What is grit and why is it important?

05/16/2025 by Leave a Comment

What is grit? I’ve heard this word a lot recently. And of course, the obvious supplementary question is, why is it important?

I’m referring to a term used in psychology to represent a positive, non-cognitive personality trait based on an individual’s perseverance of effort combined with the passion for a particular goal and a powerful motivation to achieve it. Allow me to explain.

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What is grit?

Have you ever noticed that the smartest people are not always the most successful? Success can be defined in different ways, but for most people, their measure would usually revolve around money and prestige.

If we take money as the measure of success, then you’d think the smartest people would easily come out on top of that score, surely? Yet you’d be wrong.

We hear stories frequently about college professors who struggle financially, while at the same time, tradesmen like bricklayers and plumbers become millionaires. How can that be?

Surely the smartest people have a natural advantage? Well, no, they don’t.

The people with the real, innate advantage are those with this quality known as grit.

So, exactly what is grit?

It is an inner steeliness. It is courage and resolve. It is a strength of character. It is drive and desire. It is passion and motivation.

It is a willingness to persevere until the desired result is achieved. It is a determination to achieve a goal and a willingness to take calculated risks.

It is a fact that doing well in life depends on much more than academic ability and your capacity to learn quickly and easily.

Having those qualities is useful, of course, but in the absence of grit, you’d still be at a disadvantage.

Someone of average academic ability but with a shedload of grit will be better placed to achieve real success in life.

People with grit intuitively recognize that life is a marathon, not a sprint.

They’re willing to experience failure because they know that failure is a temporary outcome, not a permanent position. And they’re willing to fail and then start over using the lessons they’ve learned from the experience.

So what’s the key to success? It’s the need to get grittier!

Angela Lee Duckworth makes this point admirably in this excellent TEDxTalk video, and it’s well worth a few minutes of your time. It’s an interesting video, and I think she nails the point perfectly.

That’s what I think, but what is your opinion?

Could there be such an easy answer, or is it all much more complicated? I’d be interested to hear your views.

Grit: The power of passion and perseverance:

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How to handle criticism at work effectively

05/16/2025 by

How to handle criticism at work? That’s a question most of us ask ourselves, at least occasionally.

Think about it. You’ve been working hard and trying to do your best, but someone still thinks it’s necessary, with a critical tone, to offer you some words of advice about the work you’ve just done.

Not a thank you; no recognition of the effort you’ve put in; just some caustic words about why they think your work is less than perfect.

Naturally, that makes you feel a little unloved, a bit defensive, and probably slightly irritated too.

Perhaps your critic lacks sensitivity?

Perhaps he or she fails to appreciate the value you’ve been adding to whatever you were doing at the time.

And of course, your critic may not have had visibility of the constraints you were working under or the pressures you faced at the time.

Regardless of the circumstances, it’s natural if you feel hurt when all people can do is point to something they believe is wrong, incomplete, or not as good as it could have been. If it doesn’t hurt, certainly it is irritating, in my experience. It can also seem overly harsh at times.

HOW TO HANDLE CRITICISM AT WORK
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The importance of criticism:

The problem when hearing criticism is that our defensive barriers tend to go up immediately. And once we’re on the defensive, we don’t tend to listen to the feedback we’re getting. We just concentrate on how we’ll respond in order to dismiss whatever’s being said.

This is unfortunate because if we did listen and reflect on what is being said, it’s just possible that our critic may have a valid point.

The importance of criticism is that it provides us with valuable feedback.

And how we react to any feedback depends on our attitude and how we choose to look at it.

We can get all hurt and defensive, or we can choose to give our critic the benefit of the doubt and assume that they’re genuinely trying to be constructive.

In other words, we can embrace criticism positively and seek to use it to our advantage. Certainly, this is the mature and grown-up way of dealing with any criticism we receive.

Honing our skills:

We must recognize that none of us is perfect and we’re all prone to making the occasional mistake. That’s human nature.

However, if our aim is to succeed, we have to become masters of our chosen craft or profession. We have to be very good at whatever we’ve chosen to do if we’re going to stand out in the crowd. We have to be the best.

Being the best requires the constant honing of our skills. That means we must learn from our mistakes and any inability that might prevent us from delivering the results required of us.

Learning is a lifelong process, and we should be constantly practising and developing our skills and improving on the results we deliver.

To do that, we must learn from our mistakes.

Some mistakes will be obvious to us, of course, but sometimes we’ll fail to recognize them. Fortunately, others don’t.

Criticism is feedback:

The underlying point here is that criticism is simply feedback, and feedback is essential if we’re to improve our skills and become masters of our craft or profession.

That’s why it’s important to listen. If we know where we fall short, then we can do something about it.

How to handle criticism at work:

If you find yourself on the receiving end of criticism, the first thing to do is to remind yourself that feeling hurt is quite natural. That’s simply an emotional response to a negative situation.

However, don’t take anything personally:

Criticism is rarely groundless, though it’s often exaggerated.

Give your critic the benefit of the doubt and assume their intention is simply to provide you with some valuable feedback.

Welcome that feedback. Don’t interrupt your critic with excuses. That will just make you look defensive. Don’t glower at them either because you might stop them from sharing that crucial insight with you.

The truth may hurt, but the sooner you hear it, the sooner you can fix whatever it is you’re doing wrong, assuming you are doing something wrong.

Listen and focus on hearing everything being said.

When your critic has made his or her point, say thank you.

That will show confidence, dedication, and grace too.

Then ask yourself honestly:

Is the point being made by your critic a fair one?

And you do need to be honest with yourself here.

If you conclude that your critic has a fair point, then you must embrace the lesson. Learn from it; resolve to do better next time, and be determined to improve.

That way you’ll go from strength to strength. You’ll gain the respect of other people, too, for your willingness to listen and learn.

If they are wrong:

However, remember this as well:

Critics are not always right.

If honest reflection leads you to the conclusion that your critic is being unfair or is just plain wrong, then just ignore the criticism.

Smile and move on. Never take it personally, and never let anyone discourage you from the pursuit of your aims.

Conclusion:

Criticism is just feedback.

Feedback is your friend.

Embrace it; learn from it; use it to your advantage, but never take it personally.

And if, following honest reflection, you think they’re wrong, then it’s perfectly reasonable to ignore it and move on.

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5 ways to kill your dreams

05/15/2025 by

Today, I want to explore the 5 ways to kill your dreams if you’re not careful.

I’m sure you must have dreams and goals, dear reader. After all, most people do. However, how often do people fail to realise their dreams? How often do dreams and projects simply never happen? Why is that?

Well, in the thought-provoking TED video included here, Bel Pesce suggests how not to follow your dreams. She gives five reasons why you’ll fail if you adopt the wrong approach.

Bel Pesce’s observations relate to the beliefs people hold about how success is achieved. In her view, those erroneous beliefs are as follows:

5 WAYS TO KILL YOUR DREAMS
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5 ways to kill your dreams:

1. Believe in overnight success

We see someone successful, but we don’t see their backstory. Although they appear to have gained their success overnight, it was due to years of hard work mastering their craft first.

No one succeeds without years of hard work first. Nothing happens by accident. It’s all down to determination, grit, and an insatiable desire for success.

Opportunity may come overnight, but you have to be well-prepared to grab that opportunity when you see it. Being prepared means mastering your craft.

2. Believe someone else has the answers for you

It’s your life, and no one else knows you and your life better than you.

You need to find your own way, in your own time. In finding a way, it must be a way that suits you well and one with which you feel truly comfortable.

No one else has the perfect answers that will be a good fit with your life.

3. Believe you can settle when growth is guaranteed

It can be amazing just how many people will stop and settle once they’ve reached a goal they’d set for themselves. They get to a point where they think, it’s OK now.

And yet, OK is never OK.

When you reach a peak, you must find the next peak if you are to continue to grow and sustain success.

4. Believe the fault is down to someone else

If you have a dream, it’s all down to you to find a way to make it happen. You find a way, or you make a way. And you never accept “No” for an answer, unless, of course, that was the answer you wanted.

The key message is it’s all down to you. If you fail to achieve your dream, then it’s your fault, and no one else is to blame. Simple!

5. Believe the only things that matter are the dreams themselves

Having a goal is important, but life is not just about goals.

Life is a journey with a constant stream of experiences and interactions with other people along the way.

The real fun is in the participation. Achievement is just a bonus.

Achievement is a momentary experience, but life is not. Life goes on beyond the moment.

Dreams and goals in perspective:

If you’re driven by your dreams, then I recommend that you listen to what Bel Pesce has to say. It might just save you some heartache.

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How will your life be measured? Here’s what matters most

05/11/2025 by

How will your life be measured? A philosophical question, perhaps, but an interesting one nevertheless.

Some time ago, I attended the funeral of someone whom I’d known quite well professionally but not at all socially. Someone I liked and respected, but I wouldn’t claim to have known them well overall. Nevertheless, funerals are a time to reflect on someone’s life. A time to consider the impact they’ve had on other people throughout their lives.

The funeral service was held at a large, traditional church in London, and it was crowded.

Listening to the eulogy and associated readings, I began to appreciate how much my late colleague had meant to so many people. It’s fair to say that she meant a lot to many people. The lives of so many people had clearly been blessed by her presence in them.

This experience made me think.

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So in life, what matters most?

As human beings, we’re all driven to achieve and leave our mark on life before we pass on.

However, we do tend to measure our impact on life in terms of careers and money. With those things, it’s fairly easy to keep score, wouldn’t you agree, dear reader?

Careers provide tangible evidence of achievement, or so it seems.

So, climbing the greasy pole and increasing our wealth tend to be the measures we use when we consider the idea of success. Nevertheless, as I sat there listening that day, I had to ask myself, are these things the most appropriate measure of the lives we lead?

Anything we do that only has a long-term payoff, we tend not to measure because there’s no immediate evidence of achievement. We can’t see the immediate impact of the small things we do, so we don’t believe they matter much.

However, I realized that day that they do matter. They matter a great deal.

It’s all in the little things we do:

A random act of kindness might not mean much to us, but to the recipient of our action, it could mean the world. It could have had a profound effect on that individual. And it might prove to be a life-changing experience for that person.

So, how will any of us be remembered?

When our lives have passed, how will they talk about us at our funerals?

People won’t talk about the size of our house or our car, but they will talk about how we made them feel. They won’t talk about the importance of our jobs, but they will mention how we helped them at a difficult time in their lives.

Perhaps they’ll talk about how we mentored them and how they’re a better person because of the impact we had on their lives. Maybe they’ll say they enjoyed our company, and they’ll talk about how they looked forward to seeing us whenever we were around. Perhaps they’ll just mention how we made them smile.

When you think about it, why would we want to be remembered in any other way?

Material possessions are meaningless:

Let’s face it, material possessions are meaningless. Equally successful careers are as much a reflection of good fortune as they are of anything we did to justify them.

That’s not the case when it comes to the impact we have on the lives of others.

The help we give and the kindness we show are all down to us and our actions day-to-day.

So, how many people we’ve helped seems to me like a much better measure of success than the size of the car we drive or the size of the house in which we live.

Real success in life comes down to the difference we make. How we’ve touched the lives of other people.

Certainly, that’s how I think we’ll be remembered by those who knew us, however much we’re focused on careers, money, and material possessions.

How great would it be to be remembered fondly and with respect by all who crossed our paths during our lives?

How will your life be measured?

I remembered my thoughts that day at the funeral when I stumbled upon this video of a presentation given by Clay Christensen at TEDxBoston.

It offers a great perspective on how your life will be measured.

I recommend you watch this video, as it’s well worth a little bit of your time.

And after you’ve watched it, I would suggest you reflect on this question:

Should the measure of our lives be just about money and achievement, or should it be more about the lives we’ve touched and the people whose lives are better for us having been in them?

How do you want to be remembered, dear reader?

For me, life’s measure should be in terms of how I’ve touched the lives of other people and not money, career, and the size of my house.

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33 short sharp quotes to get you thinking

05/01/2025 by

If short, sharp quotes are what you’re looking for today, here are 33 that I am confident you will like, dear reader.

Enjoy them all, and please feel free to share them.

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Short Sharp Quotes (1-20):

  1. Never complain; never explain.
  2. Troubled waters make skilled sailors.
  3. Mistakes are just lessons to be learned.
  4. You’re never too old to do something stupid.
  5. Yes, I have a sleep disorder. It’s known as children.
  6. We live in the era of smartphones and stupid people.
  7. No response is a response, and a powerful one too.
  8. To understand politics, you must read between the lies.
  9. You can’t change the past, but you can shape the future.
  10. Sometimes you’ve got to be smart enough to play stupid.
  11. If you want to change your life, change the way you think.
  12. Life’s hard for everyone, but it’s even harder if you’re stupid.
  13. Wouldn’t it be great if everything were as easy as getting fat?
  14. One good friend is worth infinitely more than 1,000 fake ones.
  15. Some people serve as examples, whilst others serve as a warning.
  16. Test my patience if you must, but I must warn you, I’m negative.
  17. Don’t waste your words on people who deserve only your silence.
  18. On Spaceship Earth, we’re all crew. We all have a contribution to make.
  19. It’s not who you are that holds you back. It’s who you think you’re not.
  20. If it’s not right, don’t do it. If you can’t be sure it’s true, don’t say it.

Short Sharp Quotes (21-33):

  1. You can’t argue with a closed mind and a fixed point of view. So, don’t try.
  2. If you have a problem with me, then cry me a river and drown yourself in it.
  3. Being wise is not hard. Think of something stupid to say, and then don’t say it.
  4. Knowledge is like underwear. Nice to have, but showing it off is rarely a good idea.
  5. We’re all prisoners of the mobile phone. That’s why they’re known as cell phones.
  6. Watch what they do, not what they say. Talk is cheap. Results are everything.
  7. You’re not the dumbest person on the planet. However, you’d better hope he doesn’t die.
  8. Never confuse the people who are always around you with the people who are always there for you.
  9. We must learn from the mistakes of others. None of us will live long enough to make every mistake ourselves.
  10. Words spoken in anger tell you a lot about what people think. They offer a glimpse behind the mask.
  11. We come from dust, and we return to dust. So it’s probably best not to dust. It might be someone you know.
  12. Some people are only meant to be there for a single chapter of your life. Not everyone will be a constant in your story.
  13. Evaluate the people in your life, then eliminate any that are a negative influence on you. It’s your life, and you decide.
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Absolutely guaranteed secret to success

04/13/2025 by

Looking for the secret to success, dear reader? You’re not alone. So many people seek the secret, but very few find it.

Well, here’s Barbara Sher with some common-sense observations about life and success.

This is just part of a presentation she gave at the “Big, Cheap Weekend Workshop” in New York in July 2010. So it’s a decade ago now, but her observations are timeless, and they’re just as valid today as they were back then.

This video essentially is a ‘taster,’ but if you’re not familiar with Barbara’s work, then it might inspire you to check out her other videos on YouTube and indeed her public appearances, should she appear at a venue near you.

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The secret to success:

The Power of Personal Responsibility

Now here are my thoughts on success.

I believe that personal responsibility is the key to success.

If you’re drifting and waiting in the hope that something will happen? Let me tell you, it won’t.

Well, not unless you’re lucky and just happen to be in the right place, at the right time, with the right thing someone needs.

For most of us, that’s never going to happen.

For almost everyone, we must make things happen ourselves.

Let me share a secret with you. The magic ingredient to achieving your dreams isn’t luck or some mystical force. It’s you.

It’s all about you grabbing the ball and running with it.

What do I mean?

I mean, you must embrace the power of personal responsibility.

You are the captain of your ship, sailing through the sea of life. You can steer your ship anywhere you want it to go.

Yes, there will be storms and occasionally calmer waters, but ultimately, you decide which way to steer your ship.

Personal responsibility is about acknowledging that your choices, big and small, are the compass guiding your journey to wherever you’re going.

You must decide what it is you want out of life. You must decide the lifestyle you’d prefer to live. And you must work out how to get it.

Once you know where you’re going, you must set yourself some goals.

And then you must pursue those goals with determination and a willingness to work hard to achieve them.

Nothing worth having ever comes easy.

We all make choices in life, all the time, and we must accept the consequences of those choices.

In short, we must take responsibility for those choices, and if we pursue good choices, they should lead to the best outcomes for us.

If you embrace personal responsibility and stop making excuses, you will start to make progress towards the life you want.

If you become proactive rather than reactive, you will be knowingly steering the good ship “You” in the direction of your desired destination.

Today’s choices shape tomorrow’s outcomes. It’s that simple.

So, are you ready to take the helm?

Are you ready to grasp the personal power you have and own your journey to success?

It won’t always be easy, but at least it will be yours.

Trust me, the feeling of achieving something because you made it happen is amazing, and you won’t regret it.

So, embrace personal responsibility and achieve your full potential.

You can do it! It won’t be easy, but it can be done, and people do. So can you!

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How to become rich through your work

04/07/2025 by

How to become rich through your work? This is a question many people ask. Some people get rich, but somehow you don’t, dear reader. Would that be true? Why? You work hard, but you’ve got very little to show for it, right?

How is it that other people succeed and get rich, but you never seem to make any progress at all?

Perhaps the question you’ve been asking yourself is, what’s the real link between working hard and getting rich?

Well, give me a couple of minutes of your time, dear reader, and I’ll tell you what I’ve learned about work over the years and how it’s linked to the generation of real wealth.

HOW TO BECOME RICH THROUGH YOUR WORK
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How to become rich:

What is work?

First off, as I’ve said many times before:

Work is simply doing stuff for other people in return for money

If you enjoy your work and it comes naturally to you, then you’ll do it well. If you do it well, then people will notice. And once people start to notice, then increasingly you’ll be in demand.

The greater the demand for your services, the more you’ll get paid. In short, your value will increase.

If you truly enjoy your work and it becomes your passion, then it won’t seem like work at all.

However, if you work for a single employer, then essentially you’re trading your time for money, regardless of whether you enjoy your work or otherwise.

Even if you work for multiple employers one at a time, the effect is the same. You’re simply trading your time for money. It cannot be scalable because, as an individual, there’s only so much you can do in a given period.

There’s nothing wrong with trading your time for money, of course, and it’s the way that most people earn a living. However, you’re unlikely to get seriously rich that way.

Working for an employer will certainly make you a living, of course, but unless you work on Wall Street or in the City of London, that’s about all.

Serving the many:

To earn serious money, you need to be doing stuff for many people simultaneously. The more people you can serve simultaneously, the more money you can make.

The obvious question in your mind now will be, how’s that done?

Well, creative people serve many people simultaneously, don’t they?

For instance, if you write a bestselling book, record a bestselling song, or produce a bestselling DVD, these would all add value to the lives of many people simultaneously.

When people buy a book, a song, or a DVD in their millions, then, if you’re the creator, you can make millions of dollars in the process. Just ask JK Rowling, Paul McCartney, or Ricky Gervais. They’ve all become rich through their creative work.

Then again, not everyone can write, sing, or perform. Perhaps you’re a designer?

Suppose you design furniture, say a chair perhaps?

You produce a fabulous design and offer it to a furniture manufacturer. They really like it, and they want to use it, but you hold the intellectual property rights (IPR) because it’s your design. So the manufacturer must pay you a royalty when the design is used for every unit sold.

If that chair becomes very popular and sells in the millions, your ongoing royalty payments can add up to something quite substantial. Replicate that with many designs, and you could get very rich indeed.

In this case, the example is furniture, but the same would apply if you designed anything. For instance, the man who designed the retroreflective safety device known as cat’s eyes in Britain got very rich through his design. Fashion design is another area where serious money can be made from your designs if they become popular.

The value of the IPR:

The trick with creative work is to understand the law around copyright and intellectual property rights (IPR) and make sure you’re rewarded for your work through royalties.

The advantage of creative work is that the series of royalty payments can have a very long tail. Your work can be the gift that keeps on giving for years and years.

Take a song like Imagine by John Lennon.

John Lennon wrote that song around 1971, but we still hear it regularly on the radio and television to this day. So despite the fact that it’s been over 40 years since Lennon’s tragic death, the song still earns money for his estate, i.e. his family. Now that’s a real legacy for them.

Build your own business:

Starting a business and selling products by the thousand is another way to serve many people simultaneously.

If your business can produce products that provide your customers with genuine solutions to their problems, then there is serious money to be made. Problems are an opportunity to make money if you can offer suitable solutions.

Your business will employ people who are trading their time for money, but through your business, you’ll be serving the many simultaneously, and you can enrich yourself in the process.

The message here:

The takeaway message for you today:

If you work one-to-one, you’ll make a living, but if you can work one-to-many, you’ll make a fortune

Whether it’s becoming a creative person, a performing artist, or starting a business, serving the many is the real route to riches.

It’s not easy, of course, but it can be done, and people do. With a little self-belief and a lot of hard work, you can too.

So when are you going to get started?

Go on, have a go! Serve the many, not the few.

REMEMBER: It’s better to try and fail than to spend your life wondering what might have been.

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Thank you.

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Have the courage to step out of your comfort zone

04/03/2025 by

If your aim is growth and achievement, then playing it safe is unlikely to be the right strategy for you. You must face your fears, dear reader. You must have the courage to step out of your comfort zone because we grow by taking on challenges throughout our lives.

Overcoming challenges is always at the heart of any achievement worthy of note.

A life worth living is a life where you feel fully engaged.

To feel energized and engaged with life, you must stretch yourself to the limits of your potential.

Needless to say, you can only find the limits of your potential if you step out of your comfort zone.

Step out of your comfort zone

Sadly, many people, if not most, never dare to step outside their comfort zone. They prefer to live where they feel safe.

Staying within your comfort zone is fine, of course, if that’s what you want, but you can’t call it living, can you? It’s existing, perhaps, but not living, I think.

You cannot grow from within the safety of your comfort zone. That’s simply a fact.

You’ll find that life begins to have a real buzz when you take the first step beyond your comfort zone. That’s what you might call living on the edge.

Inevitably, it’s scary, of course, but you do begin to feel energized. It’s where you’ll feel a real sense of exhilaration.

Yes, of course, it involves risk; that’s true. However, risk and reward go hand in hand. No risk; no reward.

Stepping outside your comfort zone doesn’t guarantee success, and of course, you might still fail. You’ll certainly experience some failures along the way, because everyone does.

Experiencing failures is an inevitable part of chasing success because success lies on the far side of failure. However, to get to second base and beyond, you must be prepared to take your foot off first base.

Successful people don’t always make the right decisions. However, they’re willing to challenge themselves, and they’re willing to persist long after everyone else has given up. They may fail, but they learn from failure, and they use what they’ve learned to work towards achieving their goals.

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You have enormous potential:

Dear reader, let me tell you something. You have enormous potential, and you can achieve anything if you want it badly enough and you’re prepared to work hard for it.

Certainly, you’re capable of achieving great things.

However, you must set challenging goals, and you must be prepared to step out of your comfort zone. If you can face that discomfort and keep on going, then you really can become the person you’re destined to be.

It’s easier to stay within your comfort zone, of course, and you’ll feel safe that way, but nothing beats the feeling of winning and achieving those challenging goals you’ve set yourself. A life of safety first can be dull.

If every obstacle must first be overcome before you start, then you’ll never achieve anything.

Playing it safe is a bigger risk than stepping beyond your comfort zone.

By playing it safe, you take the risk that you’ll never experience the satisfaction of real achievement. And it’s always better to try and fail than it is to spend your life wondering what might have been.

Stepping beyond your comfort zone means embracing uncertainty, of course. However, the quality of your life will depend on the amount of uncertainty you can bear.

So go on, live a little.

Step out of your comfort zone right now and take that tiger for a ride. You’ll be glad you did.

Building the courage to step out of your comfort zone:

To reinforce the message in today’s theme, you might find the embedded video from Brian Tracy inspiring.

In it, Brian offers some wise words on building the courage to break out of your comfort zone. It’s well worth your time, and I recommend it to you.

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9 tips for getting the most from your work

04/01/2025 by

If you’re wondering about getting the most from your work, this post is for you.

So, do you feel valued by your employer, dear reader? Now think about that question for a second or two.

I’m sure you’re aware that companies are very good at circulating messages which include platitudes such as, “Our employees are our most important asset,” or  “We value our employees.”  I’m sure you’ll be familiar with such pronouncements.

However, you must ask yourself whether they mean it, surely?

Well, few do, if any, in my experience.

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Now let’s be fair:

To be fair, many employers think they mean it when such messages are circulated to the workforce.

Staff in the Human Resources department are probably well-intentioned when they issue such statements.

Nevertheless, the reality for the employee is almost always quite different, however right on and trendy an employer tries to be.

Rarely are employees valued by their employer. Usually they’re seen as replaceable or can be dispensed with as needs dictate.

What does it mean for you?

Most companies regard people as a commodity to be used when they’re useful and then discarded when they’re perceived to be no longer of use.

Not a comfortable thought, possibly, but true nevertheless.

So, what does this all mean for you?

Well, for a start, it means that you have to look after your own interests.

If you don’t look after your own interests, then I can assure you that no one else will.

If you think someone, somewhere, is thinking about your best interests, then, with the exception of your parents, that’s very unlikely at best.

It’s all down to you to get the most from your job, your career, and your life.

It’s your responsibility:

You must decide what you want; you must decide where and how you can add the greatest value; you must decide what’s the next logical move for you, in pursuit of your goals; and you must decide on the timing of when it’s appropriate to move on to the next challenge.

Occasionally, you might get lucky and a great opportunity will fall straight into your lap. However, that doesn’t happen often, if at all.

Remember that you are the captain of your own ship.

So you decide where it goes and you must steer it accordingly.

It would be a mistake to rely on others to plan your career, quite simply because they won’t, and it would be naïve to think otherwise.

So, here are 9 tips for getting the most from work:

Getting the most from your work:

1. Take a pragmatic view:

Now, reading this, you might think that I have a jaundiced view of companies and corporate life.

I don’t. This is simply a realistic and pragmatic view based on many years of experience.

I understand why companies do what they do from a commercial standpoint

Work is just doing stuff for other people in return for money.

If a company has stuff that needs doing, they are willing to pay good money to get it done.

However once that work’s been done, or is no longer required, employers see no reason to retain people. Why would they? After all, they’re in business to make money.

So be realistic and take a pragmatic view. That way you won’t be disappointed.

2. Recognise the psychological contract:

Once again, we must be fair. The company’s approach is no different from the one we would take as individuals.

If we need our house painting, we hire a painter and decorator. Our house gets painted, and when the job’s been done, we pay the painter for the work completed.

We don’t start worrying about the painter’s job satisfaction or career development. The psychological contract between us and the painter ends when the bill has been settled for the work completed. That’s the way it is. It’s that simple.

So why should we expect our employers to be any different?

Companies are not charities or job creation schemes. Commercial companies have to make a profit if they’re to grow and survive, and costs have an impact on profit, obviously.

The psychological contract we have with our employer is one where we do stuff for them and then we’re paid for our efforts at the end of each month.

We’re the hired help, and once we’ve been paid that’s where the psychological contract ends as far as our employer is concerned.

Your employer will not spend time worrying about your aspirations or your dreams. Once again, it would be naïve to think otherwise.

3. Accept commercial reality:

Commercial reality, whether we like it or not, is that all companies exist to make money for their owners. It’s that simple. Why would anyone start a company for any other reason?

So if you think that your loyalty will be appreciated by the average employer, I think you’re either mistaken or deluded.

Individual managers might value your presence in the team, of course, but the people at the top of the organisation have to be much tougher and businesslike in their approach, as they’re ultimately accountable for the performance of the business.

Employers will take everything you give and a bit more besides, but once you’re no longer required, they will be as ruthless as they have to be. If it’s their survival versus your career aspirations, there’s only one outcome, and it will have nothing to do with your aspirations.

If they weren’t able to be ruthless when necessary, then that could put the whole company and the jobs of everyone involved at risk. So there’s a good business reason for the way companies tend to operate.

Furthermore, ordinary people don’t spend their money unnecessarily, so why should we expect a company to be any different?

Occasionally, you’ll meet leaders of real stature and class who will treat you very well. However, they’re the exception rather than the rule.

Most senior executives are driven only by self-interest, in my experience. Once you’re no longer of use, they will be as ruthless as they have to be. That’s how the world works, so don’t expect it to be any different for you.

4. Don’t expect loyalty to be reciprocated:

The point I’m making here is that you must be ruthless too. You must look after your own interests, constantly.

It’s perfectly reasonable for you to be working with your own agenda in mind. Deliver the results for which you’re being paid, of course, but always with one eye on your own best interests.

In any job you should make sure that you know what you’re meant to be doing and what you’re meant to be delivering too.

What you’re delivering must add value. You should know what that value is, and you should be confident that it’s not something that can be done by a machine. If it is, then the chances are that one day it will be and you will be out of a job.

Never do anything out of a misplaced sense of loyalty because that loyalty is unlikely to be reciprocated. At work, you have to be very businesslike in everything you do.

For you, the name of the game is earning a living. If it’s not obvious to you what your contribution is meant to be, you should start to worry. And if you cannot explain what you’re meant to be doing in a couple of lines, then it’s time to move on.

If you don’t know what you’re meant to be doing, chances are that your boss is wondering too. And once your boss starts to question your role, there is a risk that it won’t be too long before your job is eliminated in a future cost-saving exercise.

5. Look after your own interests:

Remember this:

No one owes you anything

Life is what you make it.

As I said earlier, you’re the captain of your own ship.

You should be steering that ship in a direction that suits you and your ambitions. Steer the good ship ‘Me’ in the direction you wish to go and not in the direction someone else wants you to go.

You should be following your agenda, and within the framework of your plans.

If you think your employer has plans for you, you’re fooling yourself.

You will only figure in your employer’s plans for as long as it makes good business sense for them to include you in those plans.

If they can’t see how you’ll add value to their plans, then a parting of the ways might not be far away.

6. Take every opportunity to gain experience:

You may make mistakes occasionally, and you may do things for employers that, for whatever reason, come back to bite you. If you do, don’t worry. Just learn any lessons from the experience and move on.

Lessons learned are far more valuable to you than anything someone else can tell you. The commodity, based on life’s lessons, is known as experience, and experience gained is a valuable commodity.

Take every opportunity to broaden your experience and grow.

Take on every challenge that comes your way. However daunting a challenge might seem, it will be a learning opportunity through which you’ll grow. View such opportunities positively and don’t be afraid to put yourself forward. You can do it and you’ll be a better person for it.

The message here:

Work harder on yourself than you do on your job

The more experience and know-how you have to offer, the more employable you’ll be and the greater will be your financial rewards.

7. Have realistic expectations:

Never expect loyalty from your employer, and you won’t be disappointed.

You’re not indispensable, and neither is anyone else. If you were to die tomorrow, you’d be replaced in a heartbeat, and the company would get along fine without you.

If you weren’t around, someone else would be hired quickly, and the business would move on. And in all probability, you’ll soon be forgotten.

The chances are that someone else will take the credit for any significant contribution you’ve made, but you’ll probably take the blame for everything wrong, including things in which you had no involvement at all.

That’s life, unfortunately.

8. Work to your own agenda:

If you make sure you look after your own interests, then your achievements will be all yours and you’ll be on the road to success.

You have to carve out the success you want; no one else will do it for you.

Add real value to your employer for as long as you can or for as long as it makes sense within your own plans for you to do so, and then it’s time to move on to the next challenge.

Don’t get overly sentimental; you’ve got to be as ruthless with your employer as they would be with you. It’s perfectly reasonable to work to your own agenda, and that’s exactly what successful people do.

9. Keep reading; keep learning:

Never underestimate the value of reading and continual learning.

The more you read, the more you’ll learn, and the more you learn the greater will be your value.

Read one good book related to your work or personal development each week, and over a yea,r that’s the equivalent of a PhD‘s worth of knowledge gained.

Increase your knowledge by that amount every year, and you’ll be light years ahead of your colleagues.

Increase your knowledge and skills, and you’ll increase your ability to add value. Add more value and you’ll earn more. And what’s not to like about that?

So, make sure you allocate at least 30 minutes per day for your reading, and more time if possible.

Conclusion:

Appreciate the opportunity an employer gives you. Be grateful you have a job and an income.

However, never be overly sentimental, nor show misplaced loyalty to an employer. An employer must be businesslike and so must you.

Add value where you can, but look after your own interests, and when it makes sense to do so, move on.

Sensible people will always look after their own interests. It’s perfectly reasonable to have an agenda of your own.

Getting the most from your work is all about adding value, gaining experience, broadening your skills, and moving on to the next challenge when it’s appropriate to do so. Above all, enjoy what you do. Life’s too short to be spending a third of it doing something that doesn’t leave you fulfilled.

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Building personal branding for success

03/30/2025 by

Personal branding for success:

Personal branding says something about you. And personal branding for success is something that you should take seriously if your aim is to be successful.

How you present yourself to the world is being judged all the time, and people will draw conclusions about you based simply on their perception of you and how you look.

That may not seem fair, but in my experience, it’s almost always true. And reputations can often be built largely based on other people’s perception of you.

So, is personal branding something that matters to you, dear reader?

In your opinion, does it matter what you look like, how you dress, how you speak, or what people see in your digital footprint on social media and elsewhere? Certainly, it should do.

What do you think? Does your reputation matter to you?

Perhaps you believe that the only thing that matters is the quality of the work that you do?

If that’s true, then you may not see the need to worry about your personal branding.

However, I can assure you, you really are being judged all of the time, whether you like it or not.

The importance of personal branding:

Think about it for one moment. Now, how often have you walked into an open-plan office area looking for a manager you’ve not met, and yet you have no trouble spotting who he or she is immediately?

You just can’t miss them, can you? There’s just something about them that says, ‘I am the manager!‘ Well, that’s personal branding.

It’s the same thing with social media.

How you conduct yourself within your digital footprint will speak volumes about you, and it will have an impact on how you’re perceived by others.

A silly remark on social media about other people or the latest news can prove very costly and may have implications in future years because it could suggest something about your judgement, or lack of it.

Jobs have been lost and people have been forced to resign over ill-judged comments made on social media, often many years before.

So you have to ask yourself, do I want to be successful in my chosen field?

If you do, then you must ensure that your personal branding is consistent with your ambition. To be the one, you must look like the one in every respect.

You must also promote yourself in the right way at every opportunity.

Self-promotion is important because it’s all about selling yourself and making sure you’re perceived by the world in the way you’d prefer to be perceived.

If you don’t sell yourself and create the right image for yourself, then no one else is going to do it for you, that’s for sure. Constantly working on your personal branding must be part of your strategy for achieving success.

The good news is that with WordPress, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and other social media channels, it’s never been easier to promote yourself, create the right image, build relationships, and tell the world what it is you have to offer.

So the obvious question now is, where do you start on building a personal brand?

Building a personal brand:

In the video below, recorded at TEDxCMU 2011, Jacob Cass presents some interesting and useful ideas as to how you can go about building your personal brand.

This video will provide you with some useful tips and it’s well worth watching.

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If so, then please share it on social media with your friends. When you share, everyone wins.

So please share it now. If you do, I’ll be forever grateful and you’ll be helping a keen blogger reach a wider audience.

Thank you.

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