Why You Need to Look at Your Career Differently

In my last blog, I mentioned how storytelling is powerful for influencing others. Stories are also powerful for influencing and inspiring yourself. The stories we tell ourselves shape our attitude, perceptions, behaviors and ultimately our results.

When I was Vice President in an operating company and offered a move to a Director’s position at corporate headquarters, I immediately saw it as a demotion.  While I saw many benefits to taking the position, I more acutely felt the insult when I noticed that all the women vice presidents who moved to corporate were made directors, while the men kept their vice president titles.  I noticed that the story I told myself activated my defensiveness and motivated me to consider suing the company, wanting to complain about this injustice to friends, colleagues and family. I had crafted a powerful story for myself that made me a victim and had the potential to keep me stuck in my career. 

I decided to consciously change my story. I imagined myself building my consulting practice with this move. I told myself this actually is a lateral move and not a demotion and there are many benefits to the vantage point that a corporate position offers. I highlighted the opportunity to build a vast global network with presidents and other key players in the operating companies, learn new skills, and build my reputation at corporate while adding value.  I was the hero in my story and it helped me make the most of the situation, lifting my attitude and leading me away from the trouble the old story created. My new story inspired me to move forward and helped me be attractive to others who offered to assist me with my goals.
 
Here are some steps in making your personal story work for you:

Start with your goal. Since the story is primarily for you and you are the hero in this tale, what is the goal to which you aspire? It doesn’t have to be attainable right away, but should inspire you. What are the potential actions you want to take? Write down the key points, and the message. Once you have this crystallized, the rest of this process gets easier.

Choose the story. This is important.  You want to be certain the story--and the way you tell it--makes some compelling and memorable points. For my story, I was ready to leave my job in the operating company because I had added value, accomplished my goals, and was ready for another challenge. Corporate was just the opportunity to move up to a position with a much larger scope of influence. Sound good?

Hone the story. Once you choose a story, construct it based on the message you want to deliver. Think about how you will tell it and how it makes you feel. Are you inspired? What obstacle did you face and how did you realize the opportunity for you? What are the actions you took, who helped you, and what assistance do you want now?  Use vivid descriptive language.  You want to tell the story in a way that allows another person to see and experience it; it is that experience that makes your story powerful.

Keep it short. Your goal is for your story to forward and solidify your message in a way that inspires you. Nothing more. So as you craft your story, do it with a knife, carving the story to its essential and important message. It can also help to write it out in a journal.

Share it. I shared my story with friends and colleagues and got some very positive feedback. As I told it, I found myself changing it over time to fit my journey. I considered specific word choices that would give me more energy and inspire courageous risk-taking.

Our career paths are journeys that unfold in unexpected ways.  We can see these as problems and obstacles to which we fall victim, or ones we step into with heroic ingenuity. You are already a storyteller. You can use this power to influence your career and inspire others to assist.

–Andrea Zintz, PhD
Career Coach
President, Strategic Leadership Resources LLC
www.strategicleadershipresources.com