career moves

How To Avoid Falling Into The 'Miserable Career' Trap

The year was 2009. I was an overly confident (and incredibly ignorant) young man… And I was on a mission to kickstart my career and make a lot of money.

Related:How 20 Seconds Of Insane Courage Got Me My Dream Job

The results of my quest are both hilarious and embarrassing... And while I learned an incredibly valuable lesson from this experience, I nonetheless wasted an entire year of my life. I was burned out, had used up all my savings, was living with my parents, AND was completely miserable. So, what happened? And how can you avoid an equally horrific fate?

  1. Apply Your Strengths - take tests and assessments to figure out what you’re naturally good at, and make sure your role is in alignment with your results.
  2. Align With Your Values - identify what’s most important to you, and make sure your position and the company you work for fit. If you’re a health junkie working for a soda-pop company, you may want change things up.
  3. Lean Into Your Inspiration - lean into your inspiration by reflecting on what you enjoy, what you’re passionate about, and what drives you crazy in the world!
  4. Make a Great Income - leverage your skills and experience to make the highest income possible.
  5. Magnify Your Impact - contribute your skills to projects that make a difference in the world. The sweet spot of these five elements is where you’ll find your ultimate career. Applying this formula is a process, but one day you’ll hit the tipping point where you realize that you’re right in the middle of your ultimate career - and you know that you’ll only continue to magnify your impact and income from there.

This post was originally published at an earlier date.

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by a CAREEREALISM-approved expert.

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