Great Work, Great Career

GREAT WORK, GREAT CAREERHow to Create Your Ultimate Job and Make an Extraordinary Contribution

AUTHORS: Stephen R. Covey and Jennifer ColosimoPUBLISHER: FranklinCovey Publishing, a division of FranklinCovey Co.DATE OF PUBLICATION: 2009162 pages

Great Work, Great Career By Stephen R. Covey and Jennifer Colosimo

FEATURES OF THE BOOK

Great Work, Great Career is of most benefit to individuals working within the business realm, and particularly for those looking to change jobs or careers.


THE BIG IDEA

Employees need to recognize their strengths and find their cause in order to ensure that they are on the right career path. In order to have a great career, individuals need to have a job that utilizes their strengths and passions, and promotes their cause.


INTRODUCTION

In Great Work, Great Career, authors Stephen R. Covey and Jennifer Colosimo discuss the immense opportunities the new “knowledge” economy has presented to the working population. They outline the ways in which individuals can change the way they think and act about their career and take action to transform their career from one of mediocre performance to one of great performance.


ANYONE CAN HAVE A GREAT CAREER

Having a great career entails making unique and useful contributions to an organization, in addition to instilling strong feelings of loyalty and trust within others. The unique and useful contributions make up the “what” of an individual’s career. The contributions themselves come from an individual’s specific mix of passions and talents. The loyal and trusting relationships make up the “how” of an individual’s career. These flourishing relationships are the result of an individual’s character and conscience. Because anyone can make unique contributions and maintain trusting and loyal relationships, anyone can have a great career.


RECOGNIZING STRENGTHS

Every career-seeker should be able to give a statement of personal responsibility for their particular position. Doing so will help them determine what their conscience says about their job and their career as a whole. If the work someone’s job demands of them bothers their sense of integrity or makes them feel disappointed in themselves, they should look for a different position that will allow them to maintain a clean conscience while fulfilling the duties required of them. Any career path can be a great one if an individual is able to demonstrate the strongest of their talents, the most worthwhile of their passions and the approval of their conscience.


DISCOVERING A CAUSE

There are two key mindsets that individuals have to follow in order to discover their cause and get the job they really want. The first is to become a volunteer, not an employee. Rather than thinking about getting a job, people should think of themselves as volunteering for a cause. A job description is external and largely impersonal, whereas a cause is internal and connects deeply with the individuals who actively decide to volunteer for it. Volunteers are also never fired. They are too passionate, dedicated and energetic to be let go. Volunteers can ensure their utility by coming up with solutions to problems that their employer faces on a recurrent basis.


CONTRIBUTING WHAT’S BEST

When a career-seeker invests their time and energy into nurturing their circle of influence, their ability to build their career will grow and their circle of concern will shrink. Those looking to change or improve their careers should draw their own circles of influence to help them solve the problems they are facing in their own lives.


BUILDING A VILLAGE

There are four steps to creating a village, and they are as follows:

1. Identify the Members of the Village. There are two kinds of people in an individual’s village, those whom they serve and support, and those who serve and support the individual. Individuals should make a list of the twelve people who are most important to their career, and identify what they do for the individual and/or what the individual does for them. They should then look through the list and determine which people they should begin building an authentic relationship with.


BUILDING A VILLAGE

2. Create an Emotional Bank Account. Career-seekers should create an emotional bank account for each one of their village members. The bank account describes the amount of trust and benefit in a relationship. If someone is always asking for favors from others but never follows through on any favors asked of them, then they have a negative emotional bank account balance and the trust level drops. To build the levels of their bank account, individuals should regularly schedule time to build and improve relationships with the members of their village.


BUILDING A VILLAGE

3. Carve Out Internet Space. Social media networks are often used to create hollow, meaningless one-sided conversations. Instead, they should be used to build and supplement an individual’s career. To do so, individuals should start a career blog where they publish their Contribution Statement and regularly post ideas, discoveries, accomplishments and articles related to their Contribution Statement. Individuals can direct recruiters to their career blog, and should make sure to keep their private and career blogs separate.


BUILDING A VILLAGE

4. Practice Synergy. Investing time and energy in building a village is well worthwhile. It is not easy and it is not immediate, but by devoting equal attention to the three aforementioned steps, individuals will find their career advancing at a rapid pace and will also experience a high level of personal satisfaction.


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Great Work, Great Career