Three career lessons we can all learn from Valentine's Day
Whether you celebrated last Valentine's Day with your partner, friends, family or didn't celebrate it at all, and whether you find this day extremely romantic or shamelessly commercial, I hope you felt the love on this special day. Needless to say that I wish you feel loved, valued and appreciated the rest of the year too!
Here are the three career lessons that Valentine's Day reminded me and that I am happy to share with you.
1. Fall in love with yourself first.
Chocolates, flowers, lovely dinner date. Everyone loves them. Who doesn't? However, if you don't like the person you see in your mirror, what's the point?
The longer you've been looking for a job, the more your self-confidence tends to decrease. Don't underestimate your skills, knowledge and competence. You are capable of so much more than you think. Unfortunately, sometimes we are sabotaging ourselves without even realising it. For example, when you find all the good reasons not to apply for this dream job of yours. The truth is, no recruiter in the world is seriously expecting you to have all the requirements listed in the job description.
Believing in yourself is the first step towards success. You can figure out almost anything if you have the right attitude and are willing to challenge yourself and grow.
2. Speak kindly to yourself.
It really amazes me how kind, supportive and caring we can be with loved ones and even sometimes mere acquaintances, but how harsh and hurtful we tend to be with ourselves.
When people receive some bad news regarding a job application, I often hear them say "I got rejected", "I'll never find a job", "No one wants to hire me" or some other negative self-talk. First of all, let me put the record straight. If something has been "rejected", that's your application and absolutely not YOU. Secondly, you should keep in mind that someone's inability to see your worth (as an employee, in this case) does not decrease your value.
The way we speak to ourselves matter. Words hold power. I truly believe that the more you think positively, the more positive things will come to you. Whether good or bad, your mind is going to believe what you keep telling it. So if you want to attract positive things, start thinking and talking positively to yourself. Because after all, you are the most important person in your life.
3. Don't wait for a special occasion.
As much as I am hoping that you are not waiting for February 14th to show some love around you, it makes no sense to wait for a special occasion before taking a bold action and start looking for a new job.
If you're so sick and tired of your job that it keeps you up at night, NOW is the time to take action and decide to change! Trust me, being alive is special occasion enough. All you need to do is start with a first step. You can reach out to your network to learn about potential vacancies, update your CV and online work profiles, take an evening class to develop your skills or if you are feeling stuck and don't even know where to start, just book an appointment with a career coach to check how they can help you find clarity along your career journey
Just like they say, "one day or day one, you decide".
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Which one of these lessons resonates the most with you? Can you think of another valuable learning that Valentine's Day brought you?
Please share your comment below. I am looking forward to reading you.
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