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Play Your Position

Guest post by: Jeanna Gabellini

Article Overview: Learn to play to win in life - no holding back.

Play Your Position

I'm a huge fan of American Idol. Some of the feedback from the judges is very uncoach-like and disempowering. However, they do emphasize several points over and over to the contestants that I love:

• Play to win. Act like you want to win the competition.
• Be consistent with who you are being on stage. Know who you are as a singer.
• Sing the songs you'd like to do if you were already a recording artist.
• Connect with the song you are singing. We want to feel your passion.

This advice can be used in any profession, or as a volunteer, stay-at-home mom or dad, or retiree.

It's about playing your position FULLY. No holding back or just trying to get through it.

Anybody that works somewhere needs to act like the CEO. Sure, your paycheck may not reflect what the corporate big dogs are earning but you will attract a greater sense of ease, passion and eventually your own income will increase. You are very attractive to all of your desires when you play your position.

See, you might find yourself drifting off into complacency more often than you like. Even you small business owners find yourselves getting lazy. Not lazy in the amount of actions you take. I mean lazy in your commitment to getting the desired end result.

A service based business owner just hired me. Business is almost half of what it used be (this happened long before the excuse of the economy...and that IS an excuse!). I asked my client if they set weekly targets for new customers. Nope. Are you giving your current customers the best service possible? Nope.

Employees do the same thing. They do the parts of their job they do best and let the rest fall through the cracks. They like to blame Joe Blow for any breakdowns in their department. They are not thinking about the impact of each thing they do or conversations they have. They are on automatic pilot. Just trying to get through the day.

Some of you who aren't working are even falling down on your job of enjoying your time. You act bored. You're not doing the things you most enjoy. Even if you are looking for a new job, you need to act like someone who is going to score the best position ever. Get into the job search with eager anticipation. It's much more attractive than the person who is desperate or despondent.

Retired? Are you fully relaxing, socializing and doing the things you dreamed of? It doesn't matter if you have a lot money or not, there is much joy to be found in everything you do and every person with whom you connect.

I tell people all the time, own your position. Don't just go through the motions. That's BORING and unsatisfying to everyone involved! Take the American Idol judges' advice and make your life and work your passion. Do it in a way that connects you to your heart. Be fully present and totally go for it.

As a mom, I always check in with myself to make sure I'm playing my position. I want to have fun with my son in the car, when we're on walks or hanging out at home. I want to hold boundaries with him and not be wishy-washy. I want my son to know what he can expect from a mom who wants to rock his world. (Actually, I just want to stay out of his way as much as possible. That kid is tapped in!)

In my business, I am committed to taking a stand for ease and joy for my clients. I treat all of our customers as if they were million dollar clients. I don't do this just because it makes good business sense, it's because life is more fulfilling when I play my position like I mean it.

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Article Tags: american idol, automatic pilot, big dogs, breakdowns, business owner, complacency, conversations, desires, end result, excuse, fall through the cracks, joe blow, li li, passion, paycheck, profession, several points, small business owners, stay at home, stay at home mom



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