A senator once took Will Rogers to the White House to meet President Coolidge. He warned the humorist that Coolidge never smiled. Rogers replied, “I’ll make him smile.” Inside the Oval Office, the senator introduced the two men. “Will Rogers,” he said, “I’d like you to meet President Coolidge.”

Deadpan, Rogers quipped, “I’m sorry, but I didn’t catch the name.” Coolidge smiled.

A sense of humor is a marvelous gift to have. It is one of the most important means we possess to face the difficulties of life. And sometimes life can be difficult.

I deal professionally with issues which are critical: relationships breaking apart, people losing jobs, people facing serious illness or agonizing with someone close who is suffering, addictions, grief, and heartache. Without a sense of humor about my own life, I don’t know if I could survive! I take what I do seriously, but I try not to take myself too seriously. I agree with the New York City cab driver who said, “It’s not the work that I enjoy so much, but the people I run into!”

Here is an experiment: look for and find as much joy as possible for one full day. Try to enjoy the people you run into, the work you do, your leisure time, and your relationships. Don’t forget to enjoy yourself — and take enough time to enjoy God. Try this experiment for one full day, and by evening you will bask in the glow of a rekindled spirit.

It just takes a day to find joy along the way.

“The Lord didn’t burden us with work, but rather blessed us with it.” This is a concept I heard recently that I have truly taken to heart. No matter how religious or spiritual we are, so many people see work as a burden, rather than the divine blessing, especially in today’s unpredictable economy, that it truly is.

Let’s face it, if setting our wages was entirely up to us, we would all write ourselves a blank check. But in the real world it isn’t that simple. If you constantly find yourself unthankful for your job, then I encourage you to review the following lesson of workplace supply and demand.

Regardless of what you do or whom you work for, whatever you produce or service you provide is a commodity that is sold. The selling price has to include the cost of the materials or equipment you use to get your job done, taxes and general operating expenses for your employer to remain in business. The rest is your wage.

If your particular job results in more of the profits, then naturally the higher your salary. On the other hand, if your job contributes less, then of course your take home pay will be substantially lower. The less you produce efficiently, the more it costs your employer to keep you around. The more the product costs the consumer, the fewer people will make a purchase. The fewer customers who buy it, the less demand there is for your work and the less job security you have.

As you can see prices, wages and, ultimately, job security are largely a question of efficient production and employee attitude–all of which are solely your responsibility.

Imagine if you were to meet Pope John Paul, the Daili Lama, Jesus, Moses, Muhammad, Mother Teresa or any other religious or non-religious hero you might have. As you bask in the experience you feel blessed by simply having them acknowledge you and touch you with their presence. Depending on how “blessed” you feel as the result of the encounter you will feel somewhat changed and energized by becoming “fully alive” in them knowing you and “blessing” you.

Imagine if this same state of “Nirvana” could be “miraculously” applied to your job, making work a blessing rather than a burden or something you have to do every day. Sound impossible?

When clients come to me feeling overwhelmed or out of control, looking for career change help, I encourage them to stop, take a breath and make a list of at least five blessings/positives in their lives that have come as a result of their work. Then, take a moment to reflect on those things and to cherish them. In most cases, focusing on the positive aspects of your job instead of dwelling on the negatives will calm your mind as you realize that the blessings greatly outnumber your burdens- allowing you to return to your daily workplace routine refreshed and renewed.

If all else fails, remember the parable of the oyster and the eagle. When God made the oyster, he guaranteed him absolute economic and social security. First he built the oyster a house with a sturdy shell to protect him from his enemies. When hungry, the oyster simply cracks open his shell and the food rushes in.

However, when God made the eagle, he decreed, “The blue sky is your limit. Go build your own home and hunt your own prey.” And the eagle went out and built his house on the highest mountain peak where storms threaten his survival every day. For food, this majestic creature often flies through miles of rain, wind and snow.

As a result, the eagle, not the oyster remains the enduring symbol of America.

Work is a blessing to be enjoyed and to be truly satisfied. Just like the eagle, you must face and complete your tasks in the spirit they are truly meant to be done! Every day you are not fulfilled by the work you do, you are missing out on a blessing that has been given to you. Allow yourself the permission and strength to come out of your shell and make the job you are searching for or already have the one you’ve always dreamed of.

Sometimes amidst the daily challenges that life gives us, we miss what is really important. We may fail to say hello, please, or thank you, congratulate someone on something wonderful that has happened to them, give a compliment, or just do something nice for no reason.

When clients come to me for career change services, I often remind them of Charles Plumb, a US Naval Academy graduate, who was a jet fighter pilot in Vietnam. After 75 combat missions, his plane was destroyed by a surface-to-air missile. Plumb ejected and parachuted into enemy hands. He was captured and spent 6 years in a communist Vietnamese prison. He survived the ordeal and now lectures on lessons learned from the experience.

One day, when Plumb and his wife were sitting in a restaurant, a man at another table came up and said, “You’re Plumb! You flew jet fighters in Vietnam from the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk. You were shot down!?”

“How in the world did you know that??” asked Plumb.

“I packed your parachute?” the man replied.

Plumb gasped in surprise and gratitude. The man pumped his hand and said, “I guess it worked!”

Plumb assured him, “It sure did. If your chute hadn’t worked, I wouldn’t be here today.”

Plumb couldn’t sleep that night, thinking about that man. He later said, “I kept wondering what he might have looked like in a Navy uniform…a Dixie cup hat, a bib in the back, and bell bottom trousers. I wonder how many times I might have seen him and not even said good morning, how are you, or anything because, you see, I was a fighter pilot and he was just a sailor.”

Plumb thought of the many hours the sailor had spent on a long wooden table in the bowels of the ship, carefully weaving the shrouds and folding the silks of each chute, holding in his hands each time the fate of someone didn’t know.

Now, Plumb asks his audience, “Who’s packing your parachute?”

Everyone has someone who provides what they need to make it through the day. I do this for my clients in my career change services. Plumb also points out that he needed many kinds of parachutes when his plane was shot down over enemy territory. He needed his physical parachute, his mental parachute, his emotional parachute, and his spiritual parachute. He called on all these supports before reaching safety. His experience reminds us all to prepare ourselves to weather whatever storms lie ahead.

As you go through this week, this month, this year…recognize people who pack your parachute!

There are very specific highs and lows that come with any new situation which follow the learning curve of adjusting to a new culture. The truth is, it doesn’t apply only to living overseas but is also very applicable to starting a new job. And yep, here I am again. Here’s the picture: For the first few months in a new career,

I’m reminded of a client, a lawyer, who was changing careers. He decided to become a freelance writer, what her considered his “dream job.” At first, he found it challenging, and had no concept that it might actually be beyond him. By the end of 3 months, he’d been in it long enough to know exactly how hard it is, how grossly unprepared he was, and how exhausting it is to change everything in his life. However, he hadn’t been in it long enough to have leapt the hurdle and gained the real experience it takes.

His first response: Bolt. It’s a basic fight or flight reaction to stress, but for some reason culture-shock stress creates only one of those responses – flight. You just want to get out of there. And the truth is, changing careers is a form of culture shock. During this attorney’s career transition, his old job suddenly sounded nice again. His old skills felt familiar and valuable. He still didn’t really speak the language of the new place. And since his new skills were still in their infant stages, his old ones also seem to be the core of his self-esteem. Suddenly, it all just seems too hard. He talked about being too old for this. What ever gave him the idea that this would be a step forward? Suddenly it became painfully clear to him that this was an obvious step backwards. Why didn’t his family warn him? Why didn’t his friends? Why did this company think he’d be able to do this? He fooled them all, and he was  paying the price.

Ok, so I suggested he step back, breathe and relax. As he was going through his attorney’s career transition, this is what I told him:

The first thing to do is to remember that this is the hardest thing anyone ever does. And the fact is, most people don’t have the guts to do it for precisely that reason. Just as people take pets and favorite belongings to new country, you need to take something with you to your new job that reminds you that you were great before. Take time to put up those photos of family. Hang your awards on the wall where you can see them. But mostly, take time for yourself. Do something each day that’s tangible to improve your new skills (the equivalent of learning a new word each day in a new language), and to remind yourself of your old skills. Go to the gym. If you’ve been riding your bike since you were 6, ride your bike. If you’ve been baking cookies since you were in high school, bake cookies. If playing with a chemistry set was something that you’ve always loved, go buy one. Do things that are EASY and TANGIBLE, with real results. It sounds silly, but it works. Pretty soon, you’ll realize that you’re at your 6-month high, your confidence has returned, and you’ve made it through the hardest point in your culture shock.

The workplace is changing, and you can’t afford to NOT seek fulfillment now!

Working with clients from many career fields, including career changes lawyers, I have noticed some significant trends in the job marketplace over the last 4 months. One recent development is the increase in layoffs.

1. The Bureau of Labor & Statistics states that the number of layoffs for November are the highest in a single month since 1995.
2. According to Reuters, hiring freezes and layoffs are happening with a majority of Fortune 500 companies.
3. Many companies are consolidating and closing offices due to limited profitability. According to a survey conducted on behalf of Barron’s, more than a third of Internet firms will not survive this year.
4. Personally, I conduct about 50 workshops each year. At my two most recent workshops, I’ve had double the usual number of participants. The research conducted by my staff shows me that the motivation for career change is definitely increasing.

More and more people, especially career change lawyers are ready to make the change, and find a career that is more satisfying. Why? Some may have been surprised by a layoff and some make the change voluntarily, unfulfilled by the work they do and wanting their life to align more to who they are.

I recommend that you look at your current work situation, and find ways you can:

• Improve your current work by thinking of creative ways to enjoy it more.
• Start your own career change. Focus on fulfillment above all else so that you can discover your unique purpose in life and find the perfect job that aligns with your passions and values

Make your commitment today. Get your support, grab momentum, gather energy, create enthusiasm and the results will show up in your life. Will you find a mentor, re-order your priorities to cultivate more balance, or take the first step by exploring how coaching can really help your fulfillment explode today?

Real estate agent, lawyer, manager, salesperson – they’re all titles. We’re a culture obsessed with titles. As soon as we meet someone and learn their name, one of the first questions we ask is “What do you do?”.

Have you considered how limiting titles are? A title is simply a name attached to a group of activities. For a new perspective, throw away the title, forget the name, and look solely at the activities involved. Dissect your day to day activities at work without focusing on your title and you can find you will gain an appreciation and clarity on what it is you enjoy and how you can do more of it.

For example, if you’re in “sales”, remove the title and look at what you do. You entertain clients and build relationships. You have excellent conversation skills. You’ll gain a level of control and freedom as you look at how you can work with each activity to enjoy it more and bring more fulfillment to it. Cultivate the activities that resonate with you and work on eliminating and reducing those that leave you unsatisfied.

Find the freedom that comes from ignoring titles and focusing on activities individually.

Joel is always prepared and very responsive. And he isn’t afraid to tell you the truth. It is almost like having a coach 24 hrs for you! I look forward to working again with Joel.

Nick Ames

As Dr. Covey stood in front of the group of high-powered overachievers he said, “Okay, time for a quiz.”

Then he pulled out a one-gallon wide-mouthed mason jar and set it on a table in front of him. Next, he produced about a dozen fist-sized rocks and carefully placed them, one at a time, into the jar. When the jar was filled to the top and no more rocks would fit inside, he asked, Is this jar full?

Everyone in the class said, Yes. Then he said, Really? He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of gravel.

Then he dumped some gravel in and shook the jar causing pieces of gravel to work themselves down into the spaces between the big rocks. He smiled and asked the group once more, “Is the jar full?”

By this time the class was onto him. “Probably not,” one of them answered. “Good!” he replied. And he reached under the table and brought out a bucket of sand. He started dumping the sand in and it went into all the spaces left between the rocks and the gravel.

Once more he asked the question, “Is this jar full?”

“No!” the class shouted.

Once again he replied, “Good!”
 

 
Then Covey grabbed a pitcher of water and began to pour it in until the jar was filled to the brim. As he looked up at the class he asked, “What is the point of this illustration?”

One eager beaver raised his hand and said, “The point is, no matter how full your schedule is, if you try really hard, you can always fit some more things into it!”

“No,” Dr. Covey replied, “that’s not the point. The truth this illustration teaches us is: If you don’t put the big rocks in first, you’ll never get them in at all.”

What are the “big rocks” in your life? A project that YOU want to accomplish? Time with your loved ones? Your faith, your education, your finances? A cause? Teaching or mentoring others?

Remember to put these BIG ROCKS in first or you’ll never get them in at all.

So, tonight or in the morning when you are reflecting on this short story, ask yourself this question: What are the BIG ROCKS in my life or business? Then, put those in your jar first.