Friday, March 21, 2014

WINNING WAYS Corner – Bottom Line Advice to Reclaim Your Power - by Marge Powers



Lifetime Builder Checkup

Welcome.  Spring is almost here and I usually like to view this new fresh season as a new beginning.  I like to start the spring giving my clients a checkup to review their life which will give them the right insights as to the next steps they need to take in their life. .

Here at WINNING WAYS, we like to view the Lifetime Builder Checkup below analogous to an efficient automobile maintenance program.  Periodically you need to take care of your car to make sure it continues to perform in order to keep you on the right road to your destinations.  Sometimes you may need a new muffler, tires, an oil change, check out the belts and tinker with the engine, etc.

In a way, it’s the same with maintaining your Life strategies with a slightly different slant.  Periodically, you need to review your skills, add to your strengths, choose new jobs, research careers, continue your education, change your relationships, take new classes, create a new lifestyle, and continually update your lifetime goals based on your core passions and what makes you tick regarding your values and who you really are. 




This Career and Lifetime Builder Checkup will help you recognize and focus on what you need to do next as you continue to grow and change.  In order to be empowered in your life and career, you need to continually ask and review what you really want and what is important to you. 

On the following pages are thoughtful exercises to aid you in getting clearer on what you currently need and want in your life and what your focus should be right now.  

Checkup Questionnaire:

Take a few moments and look at the descriptions of the situations below.  The following list of questions will help you to identify your primary work or life situation and provide you with additional clarity about the next step to take.

Taking this assessment may confirm what you already suspect about your reasons for being discontented with your life or work and should allow you to gain further insights that will motivate you in obtaining your goals and being more satisfied.

Check yes next to the situations that apply to you:

What Is Your Work Situation?
Yes:
q  In the last year or so, have you ever asked yourself, “Why am I doing the work I’m doing?”  Or, “What is the point of the work I do?”                    
q  I am feeling more and more that there is no reward or challenge for doing the work that I do.
q  I fantasize about ‘throwing in the towel’ and going to work for a nonprofit organization or a specific cause.
q  I have an interest or hobby that I am passionate about and that I wish I could become more deeply involved with.

Been There, Done That, But Still Need to Earn

Yes:
q  I am unemployed and can’t seem to find the energy to focus on finding work that I enjoy, let alone a job of any kind.        
q  I feel as if I have achieved a lot in my current career and would love to try a different kind of work but am afraid that I wouldn’t earn what I do now if I did try something else.
q  Earning the same amount of money or more is important to me so that I can take care of my family, but I am a little bored.  
q  I’ll admit that I’ve been pretty bored and unchallenged in my job lately, but I’m hard-pressed to think of anything else I could do and earn the same paycheck.
     

Bruised and Gun-Shy 

Yes:
q  I don’t feel optimistic about the future of my career, in part because of my past negative work experiences.
q  I don’t trust the corporate world anymore.  When I started working, company loyalty was important.  Joining a company meant you stayed there forever.
q  I’ve experienced some hard knocks in my career.  I’ve been laid off, gotten caught in company politics, been discriminated against, or my company has been sold.  How much more do I have to take?
q  It seems that what companies want from their employees keeps changing.  I just don’t know if I can keep up this pace any longer, but I can’t afford to stop working either.

Bored and Plateaued

Yes:
q  I’ve invested a lot of time and energy in my work and I am considered an expert in my field, yet I feel the need to change something about it, however minor.
q  I have been having trouble getting out of bed in the morning, especially during the week, and feel unmotivated when I’m at work.
q  I daydream about quitting my job and doing something entirely different because I don’t feel passionate about my work anymore.
q  I am experiencing feelings of burnout (anger, frustration, depression, and anxiety) at work.

Yearning To Be On My Own

Yes:
q  I am increasingly dissatisfied with the way the company I work for is run, and I’m convinced that I can do things differently and better.
q  I grew up in an entrepreneurial family or am close to someone who is an entrepreneur.  I can see the advantages of having my own business—more than I fear the disadvantages.
q  I’m so envious of people who have their own businesses.  I know it’s not easy, but the thought of being my own boss is so appealing.
q  I’ve always dreamed of being in my own little business.  I know there are plenty of resources out there for entrepreneurs, but I am not sure where or how to begin.

One Toe in the Retirement Pool

Yes:
q  The truth is I really would like to stop working right now.  It just seems unrealistic to do so financially.
q  I never want to stop working completely, but I would like to slow my pace down a bit and do something different and less demanding.
q  I’m worn out from working.  I’ve thought about my alternatives, and partial retirement seems like the best one for me as long as I can work part-time.
q  I’ve worked for a long time and would welcome ideas about structuring the next phase of my life.

Life Balance Checkup

Yes:
q  My activities sap my energy, instead of energizing me.
q  Life seems to happen to me, instead of me making it happen.
q  I know there’s got to be more to life, but I don’t know how to find it, or even what I’m looking for.
q  I am suffering financial burdens I can’t handle.        
q  I am not sure what I want out of life.

Score Key:  Below, check the categories (from above) in which you answered yes to three or more of the questions.  Those are the situations that describe what you need to work on right now. 

q  Where’s the Meaning?
q  Been There, Done That, but Still Need to Earn
q  Bruised and Gun-shy
q  Bored and Plateaued
q  Yearning to Be on Your Own
q  One Toe in the Retirement Pool
q  Life Balance Building

Note your results below from the above Assessment Questionnaire:

Step 1: The Career Discovery System    (Skill Assessment):
q  The first logical and realistic step to putting a plan together for your life is to learn and understand what your unique values, interests, personality preferences, attitudes and favorite skills are.  By using this information about yourself as a strong foundation, you’ll be better able to focus your job search or career direction.  You’ll be able to take your work situation specific to your circumstance and ‘who you are’ to choose and control the direction you’d like your career to take.

Step 2: Explore Roadblocks and Opportunities:  

q  Many obstacles and barriers may be preventing you from pursuing a different kind of occupation or changing the way you live and work—for example: age, money, time, relationships, education, goals, or lack of experience.  On the positive side, the opportunities are limitless.  A coach will teach you how to get around roadblocks. 

Step 3: Lifetime Building:

q  Life coaching is a unique professional partnership that helps you stop long enough to review your values, identify your goals, develop specific and strategic action plans that help you move forward with clear direction.  A life coach can assist you in identifying areas to improve and strengthen in order for you to reach objectives.  In this process, you are actually held accountable to produce the results you choose. 

Step 4:  Create an Action Plan:  

q  An action plan requires quite a bit of thoughtfulness, preparation and moving on your objectives.  While creating your plan requires a lot of time and energy, it is an extremely valuable tool to use for mapping out a new career or revamping your goals.  Your coach will support and guide you throughout the entire planning strategies.

Although the journey that the Career and Lifetime Builder Discovery System will take you on is NOT EASY, it should be fascinating and eminently worthwhile.  Ultimately, it will bring you to your desired destination—satisfying and fulfilling your life for as long as you want. 

From the exercise above, which of the items above would be your first priority to work on. 

CONNECT WITH US.

Email Marge ‘Magic’ Powers your letters, inquiries, let me know your opinions, let’s have your suggestions, ask your questions or a free ½ consultation.  If you’re ready to feel good about yourself, then it’s time to connect now! Help is here if you know how to ask:  Contact Marge “Magic” Powers for a free consultation at 209.785.2042   marge@discoverwinningways.com. 

WINNING WAYS,    Founder,
Career and Master NLP Life Learning Advisor



  Marge ‘Magic’ Powers