Taste your career.

What does your career taste like?

Service-related businesses are funny … there’s so much competition and no one can really guarantee the outcome of the service. You may have given someone the best advice or the best pedicure, but the next person may be disappointed. How do service providers know if they’re truly successful? Success means something different to everyone, right?

While searching for those answers myself, I’m constantly reminded of the power of detaching from the outcome and enjoying the journey. Often, we lose sight of the process because so much attention goes to the deliverable (especially in the corporate world).

But what if success was a feeling? A regulated nervous system. A feeling of being lit up, from the inside out. I would want to feel lit up all the time, not just at the end of a deadline or a title promotion.

What Makes a Successful Career?

Let’s think of careers like flavors of ice cream. For a few years, you are on a kick of chocolate (accounting), then it becomes a bit boring, so you add in vanilla (people management), and that gets you going for another year, but you start to feel a bit off. You do some reflection and decide to add in strawberry (non-profit) and you begin to shine! You are satisfied for quite a while but hit another emotional wall after another handful of years and decide it’s time to finally create your very own signature flavor of ice cream (entrepreneurship). After that, you realize you want to hold another cone at the same time (side hustles). The point is – you can do whatever the f*ck you want. Long gone are the days of only eating chocolate for 30 years (manufacturing age). We are living in the information age where we are meant to capitalize and leverage our authentic strengths and skills as humans – we are no longer performing robotic actions as a collective.

Leaning on your natural skills and talents is crucial for finding success and fulfillment in your career. When you tap into what you’re naturally good at, you’re more likely to excel and enjoy what you do. Your unique strengths set you apart and can guide you toward roles that not only play to those strengths but also keep you engaged and inspired.

Getting Started When Something Feels Off in Your Career

But how do you get started when something feels off in your career? How do you know what makes you different from the other human that you’re competing against for that job?

The answer is YOU. Your story is your brand, your resume, and what you’re offering. You are not showing up to a job to just sit at a computer and write SQL queries all day or solve engineering problems in the corner – remember, you’re not a robot. Maybe you enjoy planning happy hours and lunch n’ learns for the group. Maybe you want to spearhead an employee resource group because you’re passionate about a topic in your personal life and you want it to bleed over into your corporate life (everything is connected).

The point is – to be truly authentic and lit up at work, you need to show up as your whole self. Leaning on your natural skills helps you be successful in your career because it allows you to bring your best and most genuine self to your work. When you align your job with your innate strengths and passions, you not only perform better but also find more satisfaction and meaning in your work.

Creating a Conscious Resume

So, how do you do that for a future employer? With a conscious resume. Let your resume embody your skills, strengths, achievements, interests, values, and fun facts - not just your technical or functional abilities. Creatively show your prospective employer on paper not only what lights you up but the human they will get to interact with in the hallway or have an adult beverage with during a layover at the airport. What would it look like if you detached from your job title (book) and focused on your day-to-day activities (chapters)? What moments do you remember feeling the brightest?

Embracing Change and New Flavors

So, the next time you’re feeling a bit dim at work – take a mindful moment and feel the feelings. Feelings are one of the foundations for life. They drive all; however, know that you have the power to change them. Congratulate yourself for being self-aware, but now it’s time for action. Maybe you just need to taste a new flavor. Maybe you’re feeling brave and want to design your own flavor, or maybe you simply just need some sprinkles. The choice is yours – have some fun with it and know that there is no wrong answer. You’re choosing a new adventure. May I give you a tasting spoon?