The One Piece of Career Advice That Changed My Life

I was cooking dinner one evening, moping around and feeling hopeless.  My husband and I were both self-employed and completely broke.  Our mortgage that month was already running late and we didn’t know how we were going to pay it.  While the issues at hand should have motivated us, they only achieved the opposite.

Out of nowhere, I received a message from an old friend asking, “How are you? How’s the new baby?”  Oh man was that the wrong time to ask me such a loaded question.  I promptly replied, “Do you really want to know”?  She then proceeded to tell me to pour my heart out.  All I could respond with were words of defeat, self-pity, and hopelessness.  Then came the question.  “Do you want to make a change in your life?”

So many thoughts raced through my mind.  Of course I wanted to make a change.  I didn’t want to be in the same whirlwind of instability.  Especially now that I had two children.  “Why?” She asked.  That’s when I lit up inside.  I had so many reasons but the most important to me was the one that I lived for.  I wanted to help change lives and to provide for my family.  I wanted to be financially free.

So there I pose that career advice to you.  Ask yourself these questions and write down the answers:

• Why did you choose your career?  
• What are you doing it for?  
• What will you never give up on? 

If you can focus on the reason why you are working your tail off and keep it at the top of your mind, your motivation will be difficult to wane.  

When you have a strong reason why, your fear to try new things will be eliminated. You will stop waiting for the perfect time and the ideal situation before you can start. You will know that the perfect time is now.  You will not be afraid to make mistakes.

Ever since I had that conversation I have not been able to stop persevering toward my goals.  I know the reason why I need to work hard.  I remind myself why I can’t give up.  Being an entrepreneur is scary a lot of the time.  It requires dedication and many leaps of faith.  However, you will not take them if you don’t want them badly enough.  I am clear on what it is I’m doing this for.  Once you are clear, all you need to do is remind yourself.