Find Joy in Your Life’s Work–and Never Be Without Work
In my work as an advocate for people to find jobs, I insist that the people who work for me enjoy their own jobs, and this includes the recruiting team. I expect the recruiters I work with to thoroughly enjoy, appreciate, and respect the people they are helping to find work. Everything we do is affected by our mindset. Your mindset needs to be in the right place with regard to your work. A good mindset is a foundation for success. A poor mindset makes for job dissatisfaction, frustration, and long days, and, ultimately, can bring about failure. This is why enjoying what you are doing, and enjoying it immensely, is key. Many people cannot seem to grasp this simple but powerful perspective, so I would like to elaborate on it a bit. I think it is one of the most important perspectives one can have. It will change the way you look for a job, and if you really get it, it can really help you achieve success in your life and career. After my first semester at the University of Chicago, I had a mandatory meeting with a counselor. I had gotten a 3.3 average for that semester despite taking a difficult calculus class and several advanced classes that had made me study harder than I ever had in my life. I was feeling pretty good about myself for getting these kinds of grades. In the meeting, the counselor asked me what profession I wanted to go into after graduation. I [Read more]
Life Supports What Supports Life
A few months ago, I was invited with my wife to a couple’s very nice home. I am sure the home cost at least a few million dollars, and I remember speaking with the owner of the home as we listened to some music. The man was telling me that he was in the legal industry, and there was a possibility he was about to lose his job. He told me that his income was down substantially, and that he was fairly frightened about the future. I was not sure exactly what to say because it did not seem like [Read more]
The Importance of Fitting In
One of the most persistent mistakes people make is not fitting in with their work environments. Fitting in enables you to both get and keep a job. In terms of what it takes to succeed in the long term, fitting in may actually be more important than your skill level. This little-known observation is lost on many people, and overlooking this can result in unhappy and unfulfilled careers. Conversely, being aware of this often results in very happy and fulfilling careers. The problem is that it is often the very best people and those with the best academics and technical [Read more]
The Greatest Secret of Billionaires, 95-Year-Old Attorneys and the Retirement Myth
I have been in Las Vegas this week, and a good five or six times, I have heard various people talk about how Steve Wynn does this, or Steve Wynn does that. There is absolutely no question that Wynn is a successful guy, and I would love to go over and see his new casino to see what it is all about. From what I understand, it is incredible. Everywhere I go, I am hearing stories about different people who have reached the pinnacle of success. Because a really good biography just came out about Warren Buffet, I have been [Read more]
To Innovate You Need to Make Your Own Rules
One of the benefits of being an outsider is not being weighed down by the same social mores, rules, customs, and other restraints as the dominant group. Throughout history it has often been outsiders who have made the greatest inventions, innovations, and breakthroughs and achieved the most in their lives. In business, people like Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates were both outsiders. In Germany, Albert Einstein was an outsider. Barack Obama was an outsider. Each of these people operated by their own set of rules. When you find someone who has been wildly successful at something, the [Read more]
Are You Here? The Importance of Being Present in Your Job and Job Search
What makes someone successful in his or her career? When it comes down to it, I believe one of the greatest determinants of success is whether or not you are “here.” “Being here” takes two forms. The most obvious is to be here physically. Coming into the office each day and going through the motions is the most basic way to be here and the minimum requirement for success. An example of being here for a salesperson would be coming into the office and making a certain number of cold calls each day. If this is done, and nothing more, [Read more]
The Secret of Success
William Atkinson’s The Secret of Success is a nine-lesson course in which the author talks about the”‘Something Else” and the “Something Within” a person, besides the good qualities, which lead to success. This book is not one that preaches approved and formulated rules to success, but it will do you good in any event.
–Harrison
The Secret of Success By William Atkinson
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1. The Secret of Success Chapter 2. The Individual Chapter 3. Spiritedness Chapter 4. Latent Powers Chapter 5. Soul-Force Chapter 6. The Power of Desire [Read more]
Your Ultimate Goal: How You Can Find Job Security
One of the worst things that can happen to people is getting fired from a job with no notice whatsoever. It can be devastating to lose your source of income unexpectedly, especially in a contracting economy. Losing a job can color our perspective on the world and our future. Going forward, we have a difficult time allowing ourselves to ever feel secure again. We believe that things can change in an instant and that we might be suddenly out of a job again. This fear of sudden job loss is something that many people who have been terminated from jobs [Read more]
Your Job Is a Game: Make Your Opponents External
After being in the workforce for many years, I’ve come to realize that all of our jobs are, quite simply, games. In every job you have ever had, you are part of a game. Your ability to play the game and be part of the team will determine your success or failure. The ability of your employer to externalize the game and the opponent will determine the success or failure of the enterprise. Games consist of rules, freedoms, barriers, and opponents. Every organization has a certain set of rules by which it operates. These rules determine how [Read more]
The Foot-in-the-Door Phenomenon and Your Job Search
One of the most powerful and important things you can do to get a job or achieve anything in life is learn how to just get your foot in the door. Once you are able to get your foot in the door, everything changes. My entire life, I have seen firsthand the power of people getting their foot in the door. A large part of the battle for success in your career revolves around your ability to do this, because once you get your foot in the door incredible things can happen to you. Once you are in, the people you are working with will protect you if you work hard. You will also be in a position to impart massive change on the world. Several years ago, I was in a relationship with a woman who worked for David Geffen, who is one of the most powerful and richest men in Hollywood. This woman used to work at Geffen’s house, and when she was there she would see people like President Bill Clinton walking around. Amazingly, Geffen never completed college. He started his career working in the mail room at the William Morris Agency. To get the job, he was asked to prove that he had graduated from college, so he forged a letter to that effect. Geffen was such a hard worker that, once he was able to get his foot in the door, he was able to achieve what his true pedigree would not have allowed him to achieve. While people may not approve of Geffen forging the fact that he went to college, doing so got him in the door. The rest is history; getting his foot in the door gave Geffen the opportunity to become a powerful agent, and ultimately, hang out with presidents, make movies, become a generous benefactor, and more. All of his successes came from his ability to get in the door. Several years ago, I was speaking to an attorney who was working at what is widely considered the most difficult law firm to [Read more]
