Life and Career: Too Short

 By Mary Salvino

“This is not a dress rehearsal.”~ Rose Tremain

Tolerating, enduring, and allowing yourself to be subjugated to unsavoury environmental conditions in either your personal or professional life without reacting is not living.   Living is about choices that you make on a day-to-day and moment-to-moment.   If you feel like a hamster madly running in your own little exercise wheel that isn’t going anywhere, know that it is never too late to reclaim your life.  Make no mistake; reclaiming your life is fraught with obstacles some of which are quite real while others exist only in your mind.  Some actions are doable while others are unrealistic and one of the first steps to living your life is to recognize the elements in your environment that clog, clutter and keep you from moving forward.   The bullets that follow may help you recognize the toxins around you and give you suggestions on how to address them.

Remove the environmental toxins that are slowly choking the life out of you.   These toxins come in many forms. They can most easily be identified as those people in your life who do not support your goals personal and professional goals.  Both personal and professional relationships should help you celebrate your growth, not hinder it.  Spend time with people whose company you enjoy, who are smarter than you are and who have the same goals. 

Keep your end goals in mind.  When living your life on a day-to-day/moment-to-moment basis take steps to ensure that your actions will get you closer to your end goals.   Plan the work; work the plan.

Say what you mean and mean what you say.  The only way to avoid miscommunication is to speak clearly and/or ask questions that will add clarity to your desired goals.

Be aware of your mental self-talk.  Know that everyone has demotivating thoughts from time to time.  If you must dwell in unpleasant thoughts, allow yourself to do so only for short periods.  Managing your time effectively is critical to success.  

The only certainties in life are death and taxes– “Live life so completely that when death comes to you like a thief in the night, there will be nothing left for him to steal.” ~ Kahlil Gibran

“Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day, you shall begin it well and serenely...” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Copyright © 2012, Career Matters. All Rights Reserved. Permission to Reprint: This article may be reprinted, provided it appears in its entirety with the following attribution: Copyright © 2012, Career Matters. Reprinted by permission of the author, Mary Salvino. “Career Matters” is a blog authored by Mary Salvino, Senior Consultant for SMART Career Planning.com that is dedicated to those who are seeking advice on managing their career and future job opportunities. We welcome readers to share their experiences, post their comments or ask questions about career related matters. This blog is also dedicated to those who stand a little taller each time they picked themselves up after failing and those who gained the wisdom and humility from those experiences to help others do the same. For any questions or comments that are better addressed privately, please feel free to e-mail Mary directly at Mary.Salvino@shaw.ca