I have no idea what I want to be when I grow up.
This has to be somewhat amusing to hear from a CEO
of an IT solution provider, especially one who tries to do as much planning as
I do. When I was a child, I thought I’d be an astronaut. Math got in the way of
that, and so the move to “computers” seemed a pretty good one. My father had
this idea I’d do it in the Navy and attend the Naval
Academy, but now that he’s seen
what I’m like as an entrepreneur, he’s in agreement that the uniform would not
have fit very well.
My career has taken me through consulting and product
development to IT services, and each successive company when I was an employee
got smaller and smaller until I took my own company out. Clearly I wasn’t meant
to work for anyone, as I’m sure my staff would attest to now.
Yet here I am, pondering what my “dream job” looks like. What
do I want to do with my time?
As you plan the growth of your organization, and where you
plan to take it, it’s important to factor in not only the organization as a
whole, but where you fit within it. It’s only part of the planning process to
say “we want to be a 6 million dollar firm”. In that firm, what do you do, and
what are other people’s roles?
I’ve always teased that my perfect job is sitting on a
beach, but it really isn’t. I’d be bored, and being disengaged isn’t me. I
actually thrive on being involved, and so finding the pieces that are the right
parts to focus on is key. Most entrepreneurs are like this, and don’t sit still
long.
In my dream job, what are my responsibilities? What do I
focus on? Where can I give the most value? What should not be in my realm of
responsibilities? Do you thrive on the creation of something, or the
maintaining of something? Do you like managing people, or loathe it? What
situations cause you to thrive and be most productive?
In my dream life situation, what does that look like? How do
I live, what do I want? Do I travel? Not travel? Have a family? House? Car? Vacations?
The two are intermingled as well. It’s impossible to plan
your dream job without planning your dream life. Aligning the two are some of
what makes a truly successful person.
To bring this together, it’s planning. Write that job
description. If you were to build a job description for what you want to be
doing, what’s on it? What’s not? Picture yourself doing it, then picture
yourself driving home, and determine what that looks like.
Defining the target is important. Working for work's sake
will cause you to find yourself with time passing you buy. Time is the one
resource we don’t get to recycle, and before you know it, it’s gone. What will
you look like?
Dave Sobel is CEO of Evolve Technologies, a Maryland-based solution provider, and regular contributing columnist to Channel Insider
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