Black Collegian Career Center

Have you ever told yourself, “I’d really be successful if it weren’t for__“?  Fill in the blank with whatever you believe has held you back:  age, race, family background, lack of a college degree (or a more marketable degree), a nasty divorce, and/or overtaxing parental responsibilities.

In the minds of many people, any of these factors can be construed as legitimate limitations to person success.  Admittedly, some of these situations are outside of one’s control (age, race or family background).  Others are self-imposed, or the result of circumstances that can be altered (educational attainment, marital status, or child-rearing obligations.)

Limitations can be viewed from two perspectives—inalterable shortcomings, or challenges that can be overcome.  If you have felt that certain roadblocks have hampered your career success, you owe it to yourself to take responsibility to overcome any actual or self-perceived limitations that have stood in your way.

It starts with attitude

A fundamental psychological truth is operative in the workplace. That is, how you see yourself determines how others view you.  If you consider yourself to be someone with considerable abilities and drive to succeed, that self-perception will propel you to greater accomplishments.

On the other hand, if you view yourself as someone who is a victim of circumstances or robbed of significant opportunities to succeed, you subconsciously set the stage for failure somewhere along the way.

For a moment, reflect on what you say about yourself in the presence of co-workers or your boss.  Inadvertently, your speech can betray you if you say things like:  “I don’t know if I can handle a project like that.”  “Those job duties are above my pay grade.”  “Although I wouldn’t mind attempting the job, probably someone else could complete it sooner or better.”  “I’m happy just doing what I’ve always done.”

Making these kinds of statements sets the stage for limited career advancement. After all, if you are not confident of your ability to grow professionally and accept new challenges, why should anyone entrust you with greater responsibilities?  Your statements of self-doubt become self-fulfilling prophecies.  In effect, you don’t really expect to get ahead—and because of the negative vibes you project, you probably won’t succeed in anything worthwhile.

Defying the odds

Having a proper attitude that promotes success does not mean denying reality.  It may be the case that you, in fact, did “come from the wrong side of the tracks,” or didn’t finish college, or have had to deal with certain physical challenges that put limits on your career aspirations.

Even though you can’t change the past, you can modify your thinking in order to establish the proper course to take that leads to future success.  A more wholesome thought pattern can help you to defy the odds.  In so doing, you can shape the future according to what you want to happen, not what you are forced to accept.

• Draw inspiration from the biographies of successful people.  Browse the Internet or your public library for outstanding biographies of persons who have overcome adverse situations to succeed in their life’s work.  Don’t limit yourself to one gender, social class or ethnic background.  You can learn a lot from the success stories of individuals whose backgrounds are much different from yours.  What’s important is not where they came from, but where their unfettered will and determination took them, despite the odds they faced.

• Identify with successful role models and mentors.  Inspirational role models are not just outstanding individuals whose stories are on book shelves or profiled on the Biography cable channel.  Look around you.  Surely there are numerous persons who have accomplished great things despite less-than-ideal circumstances.  Even if you interact with them indirectly or infrequently, they can provide a positive influence on your life.  Some of them may become actual mentors, taking you under their wings and helping you to soar to new heights of  personal achievement.  To take this one step further, be a mentor to someone who needs some direction in his or her life.  As a mentor, you challenge someone to exceed self-imposed limitations.  In return, your protégé will draw out the best from you.

• Expand your professional horizons.  Do you always hang around with the same crowd of people on the job and after work?  If so, why not look for opportunities to expand your horizons and acquire fresh perspectives on life in general and guidance for personal success?  Being open-minded and willing to meet new people and learn new things is a key to defying the odds that impose needless limitations to personal greatness.

• Take advantage of work-related opportunities to learn more and travel.  These include both informal and formal learning experiences:  seminars, workshops, lectures, training sessions, and Internet-based educational opportunities.  Companies sponsor these learning tools to empower their employees to exercise greater control over their workplace environment.  Similarly, company travel also can be an important educational component.  Along with taking care of company business, you can expand your professional acquaintances and make other important contacts that can leverage your career in the near or distant future.

• Do something regularly to promote personal success.  The possibilities are endless: learning a new language, volunteering to cross-train in some other area of the company, taking classes at a local college, and becoming more computer savvy.

Overcoming limitations is not a quick and easy feat to accomplish.  It starts with adopting a mindset that refuses to accept defeat or mediocrity.  Additionally, it involves taking proactive measures to better oneself in appropriate ways.  A renewed focus and greater resolve to succeed is the reward for diligence, persistence and a positive attitude.

Calvin Bruce is an Atlanta freelancer with sixteen years’ experience in recruitment and career counseling.