Joy, money, flow
Joy, money, flow….these three words capture emotion, tangible value and a somewhat abstract meaning. However Chris Guillebeau, at Marie Forleo.com, noted these subjects as defining areas to capture the meaning of success in your career. I share my thoughts noted a few years ago below.
Joy:
Dan Pink stated that having purpose in the work that you do, motivates! And this motivation through purpose can translate into purpose that gives joy.Joy is the work that you can stay up all night for and you actually get satisfaction from doing.
Ellen Degeneres , gets so much joy from making people laugh and making them happy; so much so that she did not bother completing university to purse her career in comedy. She never gave up even after she came out and her career suffered in response, but her love for comedy enabled her to persevere and now her show is a great success with several Emmy awards.
This example shows how identifying your purpose provides clarity on which direction to take, and the reward it gives you enables you to overcome challenges that come your way.
So how do you know your purpose? Some know exactly who they want to be at an early age, and there are others who find out later in life; but the key is that whatever opportunities that come your way, with experience you will know what gives you more joy and what leaves you more empty.
For those who may never find their purpose career wise; giving to charity, volunteering, children, helping the poor or vulnerable in society are areas where you can indirectly feel joy, it may not be career related but at least on a personal level you can experience some fulfillment.
Money:
No matter what anyone says money is very important, very very!
Nonetheless, how much money is measured differently by everyone. We are working from various starting points and different targets, however there is the basic range where it needs to pay the bills (you need shelter and peace of mind); pay for entertainment or leisure( you need rest and stimulation), with a reflection in some degree of progress (if after 3 years still earning/profit at £1,000? then needs reviewing, even if for the sake of inflation alone).
Sir Richard Branson , was able to create and expand the Virgin Empire because he had the financial capability to do so. He is a natural entrepreneur and is passionate about what he does; but it may have been a different story if he didn’t come from a middle class background with his parents support. His mother even helped pay off significant debts, as she had a house which was re-mortgaged to settle his debts.
You may not have a lot of money but by being resourceful you could save, access or get the right support to keep you afloat. Resources include family, friends, mentors, government support for small businesses, financial and tax management.
Flow:
When Chris mentioned flow, the first thing that came to my mind was water, and the ease of movement; which is a good way of describing it. Chris explained that it was the ease with which the activity, work or service is done.
President Obama is a natural charismatic leader and speaker. Barbara Walters, Oprah, and Wendy Williams are examples of great talk hosts, who conduct interviews with amazing ease. Andrea Bocelli, Mariah Carey and Beyonce can sing the phone book and make it sound heavenly.
Flow comes with talent, natural ability or inclination to easily learn the activity. Notwithstanding, some people can develop flow, which supports Malcolm Gladwell’s theory that 10,000 hours of practice in any subject can make you an expert. The other argument is that no matter how talented one can be, if you don’t work at it, you will only be operating below your highest potential.
Conclusion:
Chris’ analysis of success reminded me of Dan Pink’s theory of motivation described under Mastery matched to Flow, Autonomy to Money and Purpose with Joy.
The realist in me knows that you will not always find your perfect balance of joy, money, flow. There are times when you will need more flow and less joy for you to get through a stage in life. If you are house hunting, you will be more focused on getting your credit score and increased earnings as opposed to joy; however if your kids are in secondary school your focus could shift on more joy in your career.
This again emphasizes the point that your personal life has a huge influence on your career and vice versa. Nonetheless, the concept of joy, money, flow can be applied as a litmus test which helps in the decision making process for action.
How do you define success? Do you think they are all equally important or does one always matter more than the other?
Disclaimer : Please note that although I discuss some areas of personal success, this is mainly about success in your career. Success can be defined in so many ways and this, in my opinion, is a useful tool to define it.
See Reference links below:
Marie Forleo: http://www.marieforleo.com/2016/04/chris-guillebeau/
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