Brian Tracy, author of best selling self development books and a true management guru coined this phrase many years ago. I attended a personal excellence course in 1987 and this important message has lived with me ever since, in fact it’s the only thing I can remember from the whole week! Not surprising you might think after 20 years in the working world and subsequent attendance on many more courses and workshops all based around this important theme — how to be better at what you do, how to make the most of your chosen career What does the word career tell us? Its basic meaning comes from the Latin word carrus or “four wheeled truck”. It lives on in the romance languages like le char in French. At some point in the Roman Empire an adjective was formed from carrus which was then combined with via (way) to form carraria via (cart way, road way). Eventually the via was left out and in the Middle Ages the meaning road way is likely to have been transformed into “life way” and “professional path”. Finally a few hundred years ago the English word career was borrowed from the French, as were the Italian carriera and German Karriere. The Italian word carraia also exists in its traditional meaning of road way. It can also mean racetrack and gallop. So in borrowing the word from the French we also inherit its root; donner carrière au cheval or “to give the horse a free rein.” Today we understand a career as an inventory, a list of professional achievements and landmarks along a path of professional development in the workplace or in business. Like the development of the word itself, a career can have a different meaning for different people. Is yours a speedy gallop or more of a comfortable trot? Possibly it has been both at different times. Do you know where you and your career are heading? Unlike the straight Roman roads of old, careers go into different directions at different times. How you navigate your career will dictate how successful you are and where you will end up. You have the reins on your career. Or do you? Careers are subject to chance too, or strokes of luck. Careers Advisors, Human Resources, Personal Coaches and Experienced Managers can offer advice, can give you specific forms of professional development and share their perspectives with you. You have to see where this advice fits into your life and your career. You may come to a crossroads in your career when an opportunity comes up in another country but if you don’t want to relocate then someone else will go in that direction instead of you. Being open to change will increase the chances to build up your inventory. Does your career have to start with a good university education? And if you do go to university, does your degree have to be relevant to your chosen field? Not always. A good degree won’t guarantee a career but it will help, especially if you study a degree which inspires or drives you. The confidence you gain from achieving a great result and from having a lot of knowledge will greatly benefit you in any work place. There is a traditional saying that knowledge is power. But knowledge on its own isn’t enough. Richard Branson stands out a person who has built a great career from humble beginnings. He has no educational qualifications but he is an example of a self starter who has a strong drive to succeed and strong people skills, or soft skills. Soft skills are an important complement to the hard skills which are the knowledge and technical requirements of a job. Unlike technical or hard skills, soft skills are not as easy to teach. Most soft skills are learned from exposure. At school your teacher may have said that you played well, and worked well with others. This example of personality trait is a crucial soft skill in your career and adult life too. 70% of our learning comes on the job; this is to say that we are learning soft and hard skills whilst we are performing our day to day tasks. People who don’t go to university or leave school early still have the innate capabilities to learn with the right exposure. We are picking up knowledge every day — what we do with the knowledge is the key to success. Here is a formula that works: Attitude x (Skills + Knowledge) personal development = Results It is also proven that Attitude is 80% of the equation, Skills and Knowledge only account for 20%. So if you concentrate on developing your attitude and mind set then you will have a better chance of achieving successful results in your career — and in your studies, your relationships and in all areas of your life. Books contain lots of knowledge but what if they are not read, what if they are read and then forgotten — all that knowledge goes to waste. Richard Branson went to school for 16 years and left with no exam results to prove his knowledge and still achieved results — now in his late 50s he is still achieving results and developing his business career. He has the attitude that he can succeed with the skills and knowledge that he has. If you put your mind to it, you can do it too In future editions we’ll have more on this and other HR related topics. Gibraltar also has many professionals dedicated to helping you develop professionally and personally; HR, Recruitment and Career Consultants, Personal Coaches, Sports Coaches, Therapists and Support Groups, many of them featured here. I’ll leave you with this fact. In America, the most successful people in business invest 3% of their income on self development. How much do you invest in yourself and your career? As Gibraltar continues to grow and opportunities increase everyday, it is time to get hold of the reins. Everyone is responsible for their own career — create your own success.

ned and Produced by JD Web Solutions