Throughout my career I have always taken charge in which direction I was going. My ultimate goal was always to be successful and help lead a company and in getting there I have always utilised my strengths and never been led by others.

 

Whilst working for companies our direction can be set by our bosses and company owners dependant on where they want their business to go.

These are forces which we cannot control – we can embrace them and learn lessons from being in that organisation or if we are not happy with that direction we can find something new.

 

I have always had great self-awareness and been able to channel my strengths within businesses to add value to all the organisations I have had the pleasure to work in. I am also very aware of my weaknesses but I do not dwell on them and I have the ability to leave them behind me – they would only hinder my journey and progression and are therefore not worth my time and worry.

 

We all have weaknesses – do not dwell on them

 

Being focused, driven and believing in my journey I have always had the ability to make difficult and sometimes life-changing decisions. I trust myself 100% and believe that if you put in the work and look at the bigger picture you can and will overcome any negative situations.

 

When I look back over the career I have had so far I feel I have made many mistakes. But were these actually mistakes or were these ‘so-called’ mistakes enabling me to move to the next level or perhaps exposing me to a new skill-set. Every mistake or poor decision I’ve made has taught me a valuable lesson! It hasn’t always been a good lesson and it might be something I would like to forget but I’ve always taken a positive out of it – every mistake/failure is a lesson.

 

On my journey, one thing I have always been forthright about has been questioning my bosses - asking what their aspirations for the future are. I feel this has been a great attribute for me, as many people and colleagues I have worked with have been sceptical about confronting their managers or bosses to ask what their vision has been for the company.

For me, this is very important. If I cannot align my future success with the vision of the company I am working for, then there would be little point in continuing with that part of my journey.

 

That statement may seem a little bit extreme to some people, because in most cases the vision of the company is something that is discussed at the interview. But this does change on a regular basis due to differing business circumstances and market forces.

With this in mind I have always been flexible in my approach to business and what I could learn from the people around me. I have been very fortunate to have worked with some very experienced and talented people. Being able to learn from these individuals has been invaluable in getting me to where I am today – I owe much to the people who have taken time to guide me, teach me and show me best practise.

 

Throughout our professional journey it is imperative that we learn lessons from the best people – these people can show us so much and help us to achieve our potential.

 

Learn from the BEST – they are the BEST for a reason

 

In learning from the best, we can also become the best but always keep in mind that this is YOUR journey and not the journey of those that you are learning from. They will have different aspirations and dreams to you so although you should get as much information as you can out of these individuals you must also trust where you want to go.

 

Over the years I have been given lots of advice on what I should do and the route I should take to succeed to the level I always wanted to. To be completely honest I have listened and valued this advice but have always done what I have thought was best for me – whether people agreed or not. It’s not easy when you trust people to help you become the best you can be, but then do not take their advice on how they think you should progress.

It is very important to remember that people have their own motives and reasons and ultimately they look after their own interests. It can sometimes be hard to hear but the truth is that most, not everyone, we work with will look after themselves – TRUST ME I have learnt the hard way many times.

 

ITS YOUR JOURNEY

 

To trust in your journey and yourself means having to make tough decisions that others may not agree with and which could be seen as a risk.

When we work for a company for a length of time we start to feel secure and having that sense of security can make us comfortable in our daily work. Being in this situation is by no means negative and having that sense of security makes us feel content and valued. Many people are happy to achieve this level of job satisfaction but for those who want to be the best and move forward to the next level of success this can be detrimental.

It is very easy to become comfortable and feel content in our lives – and like I said this can be a fantastic position for many people as they’ve reached their desired point.

Always remember this - companies are loyal to themselves and only themselves – everyone is replaceable and no-one is bigger than a company.

 

I have never seen it as a risk leaving a company to move forward and to better myself. I have been let down many times by companies that I have been comfortable at and loyal to and been given shallow and unconvincing explanations for their actions hindering my progression.

I have had no problem with leaving companies who have let me down and given me false promises to keep me there longer –taking pay cuts and side-steps to ultimately keep my journey moving forward. I always felt that once let down I was setting myself up to be let down again and again as a precedence would be set.

 

Although it can be a risk moving into the unknown it was always better for me to feel my fate was in my own hands than a company I could not trust.

 

When we are out of our comfort zones and taking risks we grow and adapt to make ourselves succeed. Having control of your journey and being answerable only to yourself means that you allow no-one or nothing to direct you down a path you did not choose.

 

Work hard, be consistent, be patient and never give up

You will succeed – always remember winners win