self-knowledge – Ruthann M. Wilson

Career Journey: Things I’ve learned along the way

I’m grateful for a fulfilling career across multiple industries. In this post, I’ve shared a few practical lessons that helped me grow, adapt, and lead with purpose.

Be where you are

Know what’s expected of you and do it well. Being present means making the most of your current role: learn, grow, excel, and enjoy the work in front of you. It has a way of opening doors and drawing people and opportunities to you that will enable you to grow into your next role.
Learn from the past. Plan for the future. Live in the present by making the most of where you are right now.

Develop transferable skills

Develop skills that are relevant across roles and industries (e.g., communication, collaboration, problem-solving, adaptability, etc.). My career has spanned several industries including pharmaceuticals, telecom, consumer goods, and hospitality, made possible by developing and applying transferable skills.

Stretch Through Projects and Roles

Welcome assignments that help you stretch and grow. Growth doesn’t always come through promotion. Sometimes it’s a lateral move or a stretch assignment that helps you build new capabilities and prepare for what’s next. Embrace the journey of growing into your next role. Be as open to a lateral move or stretch assignment in your current role as you are a promotion if it will help you grow and ultimately achieve your career goals.

Listen & Learn

Feedback is a gift. Be open to constructive feedback from peers, managers, leaders, etc. Solicit feedback in a way that it is constructive and enables you to grow (e.g., behavior-based, example-based, suggestions for improvement, etc.). Ideally, leaders should include feedback gathered from business partners, peers, etc. as a part of mid-year and/or year-end conversations. If you’re not receiving regular feedback, ask for it, and be open to what you hear.

Surround yourself with people who want to see you grow

Spend time with people who genuinely want to see you grow. We all need inspiration, encouragement, reality checks, and people with whom we can be vulnerable in our personal and professional lives. Spend time with people who genuinely want to see you grow and be that person for others too.

Own Your Career by Knowing Yourself

Know your values, gifts, talents, passions, abilities, and areas of opportunity. Define what success means to you and revisit that definition as you grow. Your vision may evolve, and that’s part of the journey. Create a plan of action to bring your vision to life. Consider working with a mentor and/or coach. Know the difference between the two and work with them accordingly.

Thank you for reading. If this message feels true or timely, you’re welcome to share it with someone who may benefit by clicking on a share button below.

All the best,

Ruthann

In-Progress, LLC | Walk your path with intention, at your own pace

Know Yourself: The Key to Personal Success

SUCCESS is deeply personal and likely to change as you journey through life. Regardless of your age, it’s important to have your own definition of success to inspire and guide you. When you know what is important to you, and you understand why it’s important, you build a great foundation. This helps in creating your own definition of success.

This week, I invite you to deepen your knowledge about yourself. Use the power of the written word to work through the following:

💥KNOW who you are. Identify 3-5 positive “I AM” statements that describe you at your core. Affirm these qualities on a daily basis.

💥KNOW your values/what is most important to you. Write down 3-5 core values.

💥KNOW the reason(s) the values you identified are most important to you.

💥ENVISION what your life would look like if you were living your values. If your life is exactly as you envisioned, high five! If not, start to make changes to bring your life into alignment with your values.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. If you know someone who will gain from reading it, please share by clicking on a share button below.

All the best,

Ruthann

In-Progress, LLC | Walk your path with intention, at your own pace

Harnessing the Power of Questions for Personal Growth

A regular practice of asking and answering powerful questions is a great way to keep yourself open to possibility and moving forward; however, not all questions are created equal. For example, asking yourself “Why am I stuck?” will yield a lot of reasons as to why you’re stuck. Important to know, but it doesn’t move you to action. A powerful follow-up question would be “What is the best thing I can do right now to move forward?” This two-step line of questioning yields insight as well as creativity and action.

The word power is defined as influence. A powerful question will influence how you think and feel and motivate you to action. Asking and answering questions can be easily incorporated into your journal practice OR simply use a notebook to begin this practice. There is power in putting your questions and answers in writing.

If you need support in creating a journal practice, check out my video about creating a journal practice.

All the best,

Ruthann

In-Progress, LLC | Walk your path with intention, at your own pace

Envision Success: Create Your Own Definition

ENVISION: imagine as a future possibility

If you were to ask 10 people what success means, you would likely get 10 different answers. That’s because success is deeply personal and subject to change as we journey through life. Regardless of your age, it’s important to have your own definition of success to inspire and guide you. Without it, your life will be directed by other people’s vision of success.

Give Yourself Permission to Create Your Own Definition of Success

To envision success is to tap into your imagination and create a mental picture of a future state. You can initiate the process by thinking about how you would like your life to be at future point in time (e.g., 1 year, 3 years, etc.). What have you accomplished? Who have you become? What have you gained? Where have you been? Who have you spent time with? How have you impacted others? Once you have a mental picture of success, get in touch with how it would feel to achieve your vision of success. Capture your thoughts and feelings in a notebook or journal.

You may want to consider creating a vision board/visual representation of your desired future state. Include words, images, and symbols that represent your vision and feelings of success. Keep your board where you can see it on a daily basis.

“If you can dream it, you can do it.” —Walt Disney

Questions for reflection:

What does my vision look like?
What does my vision feel like?

Need support? Be True to You is designed to help you clarify your values and vision of success.

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All the best,

Ruthann