Mentality: The Essential Element for Success

While skills are essential to career success, what is equally if not more important is your mentality. As the saying goes, “It’s not what you have but who you are.” Your mentality affects your habits and actions, and ultimately decides your destiny.

The importance of the right mentality is most easily seen in sports. As sports fans will know, in critical moments, mental strength can make or break an athlete or a sports team. A recent example is the English football club Chelsea, which won the UEFA Champions League in May against all odds.

  
No doubt, luck was a factor behind the team’s success (for example, Barcelona, its opponent in the semi-finals, hit the woodwork twice in the match). But Chelsea won largely because the key players – who were above 30 and knew this year was their last chance to win the competition – showed more focus and more determination than ever. This mentality lifted up the team and helped them lift the trophy, a feat they failed to achieve even at their prime a few years ago.
 
And the right mentality isn’t only important to athletes. It’ll help you a great deal whichever industry you’re in. If you have the mental qualities below, you’re fully prepared to live a wonderful life and have a fulfilling career.

1) Curiosity: Work is about problem solving. After all, you’re hired because your organization wants you to solve problems for the customers. Curious people are in general better problem solvers because they love to ask questions, think about new ideas and explore the unknown. Plus, in today’s fast-changing world, existing knowledge may become obsolete sooner than we think. Curiosity motivates you to keep learning and is a valuable asset to have. 
 

2) Persistence: From sports to music, from business to academia, those who achieve excellence work hard for years and, more importantly, persist in the face of obstacles. First, there is no substitute for hard work, and the discipline required is often what separates the mediocre and the exceptional. Second, determination is essential for any achievement as difficulties and failures are always a part of life. You have to bounce back after failures in order to taste the joy of success.

3) Passion: With passion, you’ll find it easy to be persistent and curious about work because you love what you do and you want to do it well. You’ll be dedicated and give it your best, and both your happiness and your work performance will improve. It’s important to realize there is no such thing as the best or the most successful industry. However exciting or lucrative an industry is, if you aren’t interested in it, there is no way you’ll do well in it. You won’t be happy either. That’s why you should choose a job that matches your passion.

4) Courage: Though it may not come across your mind, courage is an important quality. Even if you’re passionate about work, the prospects of big projects, presentations and decisions can be stressful and intimidating. You need the courage to step out of your comfort zone to grow and learn, to seize chances and accept big responsibilities, and to stay calm and perform under pressure. Above all, you need to be brave enough to pursue your passion and live the life you want instead of doing what is expected of you.

5) Hope: Sometimes it’s not easy to be brave and determined in the face of huge pressure and difficult challenges, and this is where hope comes in. With hope, you trust your abilities to handle the problems and believe everything will turn out to be fine eventually. Hope is a powerful motivator that enables you to persist even in the bleakest circumstances.

6) Humility: Though you should stay hopeful and believe in yourself, you need to be humble at the same time. When you succeed, it’s easy to suffer from overconfidence, which may lead to one’s own demise. The truth is our success is often partly the result of luck and collaboration, rather than entirely due to our efforts and talents. Humility reminds us there’s a lot we don’t know and there’s a lot to be done. It keeps our ego in check, and helps us remain realistic and objective when we’re tempted to feel self-important after success.

You may think it’s tiring and stressful to have the above mental attributes. You’re right. But nobody says success is easy. Success often comes with a price, and it’s your decision as to what kind of life you want. If excellence is what you want, you must learn to develop the right mentality.
 
Donald Trump once said, “What separates the winners from the losers is how a person reacts to each new twist of fate.” No matter what twists of fate you face, if you have curiosity to arouse you, persistence to support you, passion to guide you, courage to empower you, hope to motivate you, and humility to caution you, you’ll surely flourish in life. 

Questions: How have the above mental qualities helped you in school or in your career? Have you suffered a setback because you didn’t have the right mentality? Please share you stories.

(Entry 3 of 4 in the How to Increase Your Competitiveness and Land Your Dream Job series) 

  

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The 7 Essential Skills to Advance Your Career

Last time I explained why higher education doesn’t guarantee a good first job, let alone a successful career. One reason is the mismatch between what colleges offer and what is needed in the job market: Skills are what employers want, but higher education focuses on knowledge transfer.

So, what kind of skills are employers looking for? Here are a list of skills that are useful across most industries. Not only should you strive to improve these skills, you should also think about how to demonstrate them in job interviews.

1) Analytical thinking: Most professionals are required to make decisions on a daily basis. To make a sound decision, you need to interpret data and facts, think from different perspectives, and weigh the pros and cons of different options, all of which require good logical reasoning. This is why analytical skills are highly valued in the workplace.

2) Numerical skills: Of course, you don’t need to be an expert in stochastic calculus or abstract algebra, but basic numerical skills are important in most jobs. All organizations have to generate revenue and manage costs in order to survive, and budgeting is important even for non-profit organizations. It’ll help if you’re comfortable with numbers.

3) Computer skills: Computers have become an indispensable tool for work. It’s crucial to know how to handle simple spreadsheet analysis and create nice presentation slides, because these tasks come up more often than you think in a typical office job.

4) Communication skills: Make sure you can clearly express your ideas in both speaking and writing. As Haruki Murakami said, “A lot of trouble in this world has its origin in vague speech.” Good communication skills help you avoid misunderstanding, and bring clarity and efficiency to your organization. Being a good listener is important too, since communication is a two-way process.

5) Presentation skills: In many different positions, you’ll be required to sell products, ideas and/or proposals in presentations, either to clients or to supervisors. Whether you can progress in your career often depends on if you can impress them, which in turn depends on your presentation skills.

6) Leadership: Leadership enables you to leverage your skills and experience to achieve better results for the team. Remember that leadership isn’t limited to experienced executives. Even as a junior employee, you can take the initiative to promote your ideas and motivate and influence others. Just believe in your ability to act as a leader and make a difference.

7) Interpersonal skills: Since collaboration is prevalent in most industries nowadays, the ability to work effectively in teams is essential in modern workplace. In fact, business is about people. To deliver consistent results, you need to build relationships and partnerships with clients and colleagues.

Surprisingly, even graduates from top schools may lack basic language, arithmetic and computer skills. It seems while college education may help develop the above skills, there is no guarantee.

It’s unfortunate that some students spend lots of time studying (or partying) but do little to improve and broaden their skill set. Without the right skill set, college students can’t find the job they want. Disappointed, they may complain and feel that society owes them because their hard work to obtain a degree doesn’t pay off in the end.

To avoid this situation, students should think strategically about developing these skills outside classroom. It takes time and efforts, but it’s a high return investment which better prepares them for the job market. The knowledge-based economy is in fact a skill-based economy, and students need to be aware of that.

Questions: Do you agree that the above skills are important in today’s job market? Is there any other skill that in your opinion should be added to the list?

(Entry 2 of 4 in the How to Increase Your Competitiveness and Land Your Dream Job series) 
  

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The Misconception about Education and Competitiveness

  
To prepare yourself for the job market, you first have to clear a widespread misconception about education, which is what this post is about.

The Influence of Confucian Philosophy

Under the influence of Confucian philosophy, the Chinese (and probably other Asians as well) place an overwhelming emphasis on formal education and academic results. Kids are raised to believe that they need to do well in school in order to have a bright future.

This phenomenon is spreading to other parts of the world. When Asian American children do well in exams, Caucasian parents feel the pressure to push kids to study harder.

This claim may not do justice to Western intellectual traditions though. In fact, knowledge and critical thinking have always been held in high regard in the West too, as seen from the ancient Greek civilization to Francis Bacon’s famous saying, “Knowledge is power.” Today, this tradition continues as politicians and commentators insist that higher education is the key to a country’s future.

No doubt, knowledge is valuable, and academic research is important to the progress of human civilization. But media reports that equate education with success have led many kids (and many parents) to believe that the smarter you’re and the better you’ve done in school, the better your job will be in the future. The question is, Is this really the case?
 

The Myth of Education

Sadly, that good grades today mean a good job tomorrow is nothing but a myth. If only life is so simple. The truth is, except for a few science and engineering jobs, employers don’t care that much about the knowledge you’ve acquired in college.

What your future boss cares about is the value you can generate for the organization. As you can imagine, a profound knowledge of Roman history or planetary systems doesn’t help the majority of businesses and organizations achieve their objectives. While knowledge is the focus of college education (and one may argue this should be the case), skills are what employers are looking for.
 
Please don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying college education is unimportant for your career. A college degree is now a prerequisite for many jobs, and good grades from a good university signal to potential employers that you’re smart and can self-learn effectively. Besides, most successful people, including most successful entrepreneurs, have a college degree.

Yes, education is important. But as Benjamin Franklin said, “Half a truth is often a great lie.” Students will only be disappointed if they falsely expect a college degree – even with many A’s on the report card in this era of grade inflation – will translate into a dream job (though the reputation of a top school like Harvard and Princeton will undoubtedly help).

Students need to remember that college curriculum isn’t designed with the specific aim to prepare for one’s career. Good grades and high qualifications don’t necessarily translate into productive work performance, even for technical fields like engineering. As Michael Schrage points out, there is no guarantee that a PhD in computer science is also a good programmer.

The Purpose of College Education

So, what is the true purpose of college if it isn’t doing a good job to prepare us for our career? To the society as a whole, one main purpose of college education is to train students to be an independent thinker and to build a more civilized society.

On an individual level, college is the place to explore and expand your academic interests. It also gives you a wonderful opportunity to find yourself and understand your values and motivations.

In any case, formal education is only part of the equation when it comes to job search and career development. If you want a promising career, a lot of your learning should take place outside the classroom. We’ll discuss what skills you need to work on and practice outside school in the next post.

P.S. From this post onward, I’ll ask questions at the end of each post to stimulate your thoughts and invite participation. Hopefully we can collect and share more ideas and insights on this site.
  
Questions: Do you believe that today’s college students overly rely on formal schooling in their career preparation? And what do you think is the true purpose of college education?

(Entry 1 of 4 in the How to Increase Your Competitiveness and Land Your Dream Job series) 

The 7 Essential Skills to Advance your Career   Next >

  

How to Increase Your Competitiveness and Land Your Dream Job

Competition among firms has become more intense in recent years, as firms need to compete across borders in the age of globalization. Similarly, in the labor market, competition is increasing because we now need to compete with workers from all over the world.

  

In the pursuit of lower costs, companies have automated production processes and offshored operations to countries like India and Bangladesh. In most developed countries, unemployment rates are high by historical standards. It seems increasingly hard to have the job of your dreams.

  

But no worries! This 4-part series will show you the key to career success and fulfillment. Click the links to unlock the secrets to getting your dream job:

  

Part 1  The Misconception about Education and Competitiveness

Part 2  The 7 Essential Skills to Advance Your Career

Part 3  Mentality: The Essential Element for Success

Part 4  The Use of Knowledge in the Workplace

  

Hopefully you’ll find this series helpful in your personal and career development. You’re most welcome to leave a comment or raise a question. Thank you and I wish you a fulfilling career!
   

The Future of the Euro Area: Growing Closer or Falling Apart?

Last time, we argued that monetary expansion is necessary to pull the PIIGS out of recession and the debt crisis. In the final post of this series, I’ll discuss the outlook for the European Monetary Union. While this crisis is an opportunity to address the deep-rooted problems in the eurozone, European leaders must decide at what cost they’re willing to preserve the currency union.

An Opportunity to Achieve Closer Integration

After two world wars, Europe came to realize that prosperity can only come with continental peace and stability. Since then, closer cooperation and integration have been Europe’s goals. The eurozone was set up in the late 1990s as part of the efforts to promote peace and integration.

However, the eurozone has always had structural problems, since it comprises vastly diverse economies which without fiscal union shouldn’t be allowed to use the same currency. The problems, which were obscured in good economic times, have been exposed in the financial crisis. It’s now clear that the absence of two institutions threatens the stability and sustainability of the eurozone.

First, to improve financial stability and market confidence, Europe needs a unified banking authority that monitors the industry and recapitalizes troubled banks when necessary. Second, a central authority with power over taxation, which ensures fiscal responsibility and provides a framework of fiscal transfers, is necessary to any sustainable monetary union.

Their absence has long been an obstacle to European integration, but only in a crisis can these structural problems be addressed. The current challenges have made it clear that the continued existence of the euro depends on the success of reforms. This sense of urgency and the high stakes involved have presented Europe with a perfect opportunity for closer integration.

Conflicting Interests among Euro Members

However, integration incurs painful sacrifices and is easier said than done. On one hand, the peripheral countries have to endure the pain of austerity measures and labor market reforms, which include cutting welfare spending to improve labor market efficiency and reduce economic distortions. Germany, on the other hand, is burdened with costly bailouts.

On top of the sacrifices, euro members have found it extremely hard to reach an agreement due to conflicting interests. Basically, Germany wants to spend the least possible to prop up the eurozone, while other euro members (with the exception of the Netherlands) are trying to get the most from Germany. Given the difficulty of cooperation, few concrete steps have been taken to solve the crisis.

Indeed, European leaders are still deeply divided on how to save the euro. Though deposit insurance may be the only way to save the currency union, Germany’s reluctance to insure over 2 trillion euros worth of deposits in Italy and Spain is perfectly reasonable.

Germany opposes the idea of euro bonds as well. The objection is justified though. The issuance of euro bonds will take the pressure off politicians and slow down structural reforms. More importantly, countries like France and Italy propose debt mutualization because they want Germany to share the cost of future spending. No wonder Germany rejects the deal.

Meanwhile, Germany is taking measures to minimize losses in the event of a breakup. Some argue Germany is bailing out Greece for its self-interest too. By propping up Greece’s banks, Germany can spread out the debt burden of Greece across all euro members.

Ironically, what was intended to create peace and prosperity has turned into a dysfunctional partnership that threatens the world economy. But it’s hardly surprising that every euro member is protecting and fighting for its self-interest. After all, the eurozone is composed of independent sovereigns with people of different national identities.

Breakup not the End of the World

If euro members lack the commitment to closer integration, then the exit of some countries, or even a breakup of the euro, is the only feasible option in the long term. Both a German exit (which some believe to make more economic sense than a Greek exit) and the exit of the “Club Med” countries could work.

In the case of a German exit, politicians can sell the idea abroad as a noble sacrifice to correct the imbalances within the eurozone. Internally, they can persuade voters that an exit means they no longer have to waste money on rescue packages.

The bottom line is the same rule applies in love and in politics: If different parties can’t settle their differences, then a breakup is all for the best. And a breakup of the euro doesn’t have to be the end of European cooperation. Members can remain good friends even after breakup, just like what couples do.

P.S. Sorry for the delay of this post. I was busy preparing for the CFA exam, and I just had a trip to Phuket last week. Now I’m ready to blog again. Please stay tuned for a series of new posts on personal development next week!

(Entry 4 of 4 in the Update on the Euro Debt Crisis series)

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