Is fear holding you back?

For being a creative individual, I have an intensely analytical side that is always thinking about statistics and analytics.

I watch my financials closely. If I would need to explain to a banker what my assets and liabilities are, I could pretty much tell them to the penny and I have a spreadsheet dating back to 1996 to support it.

I watch my Google Analytics and other website stats just as closely. I know how much traffic I have on my site and the pattern of ebbs and flows. Saturday is the worst day to publish a post I really want to fly because the number of people reading my posts on Saturdays drops dramatically.

I know how many posts I write a month and I understand that when I disappear from blogging and social media there will an effect on my revenue. Not immediately, but generally, about two months later, I will hit a slump

Take a good look at your career path

I realized today that I am making forward progress. I looked back at 2008 when the recession was just beginning. It affected my revenue but since I still had the Wausau Whitewater contract and even had a few months of Kiwanis, the revenues were fairly stable but most of my income was in the contracts.

I work hard to understand what I was really making at the time. No matter how I look at the data, though, it shows me that all my energy was going into the non-profits and very little was left over to actually make a difference in growing, my company, Design Resumes.

A leap of faith to reach your career goals

When I took the leap of faith to drop contracts, one-by-one, it was hard. Many factors influenced me. Stressed out, I found it hard to do anything well because there were so many demands on my time. To add to the unhappiness, I had at least one person in each organization who did their best to make life harder for me. But I hung on, sure that I needed the contract income to survive.

When I dropped Kiwanis in March of 2008, some club members told my husband and others that they were sure I would be hurting and some even suggested that I wouldn’t survive. When I dropped Wausau Whitewater’s contract, others thought I was plumb crazy — especially in the midst of a recession.

But you know what? I finally took an even more analytical look at our finances, determined that not only would I drop the contracts but I would move forward toward being debt-free, creating cash flow safety nets, and then work on achieving my other goals.

Moving Forward in your career and life

I am moving forward. The amount I made in the contracts is easily replaced in any given month. There are times when I close multiple sales in one day equaling the entire monthly contract fees. I was so afraid to let go of what was stable and predictable in my life I held myself back from growing.

If as you read this, you realize that though your commitments are different, something holds you back from achieving your career and life goals. Take a good look at the whole picture. I can tell you I am happier and healthier than I was all those years of contract and event management. I can tell you that I am working toward goals consistently and not so afraid when I have a set back.

Is fear holding you back?

I can see myself becoming “me” with each passing year. If you are beleaguered by naysayers at work or home, and you feel yourself becoming increasingly saddened and maybe even depressed by what is happening around you, maybe it is time to take a good look at your career and choices and build a plan.

Becoming the you that you are meant to be

If you need a career management and career marketing partner, look no further. My choices were always in the entrepreneurial sector, I left the corporate world in 1987 but I have struggled with letting go the same way many corporate employees do.

Your role could be in another corporate, in a small business, or perhaps some of you are ready to forge a path into the new horizon of working for you. In any case, you need to look at your career as yours. You need to find the path that makes you happiest because letting fear hold you back is a really bad idea… take it from me.

To get your career or job search launched with an outstanding resume and career marketing strategies, simply click here!

Photo Credit