Your Next Career Adventure

Just posted the comments below to Marshall Goldsmith's Harvard Site:

I agree with Marshall, with a twist. Sure, I think it's great to do what you love until you can't do it anymore. And, I'm not sure we need to set any deadline on that. In my coaching practice I've used the hedgehog concept from Jim Collin's work (Good to Great)to help executives, especially Boomers find their next playing field.

In fact, the other day when talking to a bunch of senior police executives I asked them to draw three intersecting circles. I suggested that in the first circle they place anything that good at now and could become world class with practice and development.

In the next circle, I ask them to look at that list (good-to-great list in the first circle) and put in the second circle only the ones that they're passionate about. Note: many of us are good and could be great at things we just don't like all that much...like driving a car or conducting audits (UGH).

Then in the final circle, I asked them to look at the first two circles and figure out a financial model (a fee process/schedule) that will make them a decent salary if they were to perform the other two circles well. In other words, answer the question: How can I make a living at the other two circles?

If you spend time on this process, the chances of finding something you can love for the rest of your life are pretty good. If you can only fill in the-good-to great circle and the passionate circle (but not the money one), then you have a HOBBY...not a bad thing either.

Trophies and Leaders

A friend of ours, Tom Ryan, was talking about all the trophies his two boys (now grown) and he had accumulated over years. Trophies for swimming, running, soccer and the like that line the shelves of his family room. But after thinking about the scores of trophies, Tom had this keen insight: Despite all the trophies, who did everyone in the family go to when they needed advice or consolation—not to the trophy holders—but Judy, Tom’s wife. Like my wife, Donna, Judy has no trophies with her name on them, but possesses the greatest prize: Wisdom. Maybe we should have a Wisdom Trophy—but that would be a man thing wouldn’t it!

Persuasion and Influence

Bob Cialdini is a social scientist at Arizona State University and has studied persuasion for many years. His book Influence is a classic that I've used in my university classes. A very readable author, he's written extensively on the topic and has a new book out 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive. Here's an interview on NPR worth listening to, especially during this election season. I'm getting my copy next week.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=93872977&sc=emaf