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 Have you ever sat back and reflected on the major events in your life and how they came about? While I know I may not have always done so in the past, over the last several years both as I have spent time as a coach and also as I have
gotten older, I know that I do. Take for example the set of circumstances that had to all take place before I met my wife, Carolina.
First of all my wife was born in Cuba, while I was born in the United States. If there was never a Communist revolution in Cuba, it may have been very unlikely that she and her family would have come to the United States. Additionally, we met through a friend that knew Carolina as a co-worker, but only knew me because of another co-worker of that friend being a long-time friend of my first wife. When my first wife became very ill, and ultimately passed on from this life, the friend stayed
in contact with me, making sure I was doing well and moving forward with my life. Eventually, that friend began to realize that Carolina and I shared a lot of common interests, (love of baseball, liking to travel, practicing our Catholic faith), that she thought we would like to meet each other. That suggestion, led to dating, eventual engagement, and now at this point 13 years of a great marriage. It all started from a set of circumstances and a friend “planting a seed” that
brought us together.
I am sure everyone of you has similar type of stories. Whether it involves the purchase of the home and city where you now reside, to the type of work you do and where you may be working, to the people in your life, there is usually a set of circumstances behind them. And, while we can touch on this concept in a number of different ways, let’s focus on some of the ways that one can take advantage of occurrences in their life in the area of career and “what seeds may have been
planted” that led to that career path happening.
One way an individual “plants seeds” in their career development is to identify an end target in terms of what they would like to do as a form of work. That type of work may have education and certification requirements as a part of it. When we are young we often foresee the need of following our elementary and secondary education with a field of study to follow, courses to take, a degree to obtain. As we get older, many will say, I am glad that the school and
education period is behind me. But, is it truly? Those who advance their career or seem to come upon additional opportunities show an interest of in doing additional learnings. Those studies do not have to all be full-time degree courses. They can be through certification courses (either in person or online), they could be through the attending of webinars and seminars, or they could be through applying the training that comes through manuals in an on-the-job situations.
The key “seed” that is planted in such individuals is an understanding and desire to never stop learning their craft, and continue to stay up to date with the latest developments in their profession.
When I work with clients and they ask me to review or help them develop their resume I will ask them about the professional organizations they may have listed on the document. I will often ask questions of how long they may have been a member and how active they are with the organization. Many will say to me I just joined the organization because I was told it was something good for me to do. I will ask have they attended any of the group’s meetings or participated in their events?
Often again, the answer is no. I explain to the client of the potential opportunities they are missing. Attending professional association events, volunteering and being part of their events, connecting with other members are all opportunities to “plant seeds,” and both get known by other professionals, but also learn of opportunities in other companies. When one finds themselves in job transition, (either through their choice or through no fault of themselves),
they have a head start on learning of potential next opportunities,
In the current world of job search, yes, your resume is important for you, but so is a well developed Linked In profile. For those who will say to me should your resume and your Linked In profile be absolutely the same the answer is a resounding “NO!” A resume is a 3rd person voiced document of what you have accomplished in your career. Linked In while capturing some of that information, affords one the ability to both present themselves
in “the first person,” but also to project who they are looking to be and identifying those individuals and companies that they are looking to help. Those reading a Linked In profile will say to themselves, if adequately attracted to the professional, I need to connect to that individual. I need to learn more about them and what they do. If that person doing the searching and connecting is someone with access to job leads and opportunities, you may find your next source of
work when you were not even looking. Such a situation occurred for me in the fall of 2020 during the height of the pandemic. An outplacement firm which worked with professionals in the hospitality field connected with me at that time. I worked with many of their clients, had my best revenue year ever, and made connections that are continuing to provide leads for me in terms of individuals with whom I work.
As you can see, you never know what opportunities may emerge for you from the choices you make, the connections that come into your life, your willingness to participate and get involved in different activities. It all depends on your openness to connecting with others or those opportunities that come your way, and being open to possibilities when they emerge. However, having the possibilities even emerge starts with you being will to “plant the seeds” and continue
to nurture them. Think about that as you see the foliage and gardens bloom around you this Spring.
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