The unexamined life is not worth living – Socrates. How often do you examine the state of your life and how you are showing up for others and especially yourself? At times, we may think we are showing up in a certain manner until we ask for feedback from our colleagues, friends, children and close family members. You would be surprised to know that you might actually not even be showing up the way you thought you do. This brings me to my main point, intentionality. How intentional are you with the following in your workplace:
- Your professional image (Whether we like it or not, your image plays a role in how you are perceived.)
- Your visibility in rooms (Do you speak up or you slowly fade away in the room?)
- Your tone, voice and the discussions you engage in (Birds of a feather flock together!)
- The quality of your output (Do you deliver excellent work or low-effort work?)
Answering these will help you understand if you are showing up the way you desire to. “Life is not fair” is a statement we hear from time to time, however, allow me to present to you a different perspective. What you put out, you will receive. It’s more or less like a boomerang. Cause and Effect. If you are putting out low-effort energy into yourself and into your work ethic it’s only inevitable that you will receive almost no reward for that. If you are not showing up in your workplace in the way that will get you to the point you desire yourself to be at, why do you think it will miraculously happen for you?
Faith without works is dead, seriously! If you are not visible at work or delivering excellent work, the probabilities of you being considered for great opportunities lessen at a much higher speed. Im calling you to aim higher, push yourself further and most of all be intentional with the kinds of conversations you engage in. It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently — Warren Buffett
See you next week, Monday!