The harder I work on me, the better my life gets. But I can only improve a little each day. So I focus intensely on one or two things that I want to be better at. That makes my career much better with the least effort for the reward. It also improves your job search.
Light is very intense in a laser. Laser pointers are under 1/200th of a watt. Focus that pointer laser’s beam to the size of a period and you can burn paper.
Intensity at one small spot is the secret of lasers. Intensity at one spot can also be the secret to advancement in your career.
Some examples:
- Some programmers study 20 different programming languages. As a recruiter, it is almost impossible for me to find a job for someone who has only worked a month or two in 20 different programming languages. It is easy for me to find a job for someone who has studied and worked in one programming language for two years.
- In accounting it is easier for us to find a top paying job for an internal audit specialist CPA, than a job for an uncertified general accountant. Finding a high paying job for a legal secretary is easier than finding a high paying job for a regular secretary.
You cannot get better at everything at once. An hour a day carefully spent studying a single skill that is in high demand will turn you into an expert in a few months. An hour a day studying new subjects each day won’t help your career nearly as fast.. Now is the time to start narrowing your field and increasing your intensity.
I had learnt to seek intensity – more of life, a concentrated sense of life. (Berberova)
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Something To Do Today
What is the hottest skill in your profession? What is the most important bit of that skill? Study it an hour a day for a month. You will be an expert.
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Next week: When I ask what time it is, how can someone look at their watch and give me the wrong answer?
Later: Put your feet up on his desk.
Sunshine collecting