Personal finance guru Dave Ramsey often quips that ‘the books you read and the people you spend time with are the two biggest predictors of the future ahead of you.’ I think there is a lot of truth in that. An enjoyment of reading was nurtured in me by my parents, and for the most part, they taught me to be careful in choosing who to spend time with. As a result, I read a lot and spend time with people who add value to my life, and hopefully, they feel the same about me.
But
I think the idea needs to be unpackaged in a slightly different way. Think about what you spend the most time doing, who that puts you in contact with, and what information it requires you to consume. You don’t have to think much further to know that your job is having a big impact on you in a myriad of ways beyond the hours spent and the money earned. In his book Beautiful Resistance, Jon Tyson notes that ‘participation brings formation.’ From an ‘hours spent’ perspective, is there anything we participate in more than our jobs? Participation brings formation.
So
Your job shapes you, but you can take intentional action to ensure that the shaping is positive at best and not negative at worst. Here are 5 ways to keep tabs on how your job shapes you.
THE PACE: Control it. I do not advocate for strict 40-hour weeks. I do think that excellence requires extra effort and hours. I advocate for excellence in the workplace. I also do not advocate for workaholism. I advocate for busy seasons and slow seasons. Here’s my post on that. I’ll say here that you need to know your busy and slow seasons and stay disciplined in each. Like a distance runner who knows when to keep a steady pace and when to ‘kick’ at the end to win a race, we need to know how to control the steady and the kick to make sure that we win at the way our jobs are shaping us.
THE POSITION: Use it to benefit others. Certain positions have built-in influence, and those around you should benefit. Other positions come with no expectation of influence, and this is where you can surprise people with the value you can add. Liz Wiseman calls this 'benefit mindset' in her book Impact Players. The point is, do not let the position define you or limit you. YOU have influence. You have the opportunity each day to encourage others, serve others, support others, inspire others, and spread good news about others. Your position may be shaping you, but you should utilize your position to shape your organization for the benefit of others.
THE PEOPLE: Do you enjoy the people you work with? Do you have access to experts that can provide trustworthy insight? Does each team member have a unique skill that you can learn from? Do the people you work with take pride in what they are doing? Are they committed to doing the right thing? All of these things are shaping you.
THE PROCESS: I have spent much time reading thought leaders on elite performance. A shocking truth I've discovered is that passion follows proficiency. This means that the more you work at something, the better you get and the more passionate you become about it. Authors like Dweck, Duckworth, Coyle, and Gladwell would tell you that 'follow your passion' is bad advice. 'Put your head down and work hard to get better at the task at hand' is much better advice.
THE PURPOSE: There is a purpose to what you are doing. It could benefit those you are working with. Your children may need to see you working diligently to provide for your family. Take the time to dig into the nuances of your job and craft a clearly defined purpose. That will shape you.
President Dwight Eisenhower, when a general in World War II, said, 'In war, plans are useless, but planning is priceless.' The preparation and intentional effort gave him the information to reassess and pivot troops wisely when the initial plan became futile. I can’t think of a better example of why we need to be intentional about controlling how our jobs shape us.
Your job is shaping you. Take these 5 suggestions and make sure that shape is a good thing.
Keep on, keepin’ on, friends!
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