tireless preparation: personal kneads

Twenty-three thousand overachieving students apply to gain admittance to Harvard’s freshman class of less than 2100. Three hundred highly qualified people apply for one job at IBM. The success rate for ambitious musicians to play at either Carnegie Hall or Madison Square Garden is far smaller. The list will always continue...

  

So many exceptionally qualified people find themselves in places not quite what their talents would otherwise suggest. Those less ambitious can simply chalk up such statistics to our highly competitive world and leave it at that, while others will plug away year after year in what will turn out to be a vain attempt to reach the loftier levels of human attainment.

Why do only a small handful of lawyers regularly win large cases, year in and year out? Why are there so few Hollywood screenplay writers, film-score composers and directors who can be relied upon to produce invariably award-winning and commercially successful work? Why are the scientists with Einstein’s name recognition so rare? The list will always continue…

A large part of the answer is simple and direct, if not outright mundane. Yes, one can point to discipline, without which very little of substance can be accomplished. Single-minded focus may be considered a determining factor. Imagination surely plays its part. Above all, though, people of consistent achievement invariably point to preparation. Not the kind of polite preparation that calls for three hours of study before a major interview. Not the kind of follow-the-expected-path preparation that can take years to build only to end in disappointment. Not the kind of imposed preparation that does not come entirely from within.

Unbridled accomplishment stems from knowing the answers to 20 questions when only two will be asked, from writing 1200 pages of a novel that will be whittled down to 300, from performing research that goes far beyond Internet surfing, from maintaining the kind of integrity that knows no shortcut. On this, the 150th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s death, it’s instructive to take a look back, to acknowledge his preparation and perseverance, to realize how he managed time, to understand why he remains central to our thoughts and actions after all these years.

Like a baker kneading freshly prepared dough, we must often work closely with today’s calendars to accommodate this kind of focused work, to allow for achievement, to satisfy our innate need for personal growth. Given such a mindset, the resulting career will warmly rise to a golden finish.

key perspectives: picture frame

Do you have a clear plan about where you're going?

Picture your ideal job; what does it look like? What is its focus, and with whom would you be working and interacting? Is your productivity and efficiency all it could be? If not, what must be done to ensure those twin aspects of valued employment?

These questions hold true whether you’re an undergraduate or graduate student, new to the job market or otherwise ensconced in a less-than-ideal job. Plan ahead. Act systematically. Are you going into an interview or meeting? Then formulate an agenda even if one is not provided. Reticence has no place within the job market, so carefully consider all chosen paths, then act decisively.

Don’t let yourself become sidetracked by thoughts of insecurity. Know yourself honestly. Know your abilities. Then have complete faith in your aptitude and competence. Easier said than done, you ask? Then reframe the question: Why not you? Why not respect your intrinsic value? Why are you not in fact ideal for that job? Why can you not in fact complete that huge project step by methodical step, no matter how complex or intractable it may initially seem?

And what of the setbacks, the mistakes made, both as inevitable as rush-hour traffic? Here’s how Lizzie O’Leary (the host of “Marketplace Weekend”), for one, dealt with being young and unsure of herself. Perspective remains key, and represents a tangibly positive teacher.

Picture the best of all possible worlds; what do you most want? With career, with personal goals, with life? Now frame these ideals into a realistic course of action to make them happen.