How to Get the Career You REALLY, REALLY Want

Dr. Judy Osmond

When was the last time that you asked yourself what do you REALLY want in terms of career? This is the question that, if given enough thought, could change your world for the better. Immediately!  How simple can this be?  Yet, many of us don’t know what it is that we truly want, let alone how to begin.

To bring you closer to your dreams, think of the following. . .

(i) Begin with the things that made you happy when you were in elementary school.

Did you draw, paint, read, play video games, skate, swim, study, etc.? Success gurus now tell us that our true passion in life begins at an early age. Through practice and repetition, our talents began to arise.  All of us had some skill or talent that our parents, teachers, family encouraged us to pursue. And, even if we didn’t get accolades from anyone, we still know deep inside us the things that make us happy (eg. printing letters of the alphabet, , dancing, taking cars apart and rebuilding them, etc.). Do not discount those early years of living your happy life. These thoughts and dreams were your inner instincts before the people around you (school mates and/or family) laughed at you or made fun of them.

(ii) Choose a career that will provide you with the means to be financially independent.

As we grow older, we learn quickly to never be dependent on others (such as our families, government, employers).  We need money to provide our basic needs (home, car, food, water, utilities, etc.), interesting experiences (trips, working in another country), and a means to help the world (with your generosity in giving back).

(iii)  Without judgement, think of the one, two or many things that you’re innately drawn towards (i.e your basic instincts) and make your list.  Then, think about how happy you would be if you could make money from it.  Now you’ve begun to decide what you REALLY, REALLY want.

(iv) The most important thing to do is to make a decision and follow your talent.  Seek out any certification you need, develop a small business.  Just do it.

(v) Create a vision board. List your goals (with deadlines), and pin pictures (from magazines) of what you want (car, career, health, home, travel, etc.)

(vi) Begin doing activities every day that will bring you closer to fulfilling your goals (watch youtube videos of people who have made it in your industry and learn from them; brainstorm ideas every day and list all the things you can possibly do to bring your closer to your dream).

(vii) Watch each of your dreams unfold and celebrate your fulfilling and rewarding life.

 

 

 

Self-Reinvention: 10 Steps to Living Your Dream

Dr. Judy Osmond

Having lived a great life to date, I am proud and bewildered of my path to success.  Growing up in a modest small town in Canada, I have risen to great heights, experienced out-of-this-world events, and adore all that life has brought to me. Nothing comes easy, and nothing comes without challenges.  But, for sure, no great success comes without inspiration, desire, plan and action.

Many people go through life watching the world make decisions for them.  Not wanting to be controlled by things out of my control, I have learned the art of reinventing myself from the inside out. Ultimately we want to lead a life which is fulfilling and happy.

Here are steps to help you create the life you are destined to live that will yield immediate results:

Step 1: Imagine & visualize your new life.

Step 2: List the consequences of staying in your current situation.

Step 3: List the consequences of changing your current situation.

Step 4: List the reasons why you really want to pursue this change.

Step 5: List your action plan and begin the action today.

Step 6: Create Your Mastermind Group.

Step 7: Create a Vision Board.

Step 8: Be accountable to yourself and the members of your support group.

Step 9: Stay true to yourself and begin living your new life today.

Step 10: Stay bold and courageous, my friend.

We only have today. Everything else is an illusion.

 

 

Hope Awaits Syrians

Dr. Judy Osmond

Last night I attended a session at our community’s Multicultural Center to learn about the Syrian culture.  I am getting more and more excited and hopeful to meet these well educated and family oriented people. The more I hear about them, the more I realize that we can all benefit from knowing them – the rich trades and talents they have, the closeness of their families, the structure of families ( the high expectations of them to be productive members of society and expectations of them to marry and bring honor to their families).

It will be the resilience in human kindness and compassion that will ultimately heal their lives and families.  I am full of hope that we will be able to inspire them to gain personal greatness, live the Canadian dream, look forward to their future with hope of building a greater Canada, and not only cope with their lives in the day to day life and times but thrive spherically in several directions.

Providing them opportunities to connect with their community and the Canadian community, to play and find ways to celebrate the traditions of their lives, and to bring situations that are respectful to their culture can only benefit them.  If we can, even for one day, one glorious day, provide them with a remarkable experience, they will begin to create a great future.  One step at a time.

 

 

Why We Need Money to Look For a Job

Dr. Judy Osmond

Those of us in the teaching profession in Canada are aware that every province has its own teacher certification process.  I just learned how expensive it can be to simply apply for jobs in different provinces.

I decided to apply to a school board in another province today where I had previously worked for eight years.  I have a letter of standing that shows my initial qualifications, however, I now have to pay $30.00 for a copy of certification and $200.00 to upgrade my education credentials and places of employment.  Then there’s the police check which must be updated every six months ($40.00).  Six months comes and goes quickly for those of us out here in the trenches.  We blink and, before long,  we have to dish out another $40.00 for a new police check update.

Two notes to self while you’re working:

(1)  Save, save, save money.

You never know when you’ll need those extra dollars to apply for the next job.  It will mount up, these little incidentals, not to mention  the move and all the hidden costs of simply living.

(2) Always keep documents together in a safe place for easy access.

Applying to this board of education has taken me ten hours to scan and upload documents (transcripts, certifications,and police check), and completing the profile online. That I have all my documents in one file folder has been terrific!

I want to be that person who crosses the finish line with dignity, having never given up or give in to defeat.  All the more important it is to keep positive, build in one thing a day that we look forward to, and keep at it! After all, this is OUR issue, nobody else’s.  We have to keep reminding ourselves that we attracted this path to us for whatever reason.  It’s up to us to prepare, and make this happen!

 

 

 

 

I Think I Can!

Dr. Judy Osmond

In the midst of searching for employment, I simply ask the question, “job, where art thou?”.

A passionate, motivated and optimistic job search adventurer, I’m perusing online job boards daily, volunteering at an organization to assist newcomers to Canada, networking with career professionals, reading books and listening to Ted Talks on all things career, and updating my LinkedIn account. Committed to customizing my resume and cover letter for every application, and completing countless numbers of profiles for company portals, I need reassurance that my skills and experiences are good enough for the positions to which I am applying. This is a very vulnerable time in our lives. And scary. Yes?

Last night I watched the story book version of “The Little Engine That Could” on YouTube.  This classic story reminds me that we each have the power to make it to our destinations, whether it be in a job search, completing our education, building our wealth, or anything else that matters to us.  We have everything we need to accomplish our task.  Mostly, like the engine that could, all we need is to say “yes” to whatever is calling us and simply begin the journey.  Before long, we will be chanting the engine’s chant, “I knew I could, I knew I could, I knew I could”.

The journey to finding that great job can be daunting.  However, we know that our past accomplishments are an indicator to our future success. Sometimes we just need to think about situations in our past that we have overcome (whether it was on that first day of kindergarten, getting accepted into college or university, etc. ).  Job search is simply a situation that is temporary and we know, in our heart of hearts, that this too shall pass.

Dive into your job search and you will come out the other side.  Do nothing and you will sabotage your dream.

Instead of just coping with this experience, we need to be thriving! Let’s do this together! I decided to blog my experiences because I KNOW there must be others out there going through the same experience.  I want to be part of your support network!

Be that engine that could! I know you can, I know you can, I know you can!