Mentality and Self-Reflection

The way I see it is: mentally; it’s all in your head. We choose whether or not we want to regret something; we choose to live a life filled with what ifs. We all have done something stupid in our lives — I get it; I really do. But have we not learned something from it? Did it not make us a better person to some degree?

If you answered no, then you haven’t done enough self-reflection. Self-reflection is another topic I could write on forever, as I believe it’s something we as a society have forgotten. The point is that you should never answer no; you shouldn’t want to answer no.

Life is only filled with “what ifs” if you haven’t done any self-reflection — if you haven’t learned anything. Dig back into your personal history, dig up those bones and ask the question “what if?” What can you learn from it?

The point here is that it’s okay to ask “what if” when reflecting upon past scenarios, but we don’t want to create our life around “what ifs.” We don’t want to dwell on the past in a negative manner. We learn from it, move on and make the necessary adjustments so it doesn’t happen again in the future. You need to get all the “what ifs” out of your system; no longer should you be living that life.

From now on, no more “what ifs.”

Applying This to the Job Search

Have you ever wondered, “What if I did apply to that job in Lagos?” or “What if I had a better interview for that job?” or “What if I had only prepared more for that conversation?” If you have, I can tell you that you’re not alone. I deal with clients all the time who ask me questions just like those, and I tell them this story:

A good friend of mine applied for a job out of college that required 5 years of experience in a particular field — and they only had 5 months. Eek! Long story short, they applied anyway and ending up getting the job. Why? They told me they later found out the hiring manager had interviewed over 20+ people, all extremely qualified for the job, but they didn’t have the passion he was looking for. Along came my friend, and the hiring manager said, “I was willing to take a chance on you and train you because of the passion you had for this field and the potential that you showed me.”

Here is your job search tip. If you come across a job posting you really like, but feel you don’t meet all the qualifications for whatever reason, apply anyway. Why are you disqualifying yourself before you even give yourself a chance? If you won’t stand up and fight for yourself, who will? At the end of the day, you don’t know what the hiring manager and/or company is looking for.

So no longer should you be living a life of “what ifs.” Get out there, challenge yourself, put yourself in uncomfortable situations. Next time you feel a “what if” situation come on, stop, reflect and decide what you ultimately want. But whatever you decide, know that you must live with the repercussions; both good and bad.

It’s okay to make bad decisions! Sometimes it’s the bad decisions where we learn the most; the way to move on from bad decisions is to accept and learn from them. It’s then you will truly flourish and grow into the person you’re meant to be.

Source: http://blog.cvwizards.com.ng/?p=384

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wao