I’ll be speaking to one of my favorite groups, Tuesdays with Transitioners on “A Year of Opportunity”, a topic based on my recent Career Opportunities column of the same name.
When: Tuesday, February 18, 2014 – 12 Noon – 2 pm [RSVP here]
Where: Tuesdays with Transitioners, Congregational Church of Northridge, 9659 Balboa Boulevard, Northridge, CA [Map]
Topic:
A Year of Opportunity
Every year Douglas E. Welch selects a theme for his long-running column and podcast, Career Opportunities. This year, Douglas believes it is “A Year of Opportunity”
Building a successful career in 2014 requires that we focus on 3 things this year, including:
- Attracting Opportunity
- Recognizing Opportunity
- Accepting Opportunity
Attracting opportunity to you begins with telling my those around you “what you do and how well you do it.” This can take many forms, but in today’s world it usually starts with social media like LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. If you develop good connections, share great information and generally help those connected to you, you can’t help but attract opportunity to you.
Thomas Edison is quoted as saying “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” This is still true today. Work that expands our lives and careers should be sought out and embraced, even if there is a bit of hard work involved. In fact, most opportunities worth pursuing require hard work of some sort. Life doesn’t often give you gold simply for being you. You need to share your knowledge and show your worth and this often means some long hours, if not actual physical labor. In fact, if you don’t feel that a project is worth putting in a good deal of hard work, it is very possible that the project isn’t important enough for you to pursue. You may need to look for another opportunity that you love enough to commit to it completely — hard work and all.
Finally, you will need to accept the opportunities that come your way, even if they seem a little wild, a little challenging and even a little frightening. Remember, fear is a great indicator of projects and opportunities that we need to investigate further. It shows that there is a challenge there, a stretching of our thoughts and abilities in new and different ways. An open door can be scary, but it can also lead to a new, better, greater, more exciting, more fulfilling life and career than you can even imagine.
Douglas E. Welch is writer and host of Career Opportunities, a long running column and podcast dedicated to “Helping to Build the Career You Deserve!” Career Opportunities began in 1997 as a magazine column and expanded to a podcast in 2004. Douglas is also a New Media Consultant, Technology and Career Consultant with over 30 years experience in high-tech. You can find all of Douglas’ work at DouglasEWelch.com.