"Always view yourself as self-employed. The biggest mistake that you can ever make in life is ever to think that you work for anybody else but yourself. You are self-employed, you are the president of your own person services corporation".
Write that out and pin it up in your office, cubicle, or whatever you consider your work space. Remind yourself of this fact every day and remember that you have a choice. Even though you have chosen to walk into the same office and do the same work for the past 5 years, it does not mean that you have to make that same choice every day for the rest of your life. Be proactive and take charge of your career and the direction you wish to go.
Exercise for Today:
Write out a contract memorializing your commitment. Possible concepts to include:
- This is a day-to-day contract with my company to use MY services, which I can terminate at any time
- I will honor this contract until it is no longer beneficial for me to do so
- I am a major player in this relationship with my employer
- I will negotiate and initiate rather than accept and placate
- I will campaign for my needs and interests and will not allow others to dictate the trajectory of my career
- I will continually seek out other opportunities to learn and grow, test the waters by interviewing for other jobs, and take an active role in my movement within the company
- When people ask me what I do, I will not answer them by giving them my title but rather I will teach them about my skills and how I contribute to my company