At the beginning of my career I found myself in a situation where I was working multiple levels above what I was being paid to do. I was chasing, what I thought at the time, was what a career was all about.
I was in a classification linked position, and if I demonstrated I was capable of operating at a more senior level, I would be promoted … in this situation, I was operating at 3 levels higher than what I was being paid.
Towards the end of what had been a hard slog of a year, I got the call from the Director who was so excited to tell me I was getting a bonus for my hard work. A bonus… thank you … but…?! (how ungrateful of me!). I asked if I was going to be considered for a higher level, (I thought) I was entitled to.
I was told no, because it would not be fair to the others in the team who were employed in the same type of position.
Fair … ?!
Life’s not fair huh, but damn you learn some valuable lessons. At the time my attitude hit an all-time high of… what the hell is this all about. I was in my early 20’s, I was invincible, and maybe back then I may have just had a teeny bit of that ‘sense of entitlement’. What a reality check!
Work hard, prove yourself = all the good things just land in your lap … not quite the case in this situation.
My boss at the time, was (and still is) an absolute legend! He knew I took this hard, and said to me, when you chase the dollar you may miss the opportunities. I didn’t understand the full impact of that statement at the time, but more than ten years on, I too have shared this piece of advice to others, and I have found myself guided by his wisdom.
Whilst at the time I was so focussed on the dollar, I didn’t actually comprehend all of the things I had learnt, and how everything I had done that year actually helped shape my career, my knowledge and skillset, but most importantly – how I was growing as a human.
Throughout my career I’ve found myself taking sidesteps, exploring random opportunities that didn’t quite make sense at the time, but felt right. This sometimes was hard to explain.
When you chase the dollar, you may miss the opportunity – this advice has been invaluable.
I live by the philosophy that money does not buy happiness, nor does it determine your self worth.
We all have so much to learn before we end up where we are truly meant to be.
#opportunities #advice #learnings #growth #hindsight
*There’s obviously a fine line of learning valuable lessons, and being taken advantage of – but that’s a whole other story*
IamStephE 