At this point, you might be wondering what “THIS” is.
Perhaps it is talent. Maybe it is education. Experience, anyone?
There is no doubt that all of these things play a role in a person’s Animal Health or Veterinary career. However, there is something else that is even more important to a person’s success, specifically the amount of success that they experience over the course of their career.
That something else is taking action.
Does it feel anti-climactic? Do not be fooled. Taking action has been dictating your own level of success throughout your entire life, same as it has been dictating mine and everyone else’s. The trick is to recognize the role that it plays and then use that recognition to your advantage.
As an executive recruiter and search consultant, workplace/workforce expert, and student of success, I’m also an aficionado of motivational quotes. One of my favorite quotes is this one:
“One day or day one. It is your decision.”
The four most important words in this quote are “One day” and “Day one.” Just by switching the order of the words, you drastically change their meaning, and this change of meaning has tremendous application not only on a person’s life overall, but also on their Animal Health or Veterinary career. The order in which you choose to use these words determines your outlook, and ultimately, how much professional success you’ll enjoy.
And that’s because the difference between the order of the words boils down to the difference between being proactive and being reactive in your Animal Health or Veterinary career.
‘One Day’ (The reactive approach)
You’ve surely heard this phrase before: “One day, I’ll [add whatever far-reaching aspiration you would like here] . . .” Maybe you’ve heard other people utter this phrase. Perhaps you have even used it yourself on occasion. We probably all have, for one reason or another.
But how many of us keep saying it over and over again and about the same thing? And how many of us do so in regards to our professional life and career? Because we want to advance and grow our career and do great things if we could just get around to doing it! But alas, life keeps getting in the way and wrecking the plans we have. But one day . . .
This is the problem about being reactive: you do not take action. You talk about taking action. You think about taking action. But you do not actually take it. Instead, you wait for things to happen, and unfortunately, they do. Life happens. Things get in the way. And then you are forced to react to what has happened TO you. Instead of taking action to positively influence your situation and the circumstances within it, your circumstances have now forced your hand. And you can’t do the things that you were planning to do.
I’ve said this before, but when you’re reactive, you’re moving from a position of weakness and not a position of strength. That’s because you have fewer options, and in some cases, you have no options. And when you have few or no options, it becomes more difficult and even impossible to make decisions that will help you move forward.
Success in your Animal Health or Veterinary career is all about having more options and more leverage and the best way to have these things is to create them yourself. You can’t just hope that options and leverage will magically show up on your doorstep (or in your email inbox). Life simply does not happen that way.
‘Day One’ (The proactive approach)
This, on the other hand, is the proactive way to approach your Animal Health or Veterinary career. That’s because you’re not wistfully pondering the far-flung future. You’re seriously considering today . . . in other words, Day One. This means that you’re starting something today and you’re taking actual concrete steps toward accomplishing that something today, no matter how small those steps might be. It also means that you fully expect there to be a Day Two, Day Three, etc.
In other words, not only are you being proactive about starting something today, but you’re also making a commitment to keep going after today. As many of you know, getting started is often only half the battle. Keeping going is the other half, and it’s sometimes the most difficult part of reaching your goals, whether they’re personal or professional.
And since being proactive is the opposite of being reactive, when you’re proactive, you’re moving from a position of strength instead of weakness. You have more options. You have more leverage. Since you created more options, you can choose the one that’s best for you and your Animal Health or Veterinary career. You don’t have to be “happy with what you have” because things could be worse. When you think about it, “Things could be worse” is not a very inspiring personal mantra or motto for career growth.
As an executive recruiter and search consultant for more than 25 years and a workplace/workforce expert, there’s one thing I know for sure. Having leverage or more options represents one of the best ways to enjoy success, enjoy more of it, and enjoy it in a shorter amount of time. And I’m not even basing this off my own career as a recruiter. I’m basing it off the Animal Health and Veterinary careers of the job seekers and candidates with whom I’ve worked over the years. More than anyone, they’ve shown me the ingredients to the recipe for success.
So don’t just take it from me. Take it from them—take it from those professionals who changed the order of two simple words, and at the same time, changed the course of their life and their career for the better.
If you’re looking to make a change or explore your employment options, then we want to talk with you. I encourage you to contact us or you can also create a profile and/or submit your resume for consideration.
We help support careers in one of two ways: 1. By helping Animal Health and Veterinary professionals to find the right opportunity when the time is right, and 2. By helping to recruit top talent for the critical needs of Animal Health and Veterinary organizations. If this is something that you would like to explore further, please send an email to stacy@thevetrecruiter.com.