The traditional career ladder may be vanishing, but this skill is still key to career success
During the pandemic, maybe you decided to try something new-like learning the violin or a new language. If so, how did you start? Did you pull out the score for Beethoven’s hardest pieces? Grab an international newspaper and attempt to read it? I hope not. Trying too much too soon is self-defeating
Commit to persistent practice
Persistent practice is the way to build competence at something new
- You don’t have to start big to achieve big goals
- Chris Nikic became the first person with Down syndrome to finish an Ironman triathlon in less than 17 hours
- He committed to getting just 1% better every day
An unconventional ladder
To change your own path, you also have to give up the illusion that you’ll someday magically be less afraid or more ready without putting in the work
- Here’s a concrete, actionable idea: Build yourself a personal courage ladder and start climbing it
- First, choose and arrange several desired actions
- Then turn one into a concrete action step and do it
Providing a model for further change
Through a concrete plan and consistent practice, more of us can become successful at our goals
- The same is true for the interactions and bold acts we avoid at work because they’re challenging
- Don’t waste any more time, build your personal courage ladder today
- Start climbing it one step at a time, reminding yourself every day that growth is about persistence not perfection