Photo by Akhil Viju
Yesterday I got the news that I didn’t receive an offer for a job I had interviewed for. For a few hour I was disappointed, frustrated and felt lost. Then I started to stare the writing on the wall aimlessly and I realized I had fallen victim to the very thing I had written about just a few weeks back, the peak performance gap. I had written a story based on what I thought I was possible, not what I actually wanted. I stared at the writing on the wall and I thought to myself, “well, that’s not true.” When I woke up his morning I realized that what I needed to do was rewrite the story, but this time EXACTLY the way I wanted it.
After spending some time watching my motivational video and starting to remember the limitless power of imagination, I decided I to change the writing on the wall. When you first go through this exercise the mind may start to come up with questions like “How the hell am I going to go from barely being able to pay rent, a lesser known MBA, and work experience that’s not getting me far to a life of a dream job that pays well, allows me to travel, allows me get involved in public speaking, and allows me to meet tons of new people?” When the brain does that, the simple shift to make is ask it the most powerful question I have come across, “What’s the best that could happen?”
Unfortunately in society we’ve been taught to believe that past performance is an indication of how we will perform in the future. Just look at all the areas where this occurs:
Sports: The team was amazing the last 2 years, so they should be great this year
Academics: You got a B on this paper, therefore you can’t get an A in this class
Career: Your reference check gave us an indication of how you’ll perform here (this one might be a bit controversial)
Relationships: The last one was a disaster, so this will be too
The past only equals the future in your head. It is just a belief. When we stop believing it we have the power take control of our own lives and reach our potential.
Tags: peak performance, peak potential, motivation, inspiration, affirmations
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I love this line: “The past only equals the future in your head.” This is so, so true. Just because you didn’t get a job doesn’t mean you won’t get the next one you interview for. In my mind, it means that job wasn’t right for you and something even better is bound to come along!
Yeah. It’s been tough to keep myself from getting down about the job search, but that’s why I’ve been plugging away at the blog so I can build my skill set and make myself more marketable to employers.
Don’t worry and be persistent, you will find what you’re looking for in no time. Best of luck to you.
Ignore the pessimists, and definitely ignore the optimists. It’s tough time and it won’t get any easier soon. I have a master’s from an Ivy League school, and a great track record, and I couldn’t find a job. That was what was meant to happen for me–when I opened up, I saw that there were abundant opportunities. Keep looking, stay open.