If you work full-time, do you realize more than a third of your day revolves around work? Consider the time you spend preparing for work, traveling to and from work, and then actually at work. That's a lot of time - too much time in my opinion if it's all about just a paycheck. It's time to take control. Related:5 Steps To Take Control Of Your Career There are periods of time in almost everyone's career where we work to live. But wouldn't life be a whole lot more meaningful if you could enjoy the work you get paid to do? I know - that sounds like wanting to have your cake and eat it too, right? Well, when it comes to work, I am a firm believer it is absolutely possible to have your cake and eat it, too... as long as you are sure you've got the right cake! Is the cake you are eating (your job) overdone, short on sugar, or just plain nauseating? If you are trapped in a dead-end job, living from paycheck to paycheck, and are living without a passion for your day to day grind, you probably don't want to eat it or have it. In fact, you would be just fine tossing the whole thing in the trash. Before you quit or take any other drastic measures, answer this question: Whose cake are you eating? This is the question I had to ask myself, nine months after I started a new position at a global software company. In accepting the position I got a raise, a better title, more responsibility and a seemingly better work environment - a pretty sweet cake, right? Well, the first bite (mostly frosting) was quite tasty. But as I took one bite after another, it became quite apparent the cake was well, half baked: super long hours, an understaffed team, and projects with unbelievable scope creep, and critical decisions that changed on a weekly basis. The realization this was not the cake I wanted to eat at first evoked a sense of disappointment: Who would I really be without the title, money and position? As I let go and moved pass the feelings of loss, it slowly dawned on me I could bake my own cake. If you have found yourself in a similar situation I offer you the same challenge: What if you could have and eat a better cake? A cake you created - so you know it's going to be good. When you bake your own cake, you choose your own ingredients and ultimately the outcome. In other words you take control of what you get to have and eat. You can make the cake as sweet and moist as you want. You also control if it comes out burnt or just right. So, what's an ambitious professional to do? Here are five steps that help you take control and start baking your own cake:
