We were lucky enough to have Abadesi Osunsade, founder of Hustle Crew, as our most recent MVF Events speaker. Hustle Crew is as a career development platform that helps millennials build fulfilling careers in technology and so Abadesi came to talk to us about how we can all find the perfect job that satisfies both our personal motivations and our career plans.
This may sound too good to be true – a dream job which both pays the bills and fulfills our personal and professional goals?! Is that really attainable? But by the end of the talk, Osunsade’s upbeat philosophy and sound practical advice showed that this really can be achieved if you make the effort to understand yourself better.
Limiting Mindsets
Firstly, Abadesi encouraged us to abandon our ‘limiting mindsets’. Any set of beliefs that prevents you from achieving your goals are a hindrance and should be shunned as soon as possible. For example, it may well be true that there are fewer female bosses and your family may believe that being a lawyer is a more financially viable choice than founding a startup, but happiness will only come from your own choices, not from what society or your relatives dictate.
Career Motivations?
Abadesi also urged us to think deeply about what our career motivations truly are. For instance, you may think you want a job that pays better but beware – there are consequences to this desire eg. higher expectations or a longer working day. Abadesi advised that we think more holistically about why we want these things, rather than concentrating on the short-term benefits we think they may offer.
Personal Mentors??
Once you have decided what it is that you really want, talk to the people in your company who can help you get there, she suggests. Managers and HR departments are not mind readers, so make sure your aspirations are known. Seek the advice of those who have already achieved excellence in your chosen field and make them your personal mentors – they can give you invaluable guidance and support you in achieving your goals. ?
Growth Mindset??
Abadesi also spoke of the usefulness of Carol Dweck’s ‘growth mindset’ which promotes the importance of self improvement that comes from self belief. The ‘growth mindset’ is the opposite of the ‘fixed mindset’ and is said to be the defining feature and basic psychology of the most successful people in society.
People with a ‘fixed mindset’ believe that intelligence is preordained and so fear challenges that may end in failure; they find criticism and others’ successes hard to handle and prefer tasks which require little effort. In contrast, those with a ‘growth mindset’ believe that any skills can be learned and improved upon, consequently, they take note of any criticism, try hard and learn from others’ successes. They are not afraid to stretch themselves because they have the tools to achieve the apparently unachievable.
To sum up, Abadesi’s approach can be split into these five key stages:
1. Understand your motivations in the workplace
2. Understand what long-term goal is sustainable and fulfilling
3. Align your motivations with a long-term plan
4. Create actionable objectives
5. Improve self awareness and growth mindset
Good luck! And remember – “good things happen to those who hustle”.
