Early in my career, I was focused primarily on myself. I wanted to gain more skills, more experience, and continue to improve to work my way up the ladder. I translated success based on my salary. I understand why I operated this way, but as I have gotten older and more experienced in a career, I have shifted the focus from myself to those I serve.

Tony Robbins and many others frequently talk about adding value in the marketplace. Add value first. Exceed the expectations of those you serve. When you deliver more value than anyone else, you will be rewarded financially. I am just now learning how true this is. 

My current contract with my client ends at the end of this month. I have decided to sign a new contract for a one-year commitment in the role of a configuration manager. This role is not new to me; I was a configuration manager for a Fortune 50 company prior to becoming a consultant in 2014. 

I did not put my hat in the ring for this role to further my career or even for the pay increase. 1) I have been looking for a challenge, and more importantly 2) I believe I can add tremendous value to the client in this role. The SOW is signed and it’s official. I was knocked over with a feather when I was informed of the pay increase. The increase in this role is the biggest one I’ve ever had in my career.

I am grateful for the opportunity to add value and serve. 

6-24-20

I’m glad I went back to this post from a year ago to give me some perspective now. I’m nearing the end of this contract, and I have committed to another year with the same client in the same role.

Despite my skills and experience, I still found this year to be very challenging. I did not accomplish anywhere near what I wanted to because a major system upgrade took up most of my time. As I transition into the next contract year, I am thinking about how to approach this role differently.

I am establishing the theme of setting my client up for success. It is very easy to get caught up in day-to-day tasks and short-term needs. I want to start focusing on how we do the work, not just the work we do. I don’t plan to be at this client forever or even beyond the next contract year. 

Learning about Essentialism is helping me reframe my focus, adjust my mentality, and consider a new way of operating. Even if the client is pleased overall with my performance (which seems to be the case considering they asked me if I wanted to take the position permanently and move to California, which I declined), I will not be happy if this next year turns out the same as the previous year.