See the Superheroes Around You

I don't share this much but I have two chronic pain diseases, one of which I have been learning to manage for 14 years and one that has just joined my life this year. While those around me see me as a warrior and I've been called 'power ranger strong', there are times when I feel very small, weak, afraid, and alone.

While learning that might not immediately seem like something that would empower you to excel in your life and your career, or see me as a superhero, I would ask you to think about that again in terms of the context of the people around you and about what you do each day. There are heroes everywhere....you are a hero.

Being a hero does not take massive feats of strength, ability to leap tall buildings, or defeat monsters real and imagined. A hero gets out of bed each morning and faces the odds; he or she faces the scary and overwhelming things that life deals out -- bills, bankruptcy, illness, divorce, infidelity, working 9 to 5, having a happy life -- and keeps putting one foot in front of the other. Whether silent or vocal, visible or invisible, each person makes a difference....you make a difference. Your presence and life can make a difference to those around you. Today you could touch someone and change their life forever. Today you could be one second from your miracle -- your moment of herodom.

Look at those around you, the silent, the vocal, the visible, the invisible and see the superhero within them. Each person has their charm, their gift, their light and life where they make a difference. It might be taken for granted simply by the job you do each day or the smile you give a stranger, but it changes the world. Little or big, your actions make you a hero in your survival, your strength, your kindness, and your weaknesses.

It is OK to feel small, weak, alone, angry, or scared -- we all fight our own monsters, real or imagined each and every day. But, it's important to remember that at the end of the day you survived the fight, you did not retire, you lived through the fire -- you were the conquerer, the warrior, ranger-strong -- you were the superhero!

Success is Possible

In my earliest days as a job placement director I worked with what some would term the 'toughest to place'. these job seekers included individuals on welfare who were federally funded to get training and find jobs, young mothers left widowed with several children, and individuals with major background challenges such as felonies for selling weapons and mental hospitalization.

In many cases we faced the additional barriers of:

(1) not wanting to work; and
(2) not believing there was anything to offer.

While the effort to claim self-worth and belief in a different kind of future goes far beyond teaching someone how to find a job or how to write a powerful resume, the critical point is that 94-97% of my 'unemployables' found gainful employment in their field of training within 90 days. It was truly life changing for all of us!

Believe me, you will never forget it when you hear challenges such as:

• "How do I overcome that I have never held a real job before where I am paid over the table?"
• "How do I explain that I went to jail for selling the stolen guns my husband had left in the car when he took off and left me with the kids and I had to feed them?"
• "Laura, I'm 65 years old and took care of my husband while he suffered from stomach cancer for two years and I used up all our savings and now owe tens of thousands in medical bills. I can't make ends meet with social security and have to find a job or I am going to lose my house..."

What did this teach me, these job seekers with their challenges?

That anything is possible! If individuals with the greatest barriers possible can find satisfying employment with no experience, checkered pasts, and huge challenges, then anyone can be successful!

What it showed me was that when a job seeker came to me with fears, I knew that all of them could be overcome!

I helped my clients to laugh in the face of 'no degree', 'too old', and 'over-qualified'. I empowered them to realize that they just needed to capitalize on the tools and strategies to be successful. Together we utilized the approach of 'feel the fear and do it anyway' and 'act as if and the reality will come'!

Today, believe that YOU can be anything you want and begin believing in it!

Next time, we'll review some strategies to begin moving toward your goals!

Until then this is Laura DeCarlo, Career Superhero, www.careerdirectors.com

Career Heroes

Listen to today's message.

What is a career hero? It's someone who has and does what you want, and through that inspires you to be more than you are today -- to reach for the kind of life and fulfilment you crave.

When you were little you might have dreamed of being a fireman, a police officer, or even the President. As you grew up your interests most likely turned to other areas inspired by a teacher, a family member, a character in a book, or possibly even someone you saw on TV.

Where you first saw your hero is of little consequence -- what matters is the fire that at that moment began burning inside you to reach out and squeeze what you wanted out of life -- to follow in the footsteps of your hero and create a life that was truly fulfilling.

What defines you is what you choose to do with that fire!

Have you stoked it, shielded it from the wind, and made it a roaring blaze that engulfs your soul and fulfills your every moment?

Or have you been so busy with 'life' these past years and never noticed your fire was burning low, your coals were growing cold?

Don't despair if your passions for the life and career of your dreams has cooled -- wherever you find yourself today does not have to define who you are or what you can be. Regardless of your age, your education, your social status, your upbringing, or your preconceived beliefs, you can do anything you set your mind to by keeping your eye on your career hero for inspiration, taking it one step at a time, and never, never, never giving up! If you don't stop one second before your miracle you can live the life of your dreams!

Join me next time when I'll inspire you to see anything is possible with stories of individuals who have changed their lives against great odds -- from divorced to diva, from welfare to wonderful, from underemployed to undeniably successful, and from too old to totally satisfied in life and career.

Until then, this is Laura DeCarlo, Career Superhero, www.careerdirectors.com