Carl used to work late almost every night. Tonight he’s going to watch his daughter play soccer.

Janet built a reputation for always doing a bit of extra preparation. This weekend she’ll forget about the upcoming trade show and do some volunteer work.

Ron turned down a promotion that would have required him to travel extensively. He wants to spend more time at home.

Carl, Janet, and Ron are all in a Balance Stage in their careers. They’ve worked hard and been successful. They’re happy with what they’ve accomplished, but now they want something different.

So they’re throttling back a bit at work and giving more priority to other parts of their lives. Instead of seeking success, the way they have up till now, they’re seeking self-fulfillment.

This is a stage when you ask, “Who am I, really?” It’s a time when you step back from the pursuit of organizational and professional success and ask yourself what’s really important to you and how your success and the rest of your life fit together. It’s a time for those questions that you didn’t have time to ask when your main focus was on success and growth.

Carl and Janet and Ron are all trying to achieve greater balance among the different parts of their lives. Work is still important, but not as central as it was. Now what’s important is the mix of work, family, children, recreation, leisure, and hobbies.

In a Balance Stage and every stage in your life and career you need to meet the challenges of that stage and your own Career Path. You need to seek out the resources, including mentors, who can help you make the most of where you are. At Momentor, we’re designing things so you can always find resources for the Career Stage you’re in.

This entry was posted on Friday, May 9th, 2008 at 10:16 am and is filed under Balanced, Career Stages. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.