Blog Post: What “never” is hurting your career plan?

This past weekend I had the opportunity  to take my family out for a night of fun.  We decided we wanted to go bowling.  A couple of months ago – in the course of business - I had met with the managers of the AMF300 on Bunker Hill in Houston.  During that meeting I learned a lot about the bowling alley and what makes it unique, so we decided we would head over there and check it out.  But just HOW unique it was didn’t really settle in until we walked in and saw it in operation.

WOW!

Bowling alleys, as a whole, do not usually elicit the word “WOW!” or “AMAZING!” from me, but the AMF300 did exactly that.  From the high-class seating areas, to the vests and bow-ties of the servers, everything about this facility is top-notch.  Want an awesome steak burger?  They’ve got it.  Drinks?  They’re delivered to your table while you bowl.  (Did I mention the amazing steak burger?)  Want to have a private party?  You can rent out the 300 Club - private lanes in their own room with personalized service. 

And that got me thinking (as I often do) about how job seekers often overlook amazing employment opportunities.  Why do we overlook great opportunities?  There are as many reasons as there are job seekers, but I think there are a few that land at the top of the list:

1.        Ignorance.  “Ignorant” has earned a negative connotation in our society, but it simply means “not knowing.”  Not knowing what opportunities are out there will definitely hamper our ability to make the best career choices.

2.        Fear.  Fear of change is one of the deepest, truest, and most universal conditions we share as humans.  Fear keeps us from even looking or exploring the idea of “What is out there for me?” and it keeps us ignorant.  See point  1.

3.        Habit.  We’re all creatures of habit.  We like to do things a certain way and feel stress when something is out of order.  We’ve always worked in a given industry, type of job, or area of town, so we limit our possibilities to stay within that self-imposed set of boundaries.  See point 2.

4.        Misperception or unfounded bias.  “I’d NEVER work in a (insert your choice here)” is something most of us have said.  And that blank is different for each of us.

I, for one, can tell you I have never been excited about the prospect of working in a bowling alley.  Why?  Because I thought they are seedy, dirty, smoky places where foul-mouthed construction workers go to blow off steam (and trample guys like me)!  My bias was a combination of ignorance and misperception.  AMF 300, its employees, and its patrons bowled over all my misperceptions and I can tell you directly:  this would be a great place to work!

While I am INCREDIBLY happy with my employment situation, what I experienced on Friday night at the AMF 300 in Houston made me rethink how I view businesses and the employment opportunities they offer.  By opening my eyes to the possibilities, I just widened the scope of my potential career path.  You should do the same for whatever “never” is potentially hurting your career plan.

For more information about the AMF 300 visit http://www.3hundred.com/300houston