{"id":4879,"date":"2015-09-06T11:58:19","date_gmt":"2015-09-06T18:58:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/?p=4879"},"modified":"2015-09-14T12:55:18","modified_gmt":"2015-09-14T19:55:18","slug":"career-time-traveler","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.careersingovernment.com\/tools\/gov-talk\/about-gov\/education\/career-time-traveler\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Be A Career Time Traveler"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"career<\/a>You might be asked to articulate your career journey when seeking a new job or you may be exploring a new direction. It can be difficult picking out the significant and relevant moments, whether you have been employed in many jobs or only a few. You may feel positive or negative or have no strong feelings about these touch points in your working life. How do you make sense of your career to help you move forward?<\/p>\n

I was struck recently by a passage in Soren Kaplan\u2019s excellent book, Leapfrogging – Harness the Power of Surprise For Business Breakthroughs:<\/em>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cOur aggregate experiences add up to where we are, here and now. The goal is to merge the \u2018past and the present\u2019 with the \u2018present and future\u2019 \u2013 to understand that everything we do builds upon the past but nothing is constrained by the past.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kaplan talks about how the synergies between seemingly disparate events can be surprising. He quotes Steve Jobs who observed that you can\u2019t connect the dots going forward, only by looking backwards, so you have to trust the dots will somehow connect in your future. You can\u2019t predict the future, but you can help create the future that you want through the choices you make and the mindset you adopt.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe trouble is you think you have time\u201d – Buddha<\/p>\n

People have different preferences in how they view time. Each can be a driver or a constraint depending on whether you have a fixed or growth mindset (see the work of Carol Dweck).<\/p>\n

Some of us live in the present and prefer not to look back – what\u2019s important to us is how we feel now and meeting our current needs.<\/p>\n

Others filter the present through the past – drawing upon successes and achievements to recreate your sense of pride and as a reminder of your abilities to build confidence.<\/p>\n

And some are more future-focused – visualising success and \u2018getting in the zone\u2019 like athletes focused on winning the race.<\/p>\n

Be a time traveller and visit past, present and future to test out your preferences. You will gain different perspectives on how you see your career to keep or discard as appropriate. Ask yourself, or talk through with a friend, mentor or coach:<\/p>\n