Happy Saturday everyone,

We are in the home stretch here in the U.S. towards the holiday season.  We kick off with Halloween which I believe was invented by dentists to have kids each so much candy that they get cavities and then the parents are forced to pay for more fillings.  Then we are a month away from Thanksgiving and finally Christmas. 

These next few months are really going to fly by!

Speaking of time flying by, I was thinking recently about transitions I have had in the past when changing careers, jobs, companies, etc.  I have been doing a great deal of reflecting lately about every time I made a job change, or organization change and how I went through a few months of pain during the transition.  There is the honeymoon phase for the first few weeks of a new job or organization, which is quickly followed by the pain.

I call it the “pain period” because it is where you are literally learning the new role and all of the tasks that you did not think to ask about during the interview process.  This is the time where you are learning your new organization, new products, new processes, who on the team does what, and so on.  There is a period of time where you are constantly getting knocked down mentally and having to gather yourself and get right back up.  Some of the time I didn’t want to get back up and wanted to mope around for a bit. 

What I found is that this “pain period” lasts between three and six months of any new transition.  Each day is a grind at the beginning as you learn the role and the team support staff.  You learn the product and the tricks to help you get through the processes a little faster each day.  It’s like a video game where you keep getting killed at the beginning and then you make it a little farther each time after. 

If you are in the “pain period” don’t lose hope.  Keep focusing on moving forward and getting better.  Focus on the process of getting better and what you are learning.  Do not focus on the fact that there are areas that seem overwhelming and that you may not accomplish the tasks.  It will take time, but over time you will get better, faster, and learn who to go to for the cheat codes in the organization. 

Stay focused on the prize of getting better and how you have already done this in the past and came out the other side of the “pain period” to shine like a Rockstar!  Keep moving forward.

Have a great weekend!

Sincerely,

Kevin Sidebottom

Sales and Leadership Enterprises

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