The day baby daughter brought a not-so-good behavioral report card from school, we knew the family “chatty” gene had hit again. You see, we kinda like to chat around here, and the gene had certainly not missed the next generation. And of course, the first thing we thought of doing was take away her privileges, including the music lessons she enjoyed so much.
But what happened afterwards left us all quite surprised, and relieved that we limited the taking away of privileges to occasional TV watching and candy eating. The more she got involved in her music lessons, the better her behavior and discipline turned in school. All of a sudden, my smart and chatty baby was smart, disciplined and focused. I knew my side of the family had that gene too by the way…
What if the same thing happened in our careers? If extra-curricular activities can the catalyst to success at school, entrepreneurship might just be the boost our careers need to be more focused, disciplined, and ultimately, wildly successful.
Take myself for instance…I was the one at the back of the conference room, who could barely manage to utter a word. All the good ideas and insight I had were magically imprisoned in my brain. Somehow, some way, nothing would come out of this mouth of mine, which by the way would prove to be very chatty in different circumstances…
After I started blogging, something also magical happened. The very fact that I trained myself, day in and day out, to speak, if only through the written word, made me bolder. I went from hiding behind the walls at work, to actually speaking and sharing my ideas. My brain (and mouth) was now wired to express itself. The start of my entrepreneurial venture had spilled over to my career, and the results were surprising even to me…
Developing your entrepreneurial spirit changes your career for the better. The minute you start creating, innovating, and expressing yourself, that’s the minute you’ve empowered you career.
This is also the very reason why college students are now encouraged to be more entrepreneurial with their job search. It’s also why some of the most prevalent career advice out there is to approach your career as an entrepreneur.
Among the many benefits that entrepreneurship can bring to your career, are:
- You show up more for your career. Many of us just let our careers happen to us. Day in and day out, we drag ourselves to the same desks, perform the same tasks, speak to the same people, and go home to the same feeling of emptiness. Yet the minute that “entrepreneurial” gene is activated in us, whether it’s through a side hustle, a new project, or even just a desire to create something new, we start “showing up” more at work. Speaking up in meetings. Offering news ideas and insight. Wanting to change and revolutionize things. And most times, it’s all the spark we need for success.
- You learn to manage failure. The foundation of entrepreneurship is failure. Doesn’t the average “overnight success story” take 10 years? There’s a reason why most entrepreneurs are filled with grit and determination. What if you could bring the same grit and determination to your own career? What if developing and nurturing your own entrepreneurial gene by starting your side business, creating a new project, or committing to a particular result, could also help you manage and turn career failure into success. What if that missed promotion, that failed pitch at work, would push you to work harder, instead of deterring you from trying again?
- You own your career. So many among us feel like our careers are dependent upon our managers’ will to promote us. Or the budget’s availability. Or the economy. There always seems to be something standing on our way to success. Always some external obstacle we don’t quite control. Yet being an entrepreneur teaches you to take responsibility for your own fate. To own it. Imagine bringing this to your own career, and taking your own advancement and career growth into your hands? How about asking for a raise instead of waiting for the budget to grow? Or presenting a new initiative of your own, rather than putting up with the status quo?
Now let me ask you this: How can you start adding some of that entrepreneurial zing into your career today? Not tomorrow, not next month or next year, but TODAY! Can you start your own side hustle, begin a project at work, or commit to a specific result today?
Let me know in the comments…
Love,
The Corporate Sis.
