To determine the sort of career you should be pursuing, you need to determine whether you are a tangible or intangible-oriented person. Many people fail in jobs simply because those jobs did not cater to their specific skills and interests. Tangible-oriented people seek work within clear guidelines, whereas people interested in the intangible are more comfortable around new and unproven concepts. To succeed in your career, you need to understand you inner nature and choose a workplace accordingly.
In this article Harrison discusses the importance of thinking big and setting high goals. In order to succeed, you need to visualize where your career is going and keep a fire burning within you. People with a burning desire to achieve their dreams are always successful. It is also important to structure your social lives around people who could assist you in reaching your goals. Understanding who you want to become and studying those above you will help you rise. Hold on to your dreams and stay positive. When it comes to your career, do everything in your power to ensure that you do not give up on your dreams. Continue to focus on what you want to become until you become it.
“Fatal Friction” can inconspicuously infiltrate your relationships, then wreck your career and future career prospects. Accidental or unintentional remarks can generate “Fatal Friction”, which in turn generates tensions with the people around you and prohibits you from achieving your full potential. In your career and in life, you must do everything possible to avoid fatal friction between yourself and others.
Want Powerful Career Advice?
Get my free newsletter and strategies that make people successful
In this article Harrison explains how you can use every single negative thing that happens to you as fuel to drive you forward. Negative things keep happening in life. Your reaction in such circumstances is the key to whether you succeed or fail. Do not allow something negative to push you down. The success of most individuals is largely based on how they handle setbacks. Use negative experiences to change your life and rechannel your experiences into something more positive. Experience the pain and then use this pain to fire you up to do better in the future. The best lessons we get from life are from the bad things that happen to us. If something bad happens, channel this energy into something positive. This will change your life and your career.
The ability to fit into your work environment is among the most important parts of obtaining and retaining a job, even more so than your skill level. Fitting in means nothing more than being comfortable in one’s work environment, and making others similarly comfortable. Employers want to hire people who will embrace their approach to business and the world on physical and moral levels, so you must strive to fit in with their worldview.
There is probably someone in your life and career who exerts a degree of control over you, and you may act against your own self-interest for fear of that person. While there is nothing wrong with being controlled by others – it is usually inevitable – you must at all costs avoid acting against your own best interests because of external control. Examine your position in life, and determine how much of it is based on your fears and submission to authority.
In this article Harrison talks about the need for innovation in America in order to stimulate the current economy. You can succeed despite an economic downturn by becoming innovative. In the current economic crisis more jobs will be going abroad. According to Harrison, innovation from abroad is not a bad thing, but workers in America must prepare for this evolving global job marketplace. More jobs are soon to go elsewhere. American economy needs major, widespread and immediate innovation in order to create new jobs. America has always done well when faced with challenges, and Harrison believes that the Americans will rise to the challenge again.
One of the most important aspects of the people around you is their definition of the “norm”; norms of acceptable behavior exist everywhere. Your own definitions of normal and acceptable will determine your success in life, as will those of the groups with whom you interact. Develop an understanding of the norms for the many groups in your life.
You are capable of much more than you probably realize, and you need to maximize your potential and utilize every gift that you have. Many people talk about their potential, but refuse to act upon it. When you make full use of your potential and implement your gifts, you unlock the power to become the person you want to be.
In this article Harrison explains how you can ensure success in your career by externalizing your opponents. Your job is like a game; if you work hard, play by the rules of the company and are seen as part of the team you will be viewed as a valuable player for the company. The most significant part of any game is the presence of an opponent. Don’t look for an opponent among your co-workers. Never speak negatively of your team members. Instead, concentrate on the external opponents. External opponents bring you and the team closer as you work towards a common goal. In order for you and your company to succeed it is important to have an external opponent. Harrison advises people to consistently work hard and not participate in the politics. This is a sure way to score big in your career.
True self-esteem comes from within, not from the acceptance of others. When your sense of worth comes from within, you free yourself from comparisons with others and will enjoy a greater sense of internal security. You will no longer be bogged down by the experiences of others and can become much more self-reliant.
Your greatest successes will come from some of the smallest actions in terms of meeting people. You will cause a “stacking effect” the more you meet and connect with people; conversely, people cannot connect with you when you are withdrawn and nothing will happen. You must do everything in your power to connect with as many people as possible.
A powerful sense of self will make all the difference in your life. You must understand that your sense of yourself and your capabilities come from inside of you, not from the external forces that have brought you to your current place in life. What you feel internally might be completely different from what the world is telling you, and you must learn to focus on the former rather than the latter.
Adopting a positive attitude will always bring you closer to success, as nobody wants to be associated with a losing side. Everyone wants to associate with and hire winners, and avoids losers. Nothing is more important than maintaining a positive attitude, as many employers hire people based primarily on attitude; with the right attitude, everything else will fall into place. You must look like you are on the winning team, even if times are tough; nobody wants to hire a loser.
Everyone tries to maintain a certain emotional state, and learning to control your own emotions will have a profound impact on your career. While everyone allows their emotional states to be influenced by outside events, there is no advantage in basing your own emotions on things that you cannot control. Allow yourself to discover happiness and fulfillment naturally, rather than making your emotions dependant on external circumstances. Your outlook will have a tremendous impact on your psychological health, as well as that of those around you.
Want Powerful Career Advice?
Get my free newsletter and strategies that make people successful