Opportunities

15 Great Resources to Help you Hit The Next Level of Yourself.

What are we looking for, and how do we get there?

It’s placement season at college as I write this, and discussions are in full swing regarding career options, openings at top notch companies and even work-life balance. I hear people actively chirping away detailed descriptions of their future, from what they have planned for every minute of their life, starting from the next minute to about five years from now. I can’t help but envy them.

I am one of those people who still haven’t had that lightning bolt hit me in the head and make me realize that “Yes. This is what I want. Two months from now, I’ll be this. Two years from now, I’ll be that. And that’s how, twenty years from now, I’ll own a major portion of the corporate world.”

NO. I still don’t have a clue as to where I stand, and what I’m supposed to do.

Now is widely considered the time we’re expected to be at the peak of our abilities, showcasing great results that will take us places. To be honest, any time in life is a good time to start thinking about becoming more productive. But first things first. How do we reverse what we’ve been doing all this while?

How do you become great? More successful? More Productive?

And that’s how my research begins. In the following weeks, I’ll be attempting to discover myself, make the best of my time and resources and find out what works best for me-not just in terms of career.

This includes looking for the best opportunities out there, making relationships that contribute to a positive personality and outlook and most importantly, improving my productivity by not whiling away time. In the process, I’ll be trying to help out people who are as confused as I am.

The exceptional few who have managed to untie the knots, wipe the fog clear and see into the future already wield a powerful weapon. To know who you are and what you’re meant to is a different kind of power (if not superpower) altogether.

But I believe that superpowers are not that difficult to possess if you have the will and the belief that your will is strong enough to take you where you want to be. Oftentimes, our passion and its career prospects don’t necessarily go hand in hand. If you’re willing to learn, you can take up any job and gradually find yourself loving it. But that doesn’t mean you should limit yourself to a few choices.

Where do I start?

The desire to learn is the most important starting point. Everybody loves a good learner! ;) However, the right mindset for learning matters a lot if you’re looking to go far. So, the first thing I am planning to do is strengthen my will and arrive at the right mindset. To learn, to acquire new skills, and most importantly, apply them. Dedicating at least two hours every day towards learning something new might really help if I stay focused and motivated.

To get us started on the lessons of learning and self improvement, here are the top 5 blog posts, podcasts and videos (They’re all TED Talks) I came across. They’ll definitely help if you are looking to get inspired to start using your time to learn new things and become a more productive, successful person.

Blog Posts

1. How I Became a Morning Person, Learned a New Language, and Read 5x More Books in 2015 by Buffer Belle Beth Cooper
2. Invest in Yourself: How You Should be Spending Your Free Time by The Mission
3. Focus on One Thing at a Time. Here’s Why by Tim Denning
4. How Do I Stop Forgetting What I Learned so Quickly? by William Cho
5. The Methods For Superhuman Productivity by Robin Sharma

Podcasts

1. How to Find Opportunities, Friends, and The Right Mindset by The Mission
2. 5 Rituals that Predict Success by Robin Sharma
3. The Mindset That Will Limit Your Future(And How To Fix It) by Michael Hyatt
4. The Cure for Procastination by Kevin Kruse
5. Thinking INSIDE the Box! by Ray Sidney-Smith

Videos

1. How Great Leaders Inspire Action by Simon Sinek
2. Forget Multitasking, Try Monotasking by Paolo Cardini
3. All it Takes is 10 Mindful Minutes by Andy Puddicombe
4. How To Build Your Creative Confidence by David Kelley
5. Why You Will Fail to Have a Great Career by Larry Smith

Well, Mark Cuban’s words seem to ease things a bit.

“You’re not supposed to know [your passion] yet…. You’re not going to know what you’re going to be when you grow up. You’re only 22 years old. That’s the time to go out and get paid to learn as much as you can about as many different things as you can until you find something you can be great at.”

Well, maybe Mark is right. Now might be the best time to just try a hand at different things and see what works out best for me, provided I don’t get drowned in the noise. But first, let’s just get some serious focus and then step into the big, bright world out there.

That’s all for now. Bye!

P.S: This is not an exercise for the placements alone. Every confused young adult out there will have hundreds of choices available but getting started is a really difficult task altogether.

So placements or not, start now. Get inspired. Stay focused. Until we meet again, Ciao!