Key Point: each of us will walk out of a place of work for the last time. When we close the door and turn to leave, what will we have left inside? What is our mark or legacy? What are we taking with us? What would be yours if you left tomorrow?
You may have seen the art posters showing photographs of many different types and colors of doors. When I look at those doors, I wonder what’s behind each of them. It reminds me that each of us will open and close workplace doors many times in our careers. The current data suggests we will do so 10 to 12 times throughout a working span… perhaps even more in the turbulent work world we currently compete in. Each time we close a door we end a chapter in our personal work story. That storybook is, of course, our resume. Being clear about what we have given and received is vital in writing a story with meaning. I recently had to look at my resume and “paint each door” with a picture to describe what I gave and received, an interesting and reflective exercise. Overall I’m proud of the “art poster” I’ve created, but some doors look better than others. I would like to be able to do a touch up here and there but… Each of us has more doors in front of us. It is better to think about painting with the brush still in hand.
Character Move:
- Consciously think about the legacy you have left behind, the work doors you have closed. Identify two to three things of lasting value you have given, two to three things you have received.
- How are you doing painting the door of the organization you’re currently with? What can you do to more of, or less of, to have that door become worthy of being on a metaphorical poster of art?
Painting doors in The Triangle,
Lorne