I think most people would agree that if you do something that you love you will be better at it than if you do something that you hate.  And if you are better at doing what you love vs. doing what you hate, you should expect to make more money from it because your results would be better and, therefore, there would be more demand for it.  This seems to be common sense.

But – and there is always a “but” to get in the way – is it really that simple?  Are our vocational choices always binary – love it or hate it type of scenarios?  Is the liking of what we do constant, or are we continuously maturing and changing our tastes and passion?   Are there hidden passions out there that we don’t even know about yet?   As you ponder these questions, here are some additional considerations:

Are you good at doing what you love?

What if you are not good at the thing you love? For example, let’s stay you love to play the guitar, but you are an absolutely terrible player.  Can you still make money from it?  Perhaps you won’t make much money actually playing the guitar, but could you sell guitars, or write about guitars, or build guitars?  It is likely that you can find some economic activity that is related to what you love and that can have monetary rewards.  Will you get rich from doing it?  There are no guarantees.  But at least you will be surrounded by the thing that you love.

What is the timeframe in question?

Are you doing something you don’t love for a temporary time period just so that you can catch up on your finances?  Perhaps you have a dream of doing something specific that you love, but you need to put your financial house in order before you pursue that dream, and you are willing to make some sacrifices temporarily.  I think this makes a lot of sense, and may be the case for many of you.  You just need to be cautious about the temporary situation not turning into something more permanent.

Is it a all or nothing proposition?

What if you still have not found your true passion?  What if you don’t absolutely love what you do, but you don’t hate it either?  This may happen more often than you realize.  Many people have jobs or are involved in activities that they don’t absolutely love, but that they have grown comfortable with, and that affords them a good life.  In that situation should you settle?   Or should you throw caution to the wind and keep on searching for something you love, even if your financial life is compromised?  This is a tough one to answer, and only you are in a position to make this decision.

If you have not yet found your true passion, you ought to at least spend some of your discretionary time trying to identify it.  If you have found your passion, you should consider yourself lucky – now all you have to do is figure out how to monetize it.  There are many things you can do to achieve that.  Experiment, try different things, pivot from one activity to the next.  Perhaps you can do this on a part-time basis.  Moonlighting is a great way to experiment with ideas to find your passion.

You may find that there are many shades of grey to this black and white question.  Doing something you love and making a good living from it is total bliss.   Doing something you hate indefinitely just so that you can make money is no way to live.  In the middle there is a wide range of possibilities.

If this is a subject that you would like to further explore, the HBR Blog Network has a good article that you might enjoy.

Working for the Money Versus Doing What You Love is a post from: Worldwide Success

I have on my computer screen a picture of a Ferrari. I keep this picture there because one of my dreams that I hope will soon become reality is to buy this car. This photo gave me a very interesting dialogue with a friend that I want to share with you.

One day this friend was in my house and saw the photo of the Ferrari in my laptop. When he saw the picture he exclaimed:

- Wow what a great car! Is this the car you are going to buy next?

I replied:

- Yes, I do not know when,  but soon enough I will buy one of these cars.

Then my friend added:

- My dream is to have this car too!

As I am good friends with this person, I replied:

- No, it’s not your dream to buy a Ferrari.

My friend, a little displeased with my remark, reiterated:

-Of course it is my dream! I always said if I had money I would buy a Ferrari.

To which I replied:

- No, it’s not your dream to have a Ferrari.

My friend got a little irritated and said with a firm tone of voice:

- Of course it is my dream.  If I’m saying it is, it’s because it is. It is not you who determines what my dreams are, it’s me!

To make my point, since we are intimate with each other, I began to describe the reality of my friend ‘s life today. I said:

- Buddy, you see, I’m not saying you would not want this car, I’m just saying that having a car like this is not a dream for you. When we have a dream, we chase it, we do everything to make it come true.  We cannot rest until we get it. However, I do not see you doing anything in order to realize this dream that you claim.

This Ferrari costs somewhere around 220,000 dollars. To buy this Ferrari in a year you would have to save somewhere around 20 thousand dollars per month.  However, today, your total salary is 10% of that value. Earning 2,000 dollars a month, when do you think you will be able to buy this car??

A little embarrassed my friend explained:

- Of course I know that I cannot buy this car today. I did not say I want to buy a Ferrari today.  I said I dream of having one in the future.

In an attempt to make my friend see what he was missing I continued:

- In the future when? At the company you work for the salary cap is 6,000 dollars a month and as far as I know you have not sent resumes or you are not looking for other jobs.  Listen, you are not doing anything to change the reality you are living today.  When we have a dream we have a goal, and to achieve that goal requires attitude. You may be earning too little today, but if you say you dream of buying a Ferrari you should be doing something to earn more money today and even more in the near future. What you are doing today is the same as people who say they dream of winning the lottery but never play the lottery.  So it’s not a dream ,it  is a foolish desire.

My friend finally understood what I meant and finally admitted that he really needed to stop and rethink his life and his future.

The unfortunate thing is that this conversation does not apply just to my friend.  I could have the same conversation with millions of people around the world, people who say they dream of a better life but do nothing about it.

In the dialogue that I just described the problem was not that my friend made too little money, but the fact that his dream was something that he could never conquer, because he was not taking any action to change the situation he was in. That is, his dream was completely incompatible with his life.  He could even be described as a mad man.   He wanted to win a marathon but would not take even a single first step towards that goal.

Life maybe full of dreams, but if dreams do not materialize we feel that the days are passing and we are not moving in any direction. If your dreams never become reality you have an empty and frustrating life.

Many people dream of a better life, of buying a luxury car, or a big house, or to open his own business, …  To live a different reality from what they have today. Yet few people are willing to leave their comfort zone and face new challenges in order to accomplish these feats. The vast majority of people act like my friend. They say they dream of something they do not actually dream of, because in fact they do nothing to conquer that dream.

Did you do something concrete to reach your goal TODAY?  Do you have an action plan and a deadline for achieving your goal? If you answered yes to both questions then you can call this goal a DREAM. If you answered no to any of these questions then it’s time for ACTION and to turn this desire into a real DREAM.

Change now. Each day, take a step to get closer to your dream.  Turn your wishes into real dreams and see your life get a whole new meaning.

Dreams is a post from: Worldwide Success

If you are serious about your success journey, I would recommend that you study what successful people do differently.  In fact, I am going to get you started by pointing you to a great article that specifically points out nine things that successful people do differently.

Notice that a lot of what the article points out is consistent with the advice we have provided throughout this site.  It’s about being specific about the exact steps you will take to achieve your goals.  It’s about seizing the moment and taking action.  It’s about knowing your own limitations, but continuously trying to improve.  It’s about being optimistic, but also realistic.

It’s about having grit.  As the author describes “grit is a willingness to commit to long-term goals and to persist in the face of difficulty.”  This is so important.  If nothing else, take this one to heart.  Success does not come easy.  Success requires an uncompromising commitment and an unwillingness to give up despite of the inevitable obstacles you will find along the way.

Learn from others who have achieved success.  Study their biographies.  Find mentors who are successful and willing to carry you under their wings.  Make a habit of continuously learning and adapting your behavior to match the behavior of those who have already found the secret of success.

What Successful People Do Differently is a post from: Worldwide Success

Harvard is known for training some of the most successful people in the world.  At least from the standpoint of success as it is commonly measured by society: power, money and recognition.  But what you may not know is that Harvard, or at least one professor at Harvard, is also teaching its students to question the very metrics by which their success is measured.

This article touches on the most important question one should attempt to answer on the topic of success.  As a matter of fact, this article is about what is perhaps the most important question you should ever think about in your entire life.  The question is eloquently discussed by Professor Clayton M. Christensen in the Harvard Business Review magazine article called “How Will You Measure Your Life?”

This is one of those questions that requires some very deep soul searching, but sadly, as the article discusses, is not often given the energy and attention it deserves, even by the best and brightest.  As a matter of fact, the best and brightest may be more at fault in this matter than most people.   They find themselves so immersed in achieving what others have defined for them as the meaning of success that they don’t devote enough time and energy to define success for themselves in a way that is truly meaningful.

It is ironic that the people who are best trained to think strategically about the organizations they are being prepared to lead may not be thinking strategically about their own lives.

Please take the time to carefully read Professor Christensen’s article.  Then, devote the time and energy required to answer this fundamental question.  If you do it right, it will change your life forever.

By the way, I never attended Harvard Business School.  But that does not mean that I cannot learn from something it.   And what I learned from it is absolutely priceless.

The Most Important Lesson I Learned from Harvard Business School is a post from: Worldwide Success

But is there an easy rule of thumb that can be used as an indicator of whether you will be successful in your career?  How can you be sure you are making the right choices?

Well, there are no easy answers or certainty about your career choices, but here are some guidelines that you can use:

Do What You Love

There is no better indicator of success than doing what you love.  But remember, work is hard – it is not supposed to be a trip to Disneyland.  Even people that love what they do have difficult days and sometimes feel exhausted from their work.  If you hate every minute of every day at work, you know you are doing the wrong thing and you will not find success.

Do What You Are Good At

I don’t think doing what you love is sufficient.  You must also be good at it.  If you don’t have the talent or the vocation for your field, no matter how much you love it, you will not be successful (unless your definition of success is to simpy have a good time).

Do What is In Demand

Doing what you love and being good at it is a great start.  But if no one cares and there is no demand for what you do, can you still be successful?  Sometime demand is not direct, but adjacent.  Let’s say you love to fly kites and you are very good at it.  You may not find someone who is willing to pay you enough to make a living by flying kites all day.  But perhaps you can write a book about flying kites.  Or you can open a kite store.  You have to use some creativity, but is it possible to find adjacent demand for doing what you love and what you are good at.

If you have something that you love to do, that you are good at, and that is in high demand, consider yourself very lucky.  You have everything you need and you are likely on your way to having a very successful career.

Three Indicators That You Will Have a Successful Career is a post from: Worldwide Success

The question Gladwell is trying to address is what makes high-achievers different.  According to him it is much less about what they are like and much more about the experiences that shaped them.  People that are successful beyond the norm, from the Beetles to Bill Gates aren’t necessarily born that way.  They are not overnight successes or naturally super-talented, as most people think.  The real story behind highly successful people is the effort and the endless hours that goes into the process.

Watch this fascinating interview of Malcolm Gladwell conducted by Harry Smith, and if you get intrigued, get the book, which can be very influential in your success.

Outliers: Success Beyond the Norm is a post from: Worldwide Success

In order to accomplish great things and reach great success you need to convince other people to go to battle with you.  You need to convince others that you have a great cause – a cause that is so great that it is worth giving up your life for, whether it is meant literally in a war battle or figuratively working crazy 18 hour days.

How do you that?  You go deep to an emotional level that is way beyond rational.  You reach for an emotional arousal that can overcome the biggest fears.  Here is a great example of how that is done:

How to Inspire Others to Go to Battle with You is a post from: Worldwide Success

Many young people put too much emphasis on grades and what to study in order to achieve success.  This can be easily confirmed by scanning through the comments in the article Corporate Career Success – How to Become CEO.   As Cynthia points out in her book, you don’t need to be a straight A student in order to be successful in your career.  A college degree has shown to be an important element of getting prepared for the world of work, as it teaches you how to think at a higher level and forces you to apply discipline in order to succeed.  The combination of higher thinking and discipline can go a long way in helping you achieve success.  But it is not enough.

It is important to remember that school is for the most part an individual player sport.  Your success in college depends primarily on you.  But in the work world, especially for those interested in upper management, your success will depend on your ability to motivate and lead others.  Work is a team sport, and your success will depend on the results of the team.

What is most important in the school days is to follow your passion and find what you are good at.  If you work extremely hard, but you are miserable during the process, your success will not be sustainable.  Eventually you will get worn out and many will give up.   As Cynthia reminds us, brainpower does not equate to success and happiness in life.

Another important point mentioned in the book is that you have to be adaptable in order to achieve success.   Don’t wait a long time to perfect your skills.  It’s important to experiment, and when the right opportunity arrives, don’t be afraid to seize the opportunity, even if you think you are not completely prepared.   By the same token, don’t sit around waiting for the right opportunity to knock at your doorstep.  If the opportunities are not coming along, you need to create your own opportunities and be willing to go get your dream.

Always expect success, because you need to believe in yourself, and if you don’t set high expectations and don’t believe in yourself, who will?  But don’t be naïve about failures.  They will happen to you.  What is most critical is that when you have a setback, you learn from the mistake and keep on going.  Ask advice from others and learn along the way.  Learning is one of the most important activity in your success journey.

There are many more important success concepts and advice in the book than we can cover here, so I would recommend that you get your copy of Out of the Classroom Lessons in Success.   But let me conclude with some final thoughts on the “secret of success” described by Cynthia: “Have a clear, achievable goal and plan to accomplish it that you apply with consistency, dedication, determination, and constant practice”.

Out of the Classroom Lessons in Success is a post from: Worldwide Success

So when he was asked what was the best advice he had ever received, guess what he said?  You may be surprised to find out that is has absolutely nothing to do with investment, or with money.  But it is a very powerful advice.

Check it out:

The Best Advice Ever Received by Warren Buffett is a post from: Worldwide Success

Notice the similarities in the terms used when describing success.  Both talk about belief.  Belief in oneself, in your values and in your convictions.  And the confidence that comes from having strong convictions.  I can’t emphasize it enough.  If you want to be truly successful one of the most important things you should focus on is believing in yourself and building your confidence level.  

Another common theme: hard work.  Every successful person works hard.  There are no short cuts here.

And one more to close: give back.  Every successful person by definition is someone who gives back.

Enjoy this great video from this talented young man:

Will Smith’s Secret of Success is a post from: Worldwide Success