Work Ethic: What Does That Really Mean? 3 Tips
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Examining the Meaning of Work Ethic
Over the years I’ve had the opportunity to examine what work ethic meant to me. I think there is a difference between having a work ethic as an employee and having a work ethic as an entrepreneur. For me, they are very different from one another.
Work Ethic as an Employee
I remember being an employee and selling myself to my employer and telling him my skill sets, my loyalty and my background at other companies. I gave them references and hoped to impress them enough to have them add me to their payroll with my promises of working hard, being a team player and being willing to add to their company’s bottom line.
When I was offered the position, I remember going in gung ho and working at my fullest. I gave it everything and then I would become disappointed about a lost promotion or disillusioned at some broken promise or something that did not go my way. Suddenly I would feel not 100% and go in at half mast, work like a robot and just meet the minimum.
The great thing about having a job vs. owning a business was simply that you could come to work with your “A” game or with your “F” game and still get paid the same amount. You do not have to be at your best all the time when you are at a job. You simply have to be consistent at your job. Show up and move through the day, some days good, some days not so good, however, that did not lower or increase your pay. I wasn’t playing at my “A” game most of the time. I was being a “B” to “C” player. I often didn’t feel connected to a mission of a job, only to what it could provide me. If I didn’t get that, I was not interested in working my best. It was an entitled way of being and I thought it smart.
This was not only harmful to my employer; it was more harmful to me. I began believing a story about what my life was and I began settling for mediocrity and thinking it was good.
The Entrepreneurial Work Ethic
One day I realized that I did not want to have a mediocre life. I wanted to be a business owner that played on a major scale. I did not want to play small anymore; I just wanted to be more and better. I wanted to achieve my vision before I died.
So I stepped out into the unknown and began my entrepreneurial journey. In this arena I found work ethic. I found that in order to win, I had to work with my “A” game every day. This made me happy because I was reaching and confronting thoughts and behaviors that had been holding me back all my life. I got to explore gifts and talents I never knew I had.
I got to feel real self-esteem not a false sense. Work ethic is not about working more, harder or faster. Work ethic for me is about becoming real with your work. Loving what you do and feeling like you want your “A” game to be the standard in your life. If this is you then I must tell you that you will have to step out into the unknown and begin the journey.
Here are 3 things I did that really helped me:
Create a self-vision: I created a vision about who I wanted to become in myself. I wanted to be courageous, action oriented, creative and a healthy strong leader. Then I began working towards becoming that. Not all at once either, I made plans and took classes that helped me become my vision. This helped me develop a healing plan for healing myself. It was so important for me because it gave me so many skill sets that were necessary to succeeding. I could not have gotten here with them.
Create a support system: When I began my journey, I created a support system for me. I did this to ensure my success. I got a coach, a therapist and a mastermind group. When I had these things in place I had created for myself, accountability, camaraderie and leadership. I simply created a cocoon of success for myself to help me transform and become what I wanted to experience myself as.
Read and listen to audios: I shut off my TV and began reading non-fiction books and biographies about subjects and people who have made it to where I wanted to go. I learned so much from this one simple thing. I started out by reading one book a month. Now I read anywhere from three to five non-fiction books a month because my love for learning has exploded and I love reading.
If you want to find true work ethic within yourself and live your highest vision, then I would invite you to use the tools I used and come and join the fun. Create your adventure, be well and thrive.
May you direct your dreams!
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