Over time we have built up stamina . When we started we struggled with a couple of miles but now we can easily cover 5 or more in a couple of hours ( including a short coffee break most times)…until today.

We set out as usual. This time we decided on a coastal walk. Although it was cold the sun was shining and we stepped out at a pace that got our hearts pumping -

( side story on this. At a recent basketball game one of the players’ daughters ( aged 10) heard us planning our walk and told us how powerwalking worked. She said that we should also up our pace each time we went out..it really made us smile )

After walking for an hour or so we turned to walk back to our starting point. What had been easy at the start now became very difficult. We had not noticed that the (strong) wind was behind us in the early stages and now it was blowing fiercely into us. At some points we were having to lean into the wind and we were struggling to talk as we ploughed on.

We were very pleased to get back to the car. We both ached. The feeling of tiredness was good…

It could have been a setback. But we noticed what was different today . It won’t be like that every time.

Life can be like that. We set out on some new enterprise, the learning and practice is hard to start with and then we get the hang of it . Then something comes along to change the circumstances and it throws us off course. It only needs to be temporary but sometimes we make much more of it than we should and take it as a setback.

It doesn’t need to be that way.

Working with a coach can help you make sense of what is or has happened and to map and plan your way forward. For a no obligation chat get in touch

What she said really got me thinking. There are some jobs – or aspects of jobs – that are so valuable but not really visible. I know from the work I do with people during their jobsearch that the “professional” does not even notice themselves. So I started to think and here are some initial thoughts . I would really like you to add to them.

Anybody can cut hair  - scissors, hair, chop – but not everybody can create a style that suits

Anybody can tap letters on a keyboard to write words – but not everybody can write content that others want to read

Anybody can answer a phone – but not everybody can make the caller feel listened to or important

Anybody can add up numbers – but not everybody can make those numbers fit with into a big picture

Anybody can speak – but not everybody can make what they say compelling, interesting or persuasive

Anybody can fry an egg – but not everybody can make it taste wonderful

Anybody can draw a line with a ruler – but not everybody can put that into a plan

Anybody can pull a pencil across some paper  - but not everybody can create a sketch that could be hung in a frame

Anybody can listen  - but not everybody can understand and use what they have heard ( I have worked with people with hearing difficulties – they listened in different ways!)

Can I ask 2 things?

1 Think about the skills you have that you might say ” ah but anybody could do that…” – and ask yourself if that is true

2 Add to this list with your own ideas!

It was both an eye-opener and a bit of a disappointment. Some of those who didn’t stand out at school were now very successful and nice people to boot ( not that those 2 things are mutually exclusive you understand) and some of the others were – well – just normal and just like me.

Of course a lot of that was about confidence – teen confidence and 30 something confidence are a bit different.

But human nature often pulls us towards comparing ourselves to others.

Some of that comes across when I speak to people in their career transition and is often manifested by looking at what others are doing and aspiring to that rather than really looking at themselves and what they really want to do themselves.

Some of the younger folk I meet compare themselves to family members – “successful” parents and siblings – which hinders real thought into what success would look like for them.

There will probably be times when having a comparison can be helpful . I remember thinking that someone I thought had a great job  until I got the chance to have a glass of wine and relaxed chat with them and they told me that that was the first evening that they had not been in the office until 10pm that month. That soon put things into perspective.

So – who are you comparing yourself with right now? And just how helpful is that?

” A person’s status as his or her estimation of self worth rather than the estimation placed on that person by others.”

and follows this with

“It is a personal and internal judgment and as such is completely-self controlled — nobody can ‘make’ you feel unimportant .”

Oh so true…

I have met people whose ranking  on an organisational chart might be several layers below the CEO but who believes – truly – that they are just as important. That what they deliver in their job matters.

And I have met people who tell me that they are “just a…”  [whatever they define themselves as] which screams that that is what they think of themselves .

Now when I mention topics like this in Scotland I am often met with

“Oh well you don’t want to get above yourself do you?” – to which the question has to be ” by what measure?

or ” I don’t want to sound big headed” – and again “by who’s standards?”

Playing down your skills, talents and experience only does a disservice to you yourself – it will have limited impact on anybody else. But go ahead and do that if it makes you feel better. And when you have  -  watch those who pass you by and get the “good jobs”

If you think the time has come to consider what you are truly worth  - to your existing or to a potential employer – but need some help why not get in touch for a no obligation chat about how coaching can help jackie@consultcameron.com

AND -  if you have not signed up for the Harvard Business Review ( HBR)’s daily updates – do yourself a favour and do it now!  www.hbr.org

“Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds”

You can’t say fairer than that.

We know of course that there will be other things that might come in the way of getting the job done.

Some of them will be unexpected,  unpredictable and unavoidable.

And some will have to do with the person whose job it is.

We all know people who plough on with their work to reach their goals regardless of what life throws at them

And we will probably know someone who crumbles at the first setback.

Successful people usually have a trail of what others would consider to be “failures” behind them but what they deal with as steps on the way.

So with all of this in mind is there something stopping you from reaching your goal – and if so what are you going to do about it?

Coaching can help you work through what you are trying to achieve and how you are going to do it. Get in touch for a no obligation chat jackie@consultcameron.com

There is an explanation about where the United States Postal Service Creed comes from here

We have visited Orkney quite a few times now but this time I came across something that summed up Orkney language and  humour wonderfully and I wanted to share it with you.

Alex Leonard has produced “The Giddy Limit” – a comic strip for the local newpaper The Orcadian – and luckily for me a book of all of those strips was produced to celebrate the first 5 years. It might have helped that I was surrounded by folk talking in the Orkney dialect to click into the language used by Alex but so many of the storylines are current, topical and full of insight that they are easy to understand. If you have not visited the islands ( and you really should!)  some of the references might be lost on you but there is still plenty to laugh – out loud – about! Wonderful stuff.

This particular strip caught my eye though. ( Click to  find out more about Davo  the character featured here )

How many of us find ourselves in Davo’s situation where we are focussing on one thing to the exclusion of everything else . What are we missing by doing that?

Or maybe we are waiting for something to happen – rather than setting out to make it happen ourselves.

Or maybe by limiting our range we are not allowing other things to happen to learn from.

Davo’s had a lightbulb moment of his own here – and you would have to read more of the strips featuring him to see what “hobbies” he tries out.

So today  – why not take a leaf out of his book and take steps to broaden your own horizons?

Follow this  link to find an archive of those strips – grab yourself a coffee – and enjoy!

And- by the way – Alex Leonard is also a freelance illustrator and you can see some of his other work here

Coaching can really help you work through or achieve “lightbulb moments” . Get in touch for a  no obligation chat  . You can reach me on jackie@consultcameron  or 07775 823862.

Did I include all of this on my CV when applying for my first “real” job? I certainly mentioned that I had worked there but I am pretty sure I didn’t give any more than that because I didn’t recognise what I had learned and the importance of telling that story to potential employers.

So – if you are about to start a summer job/temporary contract/whatever  - be sure you take a note of what you do, what feedback you get, what you learn and how you learn it ( training or under your own steam), how you handle difficult situations, what you are good at and what you might want to work on.

And – stay connected with people you worked with. They can  form the basis of your business network ie the people who know the person who might be looking for someone just like you to fill a job in future.

It’s never to early to start a Linkedin profile  www.linkedin.com

I work with clients to help them create CVs and their online profile. More information here

So I was disappointed when I saw that the beach was covered in stones. Even here in this part of Scotland near Edinburgh our beaches are made of lovely fine sand.

Our apartment overlooked the beach and it was not long before we noticed that the beach is very popular with people of all ages. A lot of people have chosen to retire there and many of the older residents pitched up with their pullalong trolleys, sunshades and loungers and set up for the day. Families with small children mingled with swimmers. People were bringing their food and a book to spend lunchtime soaking up some rays. A man on crutches made his way steadily to a point where he could get into the water for a swim.There are pay as you go private sunbed areas for those who want to do that.

It was clear that the residents of Menton do not see not having a find sandy beach as an issue. With everything else they have – well quite frankly why should they? It made me rethink my view of the beach.

Sometimes we lose sight of what we have got by focussing our attention on what we don’t have . We long for something “ideal” when what we have is good enough. 

So – my questions to you today

 - are you focussing on something that, although it would be nice to have , would only make a small difference to your way of life?

- when did you last relect on what you already have – and how you can make the most of that?

Check out the Menton tourism site. I should not really be sharing this with you as this little gem might be overrun by new visitors as a result!

But let me propose another question.

If your glass is not full – why is that?

Did it start full and others have been taking sips without you noticing?

Did it start empty and you have been gradually filling it up – with or without the help of others?

Is it temporarily half full  – and your OK with that  because you  have a plan to refill it?

Is it leaking – and if so how can you either plug the leak or transfer to another glass to continue to build?

Would love to hear your thoughts.

We laughed and wondered what they were looking for under there. I suppose there must be something living in that water but it is part of man made structure so I am not sure what.

As Lesley and I have both been involved with Metasaga – using metaphors to explore  – it was not suprising that the swans’ activities prompted  these questions  for me

• The surroundings are  interesting and varied  but the swan was interested more on what was hidden under the water. Where is your focus – on the interesting things that are obvious to others or to something deeper that only you can see?
• The swan’s rear end is sticking up in the air while it is searching below water which looks comical to us but it’s not bothered by that. It knows what it’s doing.  What external influences influence what you do  and how much do you alter what you are doing based on the views of others?

We would love to hear your thoughts.

To learn more about Metasaga visit their wiki and why not read this post about a Metasaga I took part in in Buchanan Street, Glasgow.