It still surprises me to hear people expressing that the best professions are in medicine, law, economics, architecture and so on, while not only excluding, but criticizing professions that they’re either not familiar with or don’t consider as prestigious enough.

Any profession is well-respected and a great career choice as long as it suits you. Unfortunately, we’ve been taught to choose our profession or to evaluate our career options based on various biases that we carry from our past and our cultures.

The world is changing rapidly and now more than ever diversity in thinking is one of the most crucial elements to ensure our wellbeing and future. Working from home and the rise of the gig economy is significantly changing the labor market. LinkedIn data shows hiring for green jobs consistently outpaces overall hiring. And due to the multi-generational workforce, the needs are shifting.

Mindsets are shifting and career is no longer a one-way street situation. There are more options than ever before and new skills required to achieve success.

People do the work. Processes make this work more efficient. End of story? We all wish.

Organizations design processes to make work faster, easier, scalable and more efficient, but they often tend to fall into the trap of overcomplicating these processes and neglecting their purpose: to make people’s lives easier.

The art of bridging strategy, people and processes is a skill that enables organizations to think differently and equip with the necessary skills to future-proof their business. Ultimately, the relationship between strategy, people and processes must be maintained to function long-term in a collaborative manner, while taking into consideration that both people and processes change frequently.

Midlife has gotten a bad rap, but in reality, midlife is an especially challenging & exciting time.

Midlife is generally considered to be the years between 30 and 70, with 50 to 60 at its core. And this core is crucial but often neglected in business literature and in organizations themselves.

A midlife career change or career advancement can be a challenging yet fulfilling experience, enabling you to change your lifestyle, acquire new skills and even transform.

How can we redirect our efforts away from what we’re used to and toward what we want?

How do we reevaluate our passions and vision?

How do we empower ourselves to move into a new direction?

And finally. how can we identify the numerous opportunities and pitfalls that lie ahead us?

While developmental initiatives are typically made with good intentions, they often fail to deliver results. There are many factors influencing the outcomes of such initiatives such as wrong evaluation of actual needs, poor timing or planning, lack of follow up and so on.

Most importantly though, is the fact that in most development processes, those who are directly interested are not being directly asked and properly appraised as to what skills they need to enhance or develop.

If you add in the equation the individual’s lack of interest in development, then the result is definitely failure.

Organizations need to provide the tools and means for their people to continuously develop themselves and most organizations actually do. It is each individual’s responsibility to take the most out of these opportunities for growth.

The equation is simple. You can’t excel if you don’t grow. And to grow you need knowledge and experience. Self-development should be of top priority for any achievement oriented individual. The means and resources are now more available than ever. How and if you’re going to use them is entirely up to you.

How often do you hear the excuse “It’s not my fault” … someone else delayed the work, someone else forgot to inform us about something important… someone else is in control of our outcomes.

It’s so much easier to pity ourselves and find excuses for everything that we did not accomplish, than to take ownership of our actions and behaviors.

What we don’t realize is that we’re constantly giving up control. We’re giving up control of our own lives.

When we choose to become more accountable for our actions, we reclaim our power over what happens in our lives.