From the outside, it really looks like my world is about productivity.
And it is. I can work 16 hour days if needed. Work is and has always been one of the most treasured aspects of my life.
I remember in my early 20s, when I stood in the building lobby for my first corporate job.
I walked through the spinning glass doors, looked up toward the towering ceiling lit by the natural Puerto Rican sunlight, and saw “the ladder” above me.
I felt totally at home as I’d arrived in the place I was always meant to be. I loved and have continued to love everything about working in a corporate environment.
But very early on, I learned how NOT to play the game.
And I’ve played it my way ever since.
The trick to how I’ve mastered the corporate environment, eventually rising to Chief Human Resources Officer, is to think and act like an entrepreneur.
Because when everyone else is competing in one way, you have to understand your advantage and how to do things differently.
Otherwise, you’re like a pile of carp, all fighting for the same breadcrumb thrown off a bridge by a kid with sweaty hands.
In corporate, most folks seek someone to tell them what to do and how to spend their time. Most measure success through people’s approval and validation that they are, in fact, an expert.
And this will get you the equivalent of crumbs in your career, but it won’t get you to the top.
Entrepreneurs don’t have anyone telling them what to do.
Their only validation is the money they earn and the fulfillment they feel.
There’s no safety net and no pats on the back.
And, as an entrepreneur, I can also tell you that it’s intense.
Taking this mentality into the corporate environment will give you a complete advantage.
Because successful entrepreneurs are masters of productivity. They HAVE to be.
They don’t get paid otherwise.
What is one thing you’d do differently TODAY if you didn’t get paid unless you delivered the MOST critical result in your role?
What is one thing you’d stop doing immediately if your pay was directly tied to your results?
Take a moment to answer these questions and then go and take some action.
And then sign up for Get Sh*t Done – my productivity workshop that will teach you how to be productive like an entrepreneur. January 19th.
With love,
Mari Carmen
