide variety of corporate events and conferences, as well as being an adjunct professor at two universities.

I have taken other risks in my life and I admit that some have not worked out as well, however I realize that they were still learning lessons. So I challenge you to dare once this summer. Do not make excuses. Some ideas might be asking for a raise or promotion; request a transfer when you need to relocate or change departments or divisions; take a class; obtain a certificate; watch a webinar; read business books; listen to podcasts; or a really big one is quitting the job you hate and finally getting a position so you can have the career of your dreams. If it’s possible for me and others, then you can do it too. Now start!