Take a Risk on YOU!

By Bruce Lund, NEXTPERT
Topic: Career Development, Emerging Leaders   www.nextpert.net

A large piece of the NEXTPERT concept is being able to keep a positive mindset when creating a career vision. Many young professionals are caught in the “current of the urgent” and cannot get past their present struggles, because they are overwhelmed with emotions of uncertainty. The current of the urgent can be described as the everyday issues that we universally face. In our connected world we are saturated with dozens of tasks each day and rarely have time to stop and reflect on our future. We are not able to fully submerge ourselves into work that we both like to do and want to do. Instead we are focused on just getting by each day. This “busy” work does not promote growth for our future but is only a means to an end.

Today, I challenge you to get out of the current of the urgent and become intentional by doing work towards your dominant focus. If you have not yet established your dominant focus then this would be a good place to start in doing meaningful work for yourself. A dominant focus is what ultimately wins out in your career.

Three years ago I moved to Nashville with no guarantees on the front-end and only a hope that I would be able to get into graduate school and earn my Ph.D. I saw Nashville as a great place to expand my opportunities. Each day I woke up asking one question, “How can I get my foot in the door.” I knew if I was just able to do that then I had the confidence in myself to prove my self-worth.

Having the confidence to be able to take risks like this are crucial in your personal and professional development. I knew only a handful of people when I got to Nashville and spent months sleeping on couches just trying to get that elusive opportunity. Eventually I was given the chance and I knew I would not relinquish it. Why was I so confident in this belief? Because I had already struggled and sacrificed so much to get to that point and I had nothing to go back to. Quite frankly, I had no choice but to succeed. Over the course of these three years I have finished my Masters, am in the final stage of my Doctoral journey, and have started my own business. But more importantly I get to do what I love everyday and enjoy the benefit of knowing I’m on the right path. Something I could not say at this time if I did not choose to get out of the current of the urgent. My dominant focus is winning out.

The main reason I share this story is I believe we can all risk more to become more. Sometimes it just takes stepping outside of your comfort zone and believing in yourself to do it. For things to change we must change. There is a tremendous amount of opportunity coming to our generation collectively that most people do not realize. Over the next three to five years it is said that 50% of leadership positions will be opening up as upper managers shift out of the workplace. Who does this favor the most? The young professional that figures out a way to get in the game now and is willing to work for free or very little on the front-end to prove their worth for opportunities on the back-end. Become battletested and learn how to leverage current success (no matter how small) into future opportunity. Be willing to do sacrifice things that others are not. Get your foot in the door, prove your worth, and a few years from now be ready to reap the benefits of the next generation workplace.

"Two roads diverged in a wood and I---I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference." - Robert Frost. 

Bruce Lund is the Founder & CEO of NEXTPERT, a training service that develops leaders at ALL levels. Bruce is an Author, Speaker, and Entrepreneur on "Simplified Success Strategies" for professionals to stand out by using the NEXTPERT 3-step process to DISCOVER, DEVELOP, and LIVE the NEXTPERT in you! Every company needs a team of Leadership NEXTPERTs that are solutions-oriented and anticipate the needs of others. Learn to leverage your current success into future opportunity!

"Leadership is finding your voice through unique experiences and positively influencing others to find theirs"