You Are not a Ninja

What’s Your Story?

Think about your story. What’s your superpower? There is something that has drawn you to all of your past decisions and roles even if it is not obvious at first. Do you like fixing things? Think bigger than everyone else? Bring people together? Calm others in chaos? Manage those above you well? Understand people in a fundamental way with your superhuman levels of EQ? On the surface, your story might seem confusing at first, but it’s your story and you should embrace it.

That said, you are not a Ninja. Well, maybe you might be, but most people are not. You are also probably not a Guru or a Whisperer or an Innovation Unicorn. You don’t need these overused, but meaningless terms, to demonstrate your worth.

I went to school to become a video producer and am, well, not a video producer. I have worked in publishing, travel B2B, consumer electronics, and eCommerce. Can I just not decide? Or maybe there is some theme that holds all of this together.

As it turns out, my story makes perfect sense! The skills that I learned behind the camera perfectly map to Product Management. I learned how to manage cross-functional teams, solve problems, and put together disparate pieces to create a whole, while bringing customers joy (and driving revenue). And, I’ve proven that I can do this anywhere.

So, what do you want to be when you “grow up”? What growth opportunities are you interested in? Look at job descriptions that are out there and pull out any language that speaks to you. Save them in a doc somewhere for a rainy day (or when you get around to dusting off that resume).