How March Madness Can Help Your Career
Advice from a career coach who's also a rabid UNC fan
(This article previously appeared on Mylifestylecareer.com.)
I’m generally not much of a sports nut, but since my days as a student at the University of North Carolina (UNC), I’ve always loved watching college basketball. It’s a fast moving game filled with lead-changing moments: a slam-dunk or a three-point shot that seals a victory during the final seconds of play.
During the NCAA March Madness men’s basketball tournament, you see lots of heart-stopping plays, as teams battle their way to the Final Four. The networks — who need to fill endless hours of broadcast time — replay those spectacular plays over… and over… and over again. (You can bet I’ll be cheering for my Tar Heels in the NCAA semifinals against Syracuse this Saturday.)
By the final weekend of the tournament, the networks compile the best-of footage into “highlight reels” showing off the greatest moments from all the games. These video montages are admittedly sappy and slick, but I still love watching them. In a world where we spend far too much time on negativity, it’s nice to focus on the positive every once in a while.
Highlight Reels and You
So what do these sports reels have to do with your career?
Well, even though most of us don’t have camera crews recording our every movement, these highlight reels are a good reminder that there’s value in hitting the rewind button periodically to acknowledge our own “wow” career moments.
We all have particular accomplishments and flashes of brilliance that are noteworthy. Sometimes it’s hard to recall them as we sweat and battle our way through the day, but they are always there.
So the next time you feel like you’re running on empty, pause and take the time to reflect on the “one shining moment” (or moments) in your life.
As Marcus Buckingham points out in his book, Find Your Strongest Life: “Your strengths — those activities that make you feel strong — are where you will learn the most, create the most, develop the most, and see the greatest leaps in performance.”
Focusing on your “wow” moments will give you clarity about what you love most, do well and find most meaningful — all helpful coaching insights as you play into the second-half of your career, even if like me, you’re barely over five feet tall.
