Is It Me or My Job That’s Making Me Crazy?

Distractions of any kind can derail us…right?

Couple those distractions Career ADD or living a Career ADD Lifestyle and it’s easy to see why you might be meandering down the wrong path.

How many of us are switching activities multiple times throughout the day, and at the end of the day very little is truly accomplished?

Now imagine how those same distractors are impacting your work every day. Making a career choice leading to career happiness becomes even more daunting.

Are you stuck? Does your mind come to a screeching halt when considering job or career options, or does it move on to the next often negative thought and subsequent action that gets you nowhere?

If you are a student of the Law of Attraction, it is easy to imagine the impact. If not, you may just be feeling bad about getting up in the morning on a work day.

No, you are not crazy….life does sometimes get in the way. On the other hand, if you are seeing a patter

n here – one that has continued for perhaps years, it is time to take another look at what may be the root cause and some tips to help move you toward Career Happiness!

Here are 3 tips to help you get started:

Take an HONEST look at your work life – I’m talking about from your very first job, no matter what it was. Ask yourself this – How did it make me feel every day? Did I make little mistakes and could not figure out why I made them? Was I called on the carpet more times than I’d like to admit? Do I now lack self-confidence in my ability to secure work that makes me happy? Taking an inventory of our work lives is the first step to seeing a pattern in the way we have approached our careers. If you have Career ADD, it doesn’t matter if you studied for years for the job you now have, or for the one that you are now seeking, if issues of ADD or a Career ADD Lifestyle are part of your current make-up, the patterns will continue.
Get a diagnosis or take an inventory for ADD. My best friend sent me the book Driven to Distraction by Edward Hallowell, which I ignored for two years. Finally, after my divorce, I knew I had to take another look and, magically, was able to locate it on my bookshelf as if directed by an unseen force. There are dozens of books out there, but this was the one that made all the difference and helped me to truly recognize what was going on. What a relief! And after I went through a brief grieving process, started to notice more what I was doing, how I was reacting and then sought TOOLS to help me manage the ADD, my life began to shift.
Get support now! This can either come in the form of an ADD coach, or with a career professional who understands the many challenges we face in our career and in our lives, and can help guide you to make choices that can be life changing. At the very least, find a trusted friend who accepts you and will be honest with you. Ask them to keep you stay accountable to yourself to manage your symptoms for success. So, here are just a few of the “symptoms” of ADD that may have impacted you in the career realm, and may be clues that it’s time for a change. Keep in mind that these are fairly typical ADD symptoms. However, if you are not in the right job, career or business, these symptoms become unmanageable. When you love what you do or enjoy your livelihood the majority of the day, these symptoms magically disappear:

- You are easily distracted or bored a good portion of the day and clock watch . When you are doing the work you love and look forward to, the day can fly by and you may be more prone to hyper-focus (not always a bad thing).
- You have a low tolerance for frustration with co-workers, employees, supervisors or managers. When you know what you love doing, and you have also created a “picture of your ideal job, career or business,” you will likely be surrounded by people that you enjoy working with and who inspire you to do well.
- You are impulsive, forgetful and restless on the on the job…and the list goes on. Again, these characteristics are lessened when doing work we love to do. Instead we are inspired and excited about getting things done the best way possible and take inspired action on a regular basis.

If you can resonate with any of the above, I would encourage you to get started on the “inner” process of identifying the gifts or skills you love using the most and the fields or industries you enjoy or WOULD enjoy working in and life can shift – quickly.

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