Everyone Has a Starting Point

It all starts with you graduating from high school. Then you proceed to either college or university. You complete those studies, graduate and you are ready to unleash your academic skills. You just want to get out there and “Save the World”, right?

So after several years of working, (the number of years will vary from person to person), you sit down one day after losing your job (perhaps for the 1st time, 2nd or more), and you put down every job you have ever had. This is your “master resume”, which only you will see, in preparation for writing the focused resume you will be sending out to prospective employers.

This is what you put down in your master resume – 32 years of working, 15 jobs (that’s 2.2 years per job), shortest job was 3 months, the longest job was 6.5 years and 3 jobs were transition jobs – segways. Whew, you say. No wonder you are somewhat bewildered and feeling lost. This analysis resulted in another interview and a successful offer, which you accepted. You begin your 16th job!

It’s Not You – It’s Me

OK, You are right! That’s not you – that was me!

” Wow! How did that happen?”, I ask.

Well, partially because I never gave up and adapted to the times with new resume formats and different marketing avenues, like LinkedIn and job seekers networking groups. Tenacity also came into play (i.e. being stubborn). I kept working in my profession also, without a segway into lawn care or grocery bagging (not that there is anything wrong with doing either).

I looked back over those 32 years. It was easy because I created that “Master Resume” which allowed me to fly over 32 years, right at my desk. So I asked myself, ” What changed over those 32 years? ”

So What Changed? What Happened?

Well . . .

• Collaboration at work growing thinner / extinct
• Job timeline getting shorter
• No loyalty to the employee
• Job instability
• Loss of Teamwork
• Seems like no 1, 3 & 5 year business plan at companies
• Commendations are few to none

INTRApreneurs . . .

• believe you should do what you are / love
• see a different world
• let their values/passion guide your life
• innate need to be creative – unique path
• make things different – attracted to improve the world
• alternate career focus with periods of reflection

So what happened to me? Well, I did get another job in my profession, actually quite a good job. But that short dry spell, when the lights came on and I had an epiphany, well, that is when I started my INTRApreneurship.

It was a magical moment, a perfect storm, if you will. I had been a Toastmaster for 15 years, always had a love of radio, was web and social media savvy and I wanted to put to good use all the leadership and speaking skills I had learned and applied.

So I thought . . . “why not project that forward to help others break out of their shell and help them get on with their challenges and personal development, with leadership, team building and speaking”.

And here is the best part. If one should happen to develop a product or service that someone is willing to pay for, then the INTRApreneurship can be easily migrated into an ENTREpreneurship.

An INTRApreneurship could be many things, like;

• a cause
• a charity
• a philanthropy
• a product
• a service
• volunteerism
• a book

Everyone has a passion they can turn into an INTRApreneurship to fulfill their personal growth and create social change. Ands o do you. Also, several years down the road, if you are striving for more, you can easily turn your INTRApreneurship into an ENTREpreneurship.

Then you can run your own company and control everything about it. From employee, to intrapreneur, to entrepreneur – you have a lot to aspire and grow into. This path is totally scalable which you can build upon. Good luck and always keep your eyes open for developmental opportunities you can grow into.