Stretching Yourself
Aug 17th, 2006 by craigdos
There is a recurring feeling that is starting to feel normal now that I’m on my own and working on my own projects. It’s one of stretching, which is characterized by a certain amount of uneasiness. It’s mostly manageable, but I am constantly finding myself in situations where I am definitely out of my comfort zone, but with no one to default to, I’m forced to carry on.
So far, these situations have worked out quite well, and I feel that the uneasiness is a definite sign of growth. I’m becoming a much better salesman, which I always thought could be a possible strength of mine, but never really had the opportunity to work on it before. The stack of books near my bed is a great sign of the new areas that I’m reaching into. I’ve started to work on my copy writing skills, as I’ve found the constant need to write about my work in ways that will move the reader to action. I’m reading more about sales, and have found that many of the principles are very transferable to every other part of life that has a communication element, from public speaking to simply making new friends.
It seems my time Microsoft kept me in my comfort zone much more than I had thought. Managers always talk of stretching your responsibilities, but I never felt anything like I’m feeling now, when it comes to tackling different parts of my work. I think some people wonder whether they will still be employable if they take off and try something out on their own, and from my viewpoint now, I can say it shouldn’t be a problem. Where a spiffed up resume may tout your extra years of experience at your current job, leaving and making your own way forces so many learning curves, I feel that I’m really extending my skillset that I can’t imagine landing in a job where I felt just completely underwater. At least not any job where I liked it enough such that motivation was not an issue.
I’m also ‘working’ many more hours than I ever did before. I put working in quotes because it just doesn’t feel like work. Everything is moving toward my goals, so I can’t think of anything I’d rather do. I have to remind myself to stop to eat (for example, it’s nearly 3pm, and I just realized I forgot lunch), and it doesn’t seem like a burden, although I always feel like my list of things to do should ideally have been done last week. I always thought that no matter what you do, work is work and eventually even the activity that is most exciting to you now, will be a burden if your career is made doing it. I am no longer certain that this is completely true. I do get tired sometimes, but it’s tired in an energy sense (mental or physical)… not because I’m bored. On a general scale, I’m excited by my movement forward so much that I just don’t mind the work. I stop to play the guitar, to eat, and be with friends… but otherwise if I’m home, I’m ‘working’…