Life is a complex thing that can be full of challenges, rewards, heartbreak, joy, difficulties, successes and much more. The simple truth is that no matter how hard parents and educational systems try to prepare an individual for the real world, it can be quite tough to handle. Without the right support and encouragement, an individual may turn to alternate solutions that are more harmful than helpful, and then struggle with the consequences of these decisions. That said, it is the rewards, joys and successes that an individual achieves through hard work and persistence that bring about great happiness in life, and a sense of great fulfillment and accomplishment. It is the setting and achieving of various desired goals in life that can help an individual with this.
While there may be many things that an individual wants to have in life, most individuals would readily agree that a successful career is something they greatly desire. After all, they will dedicate a great portion of their life to their career and most individuals like to feel as though they’ve really contributed to others and society through their work. The question then becomes–how does one have a successful career?
The Key to a Successful Career
Of course an individual’s success in their career is largely dependent upon their basic education, as well as their interest in and excitement about their career. That said, in order to be truly successful and happy, the individual will also have to be honest–not only with himself but with others as well.
It can seem perfectly harmless for an individual to occasionally participate in dishonest actions. In fact, most individuals would readily agree that some white lies are less harmful than the truth would be in the same situation. However, an individual who is routinely dishonest is hiding things from himself and from others, and therefore not really operating within the basic agreements of his group and society. He may soon find that these small, harmless lies add up continually until he can hardly distinguish fact from fiction, and he must continue to create new lies in order to cover up the old ones. Such an individual is rarely if ever truly happy, as they are constantly anxious about their actions and whether or not they will be “found out.”
In the case of one’s career, an individual’s seemingly harmless dishonesty may appear to be helping them get ahead more quickly and easily, but this is only an illusion. Their dishonesty may have to do with their ability to perform their job well, which can actually put their job, the company’s reputation–or worse, innocent individuals’ lives–in jeopardy. This hardly makes for lasting success or happiness.
In contrast, an individual who is honest throughout their career may find that they have to work harder in order to achieve their goals, but they are also far more satisfied when they do achieve them. It takes great courage, persistence, dedication, self-respect and self-esteem in order for an individual to drive himself through the many challenging parts of mastering a career, but they will be far stronger and happier as a result of having done so.
