How to Track Your Right Career
How to Track Your Right Career - By Jody Gothard and Cardell
Phillips Are you lost in the wilderness when it comes to
choosing a career? Once, we knew the way. As children, we played
at different roles, but some became our favorites. Those
favorites hinted at our gifts. They pointed the way to our
exciting futures as entrepreneurs, dancers or astronauts. We did
what was fun, and, in the process, we began to find and follow
our paths.
As young adults, however, our paths began to fade under thickets
of obstacles: other people's expectations, poor self-esteem and
/or lack of faith. But, the good news is that, for each of us,
the path is still out there. A cover of tangled weeds may hide
its course, but it's still there.
A few tracking lessons can put you back in the hunt. An expert
tracker can follow a trail that's been cold for days, months, or
even years. Trackers like this can track over any terrain, under
all kinds of weather, and even in the dark of night. Tracking,
however, is not just about following a set of prints in the
dirt.
The physical skill of observation constitutes only about 10% of
what it takes to be a good tracker. The other 90% consists of
awareness and intuition. Here's how you can apply tracking
techniques to your career hunt.
OBSERVATION
The first step a would-be tracker takes is to develop his or her
powers of observation to a razor-sharp edge. Called the "eye of
the tracker," it's the ability to discern a large amount of
information from the environment with a glance.
Students spend years engaged in study and first - hand
observation, or "dirt time" as it's called, to gain an intimate
knowledge of the natural environment and habits of animals. For
instance, when trackers wants to see animals, they know where to
look for them. They'll look in areas such as on the edges of
forests and fields, at times of transition like twilight, or
right before or after a storm.
In the process of mastering the facts, the tracker cultivates
"the eye of the tracker," a questioning awareness that sees
beyond the obvious. They constantly ask themselves, "What
happened here?" and "What does this mean?"
Transition For Careers
After you find a career that excites you, do some "dirt time."
Educate yourself about the skills you'll need, where the
industry congregates, and the mental states of the people who
work in the field.
Next, get some practical experience. Take a class, find a
mentor, or work in the field on a part-time basis. Find out what
you're getting into before you commit.
If you're still interested in the field after you've done your
research, you'll find the time it takes to build a new career.
Maybe you'll have to go back to school and survive on less money
for awhile. You might have to make that sacrifice, but you'll
feel excited and have a sense of accomplishment.
Once you have clarity, you're halfway there. After that, your
mind starts looking for ways to help you reach your goals, so
watch for the signs.
AWARENESS
Trackers often find themselves in dangerous environments, and
when they do, they use everything they have in order to survive.
To enhance their chances for survival, they continually develop
their powers of observation, which leads them to ever-deeper
levels of awareness of their environment.
In practice, they'll focus on details like tracks, but they stay
aware of the sounds, colors, shapes, and smells of the
environment at the same time. This technique is known by many
names such as "peak awareness," "soft-focus" and "splatter
vision." It's like looking through a camera with a wide-angle
lens attached.
As trackers manage this balancing act between focusing on
everything and nothing, they fall into meditative states where
they become part of the environment. When something does attract
their attention, they focus on it to see what it is. A master
tracker can sense the presence of other animals and danger.
Transition For Careers
The key to life is paying attention to the little moments
without losing touch with what's going on around you. You have
to become aware of whether you are happy in your career or not;
and if you are not, you must make the sacrifices needed in order
for you to get out. At the same time, consider what's the most
important contribution you would like to make.
So, find the time to relax, and think about a new direction. Ask
yourself two questions: "what am I good at doing, and "what do I
enjoy doing?" You may be good at doing something that you don't
like. You need to combine both to make the perfect job.
Play with the possibilities, mentally mixing and matching your
talents and interests. Stir it all in a pot, and let it simmer.
Then, notice the insights, ideas and coincidences that percolate
into your consciousness as a result. Act on the suggestions that
feel right.
INTUITION
The best trackers have keen senses of intuition that alert them
to the presence of other animals and danger. At Tom Brown's
Wilderness and Survival School in Pine Barrens, New Jersey,
they've developed a training method called the "blindfold
technique" to teach students how to tune into their intuition.
Students' cross a sixty yard field, blindfolded, guided only by
their feelings and the sound of a drum. To succeed in this
exercise, you have to let go of your logical mind --the part
that's telling you this is crazy. You have to trust yourself and
let your feeling guide you across the field. People stumble and
fall at first, but if they stick with it, they'll get it.
The blindfold technique forces you to pay attention to your
other senses and intuition. Visually, we're overdeveloped.
People go blind and develop other skills that we all have, but
don't usually bother to develop. The blindfold technique forces
you to focus on what you hear, touch, smell and feel.
You can access your inner knowing in ways less stressful than
taking part in the blindfold technique. You can visit a natural
area one afternoon and sit by a stream and watch the animals.
Repetitive motions such as knitting or woodworking can also
clear the mind, making room for new insights.
Transition For Careers
There are two basic career strategies. Do what's practical, or
follow your dream. Following your dream may not be the most
financially rewarding path, but in the long run, the people who
make the most money are passionate about what they do. There are
CEO's out there who don't have degrees, but they do have passion
for their work.
To find your right career, you have to think with your heart.
Although it may be hard to identify your inner voice in the
beginning, you just have to do the best you can. Move ahead
cautiously at first. Take a small step. Then, if everything
looks good, take another step. Trackers call it "stealth
walking."
CONCLUSION
Trackers develop their powers of observation, awareness and
intuition so they can tune-in to their environment and make out
its message. You can begin to apply the same techniques to your
career hunt. It's not about trying to find your path using the
intellect, but by looking for what feels right.