As a kid, I operated with a simple career plan: If I wanted to learn how to do something, I got a job doing it.
That’s how I became a skier. I started as a ski rental technician, became a ski patroller and then a ski instructor. I got a job at a marina so I could learn sailing and windsurfing. And I had many flexible restaurant jobs that allowed me to eat well while I pursued my adventures.
As a young adult, marriage and motherhood imposed a more complex approach to my career. I had others to consider, and my career decisions impacted my family. With a deeper sense of responsibility, I chose to become a restaurant manager. The work was rewarding, and the benefits justified the long hours. But the career came with a steep cost. I was a mom all day, went to work at 4 p.m. and didn’t sleep more than a few hours a night for years.
I hardly saw my husband, who had a growing business of his own. He and his best friend started a plumbing company. It was all they could do to stay afloat, though I was too busy to notice – until my husband’s partner died suddenly at age 33 after working himself into a health crisis.
So I quit my real job and went to work with my husband. This career phase was marked by anger and frustration. It took me a while to piece it together, but the key issue was simple: We weren’t making any money. Without my salary and without his partner’s production, we were sinking fast. The resulting stress was taking a toll on our marriage.
Luckily, I found a mentor. A magazine columnist had written an article that hit me right between the eyes. He wrote that the problem with most businesses is that the owners don’t know their assets from their elbows. I wrote him a letter and begged him to help me learn business basics. Thankfully, he did. He taught me how to keep track of the money and how to make more of it. I have been making money, and helping others do the same, ever since.
Now, I am 52 years old. I just don’t get my underwear in a bunch like I used to. Every moment of struggle has led to some worthwhile next phase or valuable lesson learned. All my experiences have stitched together and created a quilt of business knowledge and understanding.
I count on my waitressing experience when I need to use both hands and multitask. I use my sailing experience when I have to be strategic. I use my family business experience when I counsel a long-suffering client with something like, “You can pursue your own dreams and everyone else will be just fine. You’ll probably still get invited to Thanksgiving dinner.”
The worst thing can become the best thing. Really, there are no worst things, just best things, when you look at the whole of it.
Now, I understand that I get to do what I want, and I know what that is. If I could tell my younger self something, well, I wouldn’t – because she wouldn’t listen. It wouldn’t matter, either. When it comes to your career, there is no end to it or wrong in it. It just expands and morphs as you stitch it together.
Keep stitching together those career threads.
Ellen Rohr is an author and business consultant who offers systems for getting focused and organized, making money and having fun in business. Her books include “Where Did the Money Go?” and “The Bare Bones Weekend Biz Plan.” She can be reached at ellen@barebonesbiz.com.[[In-content Ad]]
