Self-Imposed Limitations Can Harm Your Career

Do you remember a time when an opportunity opened up and you feel that you really like the job, believe that you can do it but do not have the nerve to try? You let it pass and then wonder later what would have happened had you grab the opportunity. In order not to feel bad, you sour-grape by telling yourself you made the right decision, you would have failed anyway.

What I just mentioned is a form of self- imposed limitation that hinders us from taking a risk in making a career decision. Our fear of failure can limit us and hinder us from achieving full potential. Here are some of the other self- imposed limitations that we should watch out for:

Negative Emotions

Sadness, anger, bitterness, self pity, anxiety and fear are just some examples of negative emotions that can manifest as we do our work. These negative emotions cause stress that lead to poor performance and you know how poor performance affect your career adversely.

Victim Mentality

Some people find it more convenient to blame others for their failures than to take the necessary actions. Some say they are never given a break, while others say they do not get the help that they need in order to succeed in their work. This is what I always share with people. Take responsibility for your own actions, and more importantly, take more responsibility for your own career growth. A break or opportunity opens up to those who seek it. Those who seek it do not ask for it, they show that they are ready for it. Self-driven people do not wait for the company to train them, they train themselves. They buy good books about their jobs, search the web for new methodologies or benchmark with successful peers. 

See Strategic Discernment: Building Relationships, Overcoming Politics, and Finding Career Success

How Organization Savvy Are You?

While intelligence, technical know-how and experience help in getting the job done, it is organizational savvy that makes employees contribute more to the success of the organization that also lead to their own professional success.  There is so much more to joining a company than logging in for work and getting the work done. An organization is a living system and the condition of its existence is reflected by how well the people in it show their understanding of the importance of the organization. How well do you contribute to organizational effectiveness? Here are a few statements to reflect on. You may rate yourself using the following scale:

1 – Nope, absolutely not me

2 – There are those few fleeting moments when I think about it

3 – Somewhat like me

4 – I breath it, I live it, yep, definitely me

Exercising Due Diligence in Job Hunting

Wikipedia says this about Due Diligence -"Due diligence" is a term used for a number of concepts involving either an investigation of a business or person prior to signing a contract, or an act with a certain standard of care.  BusinessDictionary.Com gave this general definition of the term "Measure of prudence, responsibility, and diligence that is expected from, and ordinarily exercised by, a reasonable and prudent person under the circumstances." Read more:

People or businesses exercise due diligence because they want to know if they are getting the best out of an engagement before they sign a contract. Employment is an engagement that involves signing a contract, hence it is wise to do the same before getting yourself engaged. Besides, your potential bosses are likely to do the same.

What are the things you need to look into before signing an employment contract?

Find out about the company's work culture. Ask yourself if the work environment is something that you would enjoy to be in. Remember, you will spend eight hours or more everyday in that environment. Make sure that it will not turn your working life into a living hell.