Chronicle Your Career Path

To SDRs in the house: Chronicle your journey.
Keep track of your wins, losses, and lessons.
Craft an authentic narrative about your experiences.

You're likely at the west-end of your career arc.
The path "from west to east" is bumpy.
This is normal.

Remember, though...
You're not here to survive it.
You're here to take charge of it.

Pick a medium that works for you.
Google Docs, Notion, RoamResearch, or a Moleskine journal.
Write it all down.

For example, at the end of a year, entries could say:

"Sourced an opp w/ Acme Co. via inbound.
Their business suffered from x, y, and z.
Hit Stage 3 in 60 days; Closed Won in 8 mos. for $1.2m."

"Botched an opportunity with Adco Inc.
Spent 2+ months researching w/ no outreach.
Our competitor closed them in that timeframe.
Lesson: Don't over-engineer the research process. Engage faster."

"Referred 3 close friends to our Talent team.
Within 4 months, 2 were hired.
They're now our company's top-producing engineers."

"Attended an AA-ISP Chapter event.
Met Joe D., Sherri B., and Steve P. - kept in touch.
They've given referrals into 7 different opportunities."

"Hit quota 4 of the last 5 quarters.
Discussed a possible promotion to AE with SDR & Sales leaders.
Preparing my presentation this month."

Stuff like that.

Look, everything is copy.
Trip over a box and the joke's on you.
Trip over a box - and then tell everyone about it -
and you now own the joke.

At the end of the day, you'll tell a great story.
You'll articulate your bumpy journey with enthusiasm, gratitude, and confidence.

You'll place yourself in Column A with...
Your leadership team, your peers, and our profession.
Oh, and internal and external hiring managers, too.

Not to mention you'll create productive habits.
Writing every day, for starters.
Keeping your ego healthy from all the lessons.

Life is a series of temporary events.
This too shall pass.
Document the experience!

To recap:
• Chronicle your bumpy professional journey.
• Write down wins, losses, and lessons.
• Refer to them over the years.
• Articulate your story with certainty.
• Develop a host of productive habits.