STEWARD YOUR CAREER

By Kimberly Robinson Williams

On the first Sunday of 2004, my pastor began preaching a series on stewardship. He explained that a steward is someone who looks after someone else's property. The premise is that everything we have belongs to God and we are simply taking care of it. He challenged us to examine our stewardship over the blessings that God has given us – our finances, our families, and, yes, our jobs and careers. Even if you don’t believe in the premise of God’s dominion, I challenge you to ask yourself, “Are you being a good steward of your career?” I challenge you to look critically at how you look after your career?  Not simply, do you put in a full 8-hour day.  But, do you really care for your career?

As I began to look at my career as a gift from God -- not simply something I do to make a salary – I told myself that I should steward over it as I do the most valuable things in my life.  I determined that I should care for my career as I do my children. 

Exactly what would I do differently?

I recalled reading an article in a parenting magazine that gave advice about raising happy children.  In a nutshell, it said:

n Read to your children daily.  Just 10 minutes helps improve literacy skills.

n Give your children love and positive attention.  A child who knows he's loved is less likely to succumb to peer pressure.

n Provide a well-balanced diet.  Your child may want to eat nothing but cookies, but fruit and veggies are a must.

n Protect your children from the elements; dress them in several layers of clothing.

n Present your children with positive role models.

So, how would I apply this advice to my career?
n Read something career related daily.  10 minutes of daily reading adds up to 60 hours a year.  For the average person who reads 10 pages an hour - that's 4 or 5 books each year.

n Give your career lots of love and attention.  Changing your attitude really does change your reality.  If you think more positively about your career, you are likely to get a positive result.  Try it for a week!

n Provide your career with an assortment of training and developmental opportunities.  You may feel more comfortable sticking with what you do well.  But, without "stretch" opportunities, your skill set will never expand.

n Protect your career from the elements. Dress it in several layers by volunteering on committees, task forces and cross-functional teams at work and in your community.  You'll learn a great deal and establish strong networking relationships.

n Present your career with lots of positive role models.  Find a mentor -- someone who holds a position to which you aspire.  Learn what it takes to get from where you are to where they are. 

Finally, love your career as you do your friends and family! n