We’ve all been there…
Often boggled down by unreasonable deadlines, non-existent support from bosses, sadistic colleagues who gleefully plot our falls from grace, and stressful work cultures, we’ve (silently) threatened to quit.
Or we’ve daydreamed about leaving corporateville altogether and becoming entrepreneurs.
Or perhaps we’ve visualised retreating to some serene oasis for much-needed mental, spiritual and physical rejuvenation.
I get it.
Still, take a moment to truly reflect on the entirety of your career. There has to be some spark, some moment in your long (or short) professional life, whereby you felt truly fulfilled because your efforts lead to results that made everything you had endured up until that point worth it.
Did you catch a mistake that saved your company millions?
Did you reveal some deep rot in the organisation?
Did you champion a worthy cause?
Or perhaps you finally mastered a much-dreaded application, solved a complex problem or simply made your work environment a happy place.
There must be something in your professional journey that you’re proudest of and we’d love to hear about it in this discussion forum.
However, before you joining in, please note the guidelines below:
Guidelines for discussion forums:
1) Comments only related to the topic would be approved. Please keep them relevant.
2) Comments submitted after the deadline will not be published.
3) Clarity is required. Please edit your comments before posting.
4) Language should be kept professional and ‘clean’. Inappropriate contributions will not be approved. Comments written as personal attacks will also be rejected.
And now over to you…
Discussion Forum #5 – What has Been Your Proudest Career Moment?
(30 May, 2017 – 28 June, 2017 at 23.59 West African Time)
(30 May, 2017 – 28 June, 2017 at 23.59 West African Time)
This exercise calls for some introspection, so take your time. Draw up a list of your professional milestones if you must but note that we’d like to hear about the proudest moment in your career.
What did you do? Why did you do it? How was it accomplished? What did you learn about yourself during the process? What advice would you give to others in similar circumstances?
Kindly post your comments below, anonymously if you wish. Remember to invite others to chip in.
Cheers!
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N.B – First image courtesy of Stoonn, via freedigitalphotos.net. Second image courtesy of Stuart Miles, via freedigitalphotos.net.
Also found of Albert Einstein's quote is very true "Logic will get you from A to B, Imagination will get you everywhere else".
There is no substitute for a creative , imaginative mind.
A friend of mine recommended me to a friend of his at work who was about to get married. At the vendors meeting i was confident, provided proof of past performances, they liked.
Two weeks to the wedding, we participated at a Wedding Exhibition. A couple that came to check out the event asked of me by name, lo and behold it was "The Couple". Our performance at the exhibition was not impressive due to technical reasons and the couple who had already paid, witnessed this.
D-Day came and after Band EnRoute performed at their wedding, the bride halted her photo session when she saw me, came over and was close to tears in appreciation.
Two days later the friend who set the ball rolling called to say that, another couple who had gotten married earlier was upset with him for not recommending us at their own wedding. To this day, I still lack the words to express how it made me feel.
Thanks for sharing and kudos for such a noteworthy achievement!
You made an important point about believing in yourself. Often the biggest breakthroughs come when you stand alone and believe in your abilities. I bet those colleagues went away scratching their heads muttering: "I don't get it. How did he do it?"
Thanks again for the inspiring account.
Being conferred a national award for the 2nd best technical paper out of a total of 120 technical papers submitted to a Society of Petroleum Engineers at a national conference.
This happened at only my 2nd time of trying despite never having any prior experience of submitting technical articles. This came as an unexpected surprise to most of my colleagues. The event taught me an important lesson about self belief to always try despite whatever odds are against you and as long as you satisfy yourself you have done your best you don't have to worry about anything else, real value cannot be hidden.
Congratulations Alford. Persistence does pay off.
Signing my first contract after opening my own business remains one of my most joyful professional moments.
Thanks for your comment, entrepreneur from Luted Network. It would have been nice to know your name.
Thanks Kola! It's interesting how what you described gives credence to the saying that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger…or in your case, more competent.
Interesting. It was my first contract with a reputable firm in China. I believe it was the spotlight and the stepping stone to my success as entrepreneur. But I believe more proudest career moment are on their way, for sure.
Good question: Would have to be my first appearance and victory in the Court of Appeal. Faced with hyper smart judge's against a hyper smart opponent, I had serious doubts as to whether or not I really belonged in that environment. Was I smart enough?
As the discussion continued and the judges engaged in discussion with me, I relaxed into it. Once the judgment came out in my favour, a great feeling of validation washed over me.
I think most professionals are confronted with that latent fear at some point, where they ask themselves: Is this the day I am found out? Is this the day they r slide I don't really know what I'm doing? That was the day I said to myself: maybe I can do this!