Online version : http://www.dcu.ie/students/careers/newsletters/1219669149.htm

Edition week: 1-Sep-08

 Your Personal Winning Formula

  'We don't like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out'
Decca Records executive, rejecting the Beatles in 1962.

You are unique. Every individual has his or her own personality, attitude and way of being present day to day. Every individual has his or her own personal way of being. Every person has their own personal best persona for generating results. So what is your formula? What are the attitudes, intensities, behaviours and characteristics that will generate peak performance for you? It is like a 'zone' you need to find and stay in. You see this in professional athletes on a regular basis. They need to hit their stride and do what works for them. If they get outside their persona, performance will diminish dramatically.
Who in your life do you admire that is generating successful results? Perhaps its a parent, family friend, someone of national reputation whom you only know through the media or books and articles. Whoever it is, it is worth your time to study, dissect and analyse their formula for success. Do they have a certain philosophy that you admire and believe to be underpinning of their success? Do they have a work ethic or the willingness to make commitments that you admire? Whatever those characteristics, you can help yourself by identifying them and emulating them.

Several sources will suggest that successful people will have in common the following ten elements:
1. Vision: people who consistently win get what they want because they know what they want.
2. Strategy: people who consistently win have a clear and thoughtful strategy for getting what they envision. They have a map, flow chart and a clear timeline.
3. Passion: people who consistently win play the game with passion.
4. Truth: people who consistently win have no room in their lives for denial, fantasy or fiction. These people 'tell it like it is' to themselves and others.
5. Flexibility: people who consistently win understand that life is not a success-only journey. They understand that even the best laid plans sometimes alter and change.
6. Risk: people who consistently win are willing to take risks.
7. Nucleus: people who consistently win are not lone rangers.
8. Action: people who consistently win take meaningful, purposeful, directional action.
9. Priorities: people who are consistent winner manage their challenges in order.
10. Self-management: while all of the other nine common denominators of success also involve self-management, this one is more specific. People who consistently win consciously and pointedly take care of themselves as individuals. They are an important resource they have in achieving their goals.

The following are a selection of books which are both practical and inspirational:
What Colour is Your Parachute? ISBN 10: 1-58008-867-8
Excuse me, your life is waiting, ISBN 0-340-83446-3
Finding a Job in a Slow Economy ISBN 0-9702827-0-2
Life Strategies, Stop making excuses! ISBN 0091856965
The Mentoring Notebook. ISBN 0 7624 1834 6
I’m on LinkedIn – Now What? - ISBN 978-1-6005-069-5
The Age Advantage: Make the most of Your Mid-life Career Transition
ISBN 0-425-17645-2
Pitch Yourself – The most effective CV you’ll ever write. ISBN 978-0-273-70730-1

All the best, Fionnuala and the DCU Careers Service Team.