I was a recruiter for a very long time, actually longer than I would like to mention (okay 16 years) and in that time, and ever since, I am asked by people to help them in their careers.

I’m asked to look at CVs, help with interview preparation, give general advice, and refer recruitment consultants. I am used as a sounding board and career coach for those I have helped in the past, and as guide for those I haven’t yet.

I love to help people and I really enjoy watching those people go on to get the jobs they really want, and build better and more enjoyable careers as a result.

Loving what you do

I am lucky, I love what I do. I work for fun. I work for the challenge. I work to help people. And, I work because I want to. Every day.

But, I meet an enormous number of people who don’t. They work because they have to. They work for the money. They don’t know what else to do.

Working for the money

I understand this, because that used to be me. I used to justify the long hours in my corporate life, the distracted and often bad moods, and the minimal family time with expensive holidays, flash cars, big gifts, stuff.

And, it was just stuff.

Now, I am not preaching here, nor am I bragging, far from it. What I am suggesting is that to be at your best in your job, you need to love it. You can’t put your all into something that you are not passionate about. You have to have a fire in your belly to be your best.

So how do you get it?

Making a career choice

That’s all great James, I hear you say. That’s all well and good, but I am trained and on a career path, and I do actually like the basic job, the technical stuff, the reasons I went into this in the first place. What I don’t like is the politics, the pressures placed on me, the extra responsibilities that have come with career advancement.

Sounds to me like its time to become indispensable. Make yourself indispensable. As Seth Gobin says, become a Linchpin. Time to stop being just a cog in the system.

Your passion is still there, and so is the fire, you just have to find it again, and focus on it again.

Becoming indispensable requires a mindset change. I means looking at the role you do and the parts you enjoy. Understanding what it is that makes you an expert, and deciding how you build on these. You need to become known for your thing, and then lead.

Change for the better

This change take only a second to happen. It takes the decision that it is going to, that you are going to and then its done. Making the change stick is then up to you. How much do you want it? How much effort are you prepared to put in to get it?

Make the choice, put yourself on the line. And, once you do, amazing things happen. You become recognised by your peers and bosses, you are listen to, you are respected, and more often than not, you get promoted.

The career you want may be right there in front of you right now. It’s yours for the taking.

Contact me

For more on developing yourself, your staff and improving the profitability of your business, please do get in touch. You can email me at james@jamesnathan.com, use the contact page on my website www.jamesnathan.com or call me on 07736 831151. Follow me on Twitter at @jamesnathan, connect to me on LinkedIn, or follow me on Facebook.

I look forward to speaking soon.