Aimlessly succeeding.

When was the last time you asked, what do I want to be? Surely you’ve asked since the days of firemen, cowboys and test pilots. What about what you stand for or if your work matters and makes a difference? If you haven’t asked recently and you haven’t accomplished or delivered anything, how come you’re still succeeding? Seems life has been easier at work than you think but times are a changing.

In the past it was easier to be obscure but that is getting harder nowadays with more accountability and 24/7 access to you and your work. So are the questions too daunting or is it easier for someone else to make them for you? Is it easier to follow? Do you sometimes wonder how you got to today, without really trying? A bit like wondering if you drove through a red light over the last 10 kilometres, you don’t remember.

Daily distractions get in the way of those self examining questions and days often turn into months, turn into years and before you know it, you are aimlessly succeeding in spite of the skills you have to offer but never use.

You know there are better ways to do things at work, better processes and best practice techniques you could implement. There are better ways for you to deliver and accomplish but you come up against the “we’ve always done it this way” bunch and the air goes out of your balloon. Choice and change are up to you and maybe it’s time to start hanging around with the “this is the right thing to do” bunch and shake it up.

Stop aimlessly succeeding and look to your strengths and passions to find the areas of greatest success for you. Chose the things that work for you and concentrate on them. Chose the best parts of your job and concentrate on them. Chose the relationships that work best in your business day and make them even more profound. If you create work that matters, then the question of will they care if you left or went out of business tomorrow becomes moot.

On the other hand, if you are happy in your business rut then by all means continue. If you don’t want to make a difference, by all means continue. If you don’t want to change, then by all means continue.

If you are ready to change and for people to notice you and your work, is there an optimum time to start?

A year from now you may have wished you started today.