Lucy Quist's Advice to Career Starters

Mrs. Lucy Quist has four important keys for people starting their career. She shared these thoughts during an interview with co-founder of She Leads Africa (SLA), Afua Osei. This was basically a conversation about her career journey.

The interviewer asked Lucy: "..what advice would you give an African woman at the start of her career?" She gave a four point answer that will be the focus of this write-up.

Her first advice is for a fresh career person to start with big dreams. "Be extremely ambitious," she said.

Lucy Quist's own life demonstrates the essential element of dreaming big. From working with an automobile company to banking and then telecom, she became the first Ghanaian woman CEO of Airtel Ghana. This is definitely a big dream at work. She qualifies to advise anyone on the topic of career planning and big scale dreaming. Dreams empower and motivate. The starting point for a good career plan is dreaming.

The second counsel from Mrs. Quist is about routine or habits. She said a career starter must develop a consistent routine that can help attain the big dreams. Dreaming without daily action will render your dreams a nightmare.

Positive habits are like elevators. It will lift your dreams from nowhere and position them somewhere. Consistent habits include daily improvement, reading, speaking, thinking, and so on. In my write-up on how to 4 Ways to Building Good Habits, I wrote that good habits are difficult to build but become lasting after they are established. Consistency requires daily practice. Never give yourself a holiday from your dreams by being inactive.

On this advice, Lucy said that career starters must be known for something great and make sure their name pops into people’s minds. You can be very good but no one knows you. You can be very good but you are not recognised. You must make yourself known by your unique contributions at work.

Making yourself known does not mean you must literally call people's attention to yourself. Let your work speak for you. Leave a trademark for what you do. Let people know that you can do it if you are around. Step out and be known.

On the last advice, Lucy said that career starters must "be very confident in what your dreams are and the rest of the world will conspire to get you there." Don't shy away from your deepest dreams. Believe in it and be confident about it.

There are people with dreams who fear to articulate them. Be like biblical Joseph and speak confidently about what God has laid on your heart. People who are not confident become timid. They are not able to figure out how to make their career dreams come to pass.

I am certain these four counsels from the leader who has years of experience in her career can arm you to make the right choices in your career too.