We’ve Only Just Begun
Listen to the audio:
Read the text:
It’s a new year and traditionally a time when we make those resolutions that are agreements or goals we commit to ourselves to allow us to become better in the year ahead. 2020 has probably caused us to do much deep reflection of our lives in so many dimensions. We are all ready for a better life, a better way of being, and a better experience in our personal and professional lives. This doesn’t just happen. We have to have a definite plan in place in order to meet those goals and something to keep us on track and accountable. Accomplishment of anything always works better if we have an itemized and detailed list of steps to take in order to get from where we currently are to where we want to be.
This year, we have a “new normal” to consider when making resolutions. In our career world, we also have a New Work World that is not the same as previous years. We are in a time now that is new and foreign to us. Many people have lost jobs, had trouble finding new ones, and are trying to desperately get into alignment with a new version of who they are or can be. They, in some ways, need to reinvent themselves to adapt to the new normal which is so present now in many aspects of our lives.
The idea of reinvention is to change something to such a large degree that it appears brand new. Our lives have changed. Our work and career have changed. We have to ready ourselves to emerge into that reinvention to find satisfaction and happiness in order to find gainful employment again. We may find ourselves in totally different careers and playing different roles. We have to be able to shift with the times in order to create a new sense of self.
“We’ve Only Just Begun,” is a classic song by the Carpenters that has always been a favorite of mine and resonates with me at this beginning of the new year. This is the perfect time to get our thoughts into perspective, to decide the best course of action to take, to investigate who we are, and what our skill set is. These actions can facilitate how we can perhaps develop into a newer, upgraded, more state-of-the-art version to fit into the paradigm shift we are all experiencing.
As a career consultant for over 25 years, this last year especially, I have talked to hundreds of candidates and employers struggling with questions like “Now what? Where do I go from here?” Everyone is trying to devise new ways to approach employment. The challenges seem so profound for so many that I decided to write a workbook, Revolutionary Reinvention, which is a follow-up companion and greatly expands the concepts of my first book, Revolutionary Recruiting. It takes you by the hand through a series of exercises to gleam new information about the “self” and how to get into better alignment. The “Faremouth Method™” that I have successfully used for many years to assist a person is a results-driven process to allow one to be better prepared for the year ahead and experience more joy and happiness. Using the five-step Faremouth Method™ you will learn how to trust your internal compass and reinvent your life and career. The workbook has just been released on Amazon this week. I’m excited and hopeful that it will help people with the tough questions and situations that so many are facing at this juncture of their lives, not only with career but in anything they want to accomplish.
As I reflect back on the song “We’ve Only Just Begun,” it’s really about a couple who has tied the knot in marriage and are beginning their journey. When I ponder this song, aren’t we all doing our own type of beginning as we marry our “New Self” going forward? We are all trying to figure out who we are and what we have to offer.
The song goes:
We’ve only just begun to live
White lace and promises
A kiss for luck and we’re on our way
“White lace and promises” might refer to a lovely wedding dress and the wedding vows made in an ideal world. What if we turned that into a metaphorical version where the “white lace” refers to that alchemical marriage to self-transformation and the oaths we make to ourselves?
“A kiss for luck and we’re on our way” makes me smile as I think we all need more than a kiss for luck these days! I like the definition that the Roman philosopher Seneca suggests that the true definition of luck is: “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity,” reminding us that we make our own luck! Chance comes around when we have done everything that we can do in preparation of that right moment when opportunity meets us at our crossroads. We have to be ready and up for the challenge to make the most of that new situation.
Let’s investigate with some of the lines of this classic song how we can make our own luck as we prepare now for the opportunities of 2021. Let’s also get a sneak peak at some of the exercises in my new book, Revolutionary Reinvention, to assist you through a process to get into alignment and find success in the New Work World.
The song continues:
So many roads to choose
We’ll start out walkin’ and learn to run
There truly are so many NEW roads to choose in this New Work World. Suppose you could have a method to guide you through the process where you do start out walkin’ and through your personal investigative journey you learn to run your own marathon of self and choose the road best suited for your particular situation. Everyone’s path is different to get to the destination of choice. If you have a roadmap to get you there, the trip may go more smoothly.
Sharing horizons that are new to us
Watching the signs along the way
Talkin’ it over, just the two of us
Workin’ together day to day
I think we can agree we are all “sharing horizons that are new to us.” Working remotely or in industries with staff reductions, resumes need to reflect how our skill set can transfer into the client’s current needs. The workbook is designed to allow you to “talk it over with your inner self to investigate the outward opportunities for your new self going forward. You can be “Workin’ together day to day” with a new self that is more in alignment with the New Work World.
And when the evening comes, we smile
So much of life ahead
We’ll find a place where there’s room to grow
Smiling in 2021 is a welcomed objective after the tough previous year we’ve all had. We have to trust that there is so much of life ahead. With a supportive vehicle and investigative method of a series of questions and reflective answers you will be able to recreate careers and new work lives.
And Yes, we’ve just begun
Just as the first step of the Faremouth Method™ is “Do a Self-Inventory,” this beginning of 2021 offers you permission to begin your own personal and professional journey into the New Work World. Perhaps a supportive arm like my new workbook, Revolutionary Reinvention, can help you get on the right path, and allow yourself to investigate a method that might be helpful for your unique situation.
Life is all about choice. Choice also brings about consequences, both good and bad. We have to decide what those right choices are for each of us to produce the positive consequences to unfold. We have that opportunity now to devise a plan to produce the right set of consequences to our actions. It’s all about the plans we make where the end result can be the great new job, the great new life, and the perfect scenario for our lifestyle.
Find your own place where there is “Room to Grow.” The inscription at the Temple of Apollo suggests “Knowing Thyself” which is the first step of the Faremouth Method™—Do a Self-Inventory—is the perfect place to start to allow you to “start out walkin’ and learn to run!” This is only one step in the five-step process. Other essential steps to aid your right choices will be discussed in future podcasts to help you achieve your goals.
Mary Ann Faremouth has been a regular contributor to the USA Daily Post since April of 2020 and to The Price of Business since August of 2019.
Kevin Price, the host of The Price of Business, is known for getting the big interviews — New York Times Best Selling Authors, Multi-Billionaires, National News Personalities, and More. Price is a multi-award winning journalist, author, speaker, columnist, and business news media personality.
The Price of Business is one of the longest running business shows in the country. It is nationally syndicated and distributed by USA Business Radio.