Inspire Mondays: Biola Alabi at #RedefiningCareer

What a great way to start of the week. Yesterday’s #RedefiningCareer event was beyond awesome!!! Special shout out to all our speakers and the audience!

A detailed summary of the event will be brought to you soon but I thought it would be great to bring a short recap of Biola Alabi’s session.

There are many things I can say about the #RedefiningCareer Master Class session by Biola Alabi but I’ll refrain to only saying three things- Insightful, impactful and affirming. So many times, we look at people as finished products forgetting the journey they have taken to arrive. Biola demystified the idea of a perfect journey.

Her honesty was humbling and her story packed full with wisdom. My biggest takeaway, was that life is a journey of process and refinement. Few people are born knowing who they will become or what they will do. What most of us do is feel our way through life’s ups and downs. But if we stay true to who we are, remain open to life and opportunities for feedback as well as the inner nudging in our hearts, we will eventually find our way.

I have compiled a short summary of sound bites from Biola’s talk….. If you were there, please feel free to add yours in the comments section…if you weren’t….sigh…you missed out!!!!

On doing what you love/passion

• Ask yourself- ‘What are the things I like to do and that come easy to me?’
• Volunteer to help do what you love
• It’s not just about passion, it’s about working with people who believe in your dream
• If you have the opportunity to work with people that inspire you, you should
• I found myself unemployed…being unemployed creates opportunities for you
• If you can’t find ways to do what you want fulltime, find ways to do it part time

On finding your job/career

• Be a person of value
• You are responsible for your own career
• Ask yourself- What are my known for? How does my job make me feel?
• When you know a job is not working don’t stay there for too long
• Don’t put a ceiling on what you can do…only you defines who you are
• It’s your job is to let people know what you are doing
• Always be honest with people you work for, let them know what else you are interested in
• Continue to build your network to see how you can use that network to help others

On feedback

• …Learn to take rejection
• You need people to help frame what you can do, let people tell you what you are good at
• If you are working for the right people, they will tell you when you have reached a point in your life to move on to something else
• Ask people you trust to give you feedback
• As long as you listen to feedback you are going to find your way

On perseverance

• Always have faith and have hope
• Even when you don’t love what you do, do it and do it well
• Keep doing what you are doing, you never know who is watching or reading your work
• Don’t be afraid to pursue curiosity…know that these situations are always adding up to something

On Life/society

• Stay learning, never underestimate the power of learning
• We have to start celebrating people who are making meaningful contributions to society

On Money

• Don’t make money your primary consideration

On being a woman

• People are quick to put a woman in front of a camera and not on a Board where decisions are made
• Balance means different things to different people. Find out what it means for you and discuss it with your partner