What Kathy Caprino says you need to do to find purpose and meaning in your portfolio management role

Photo by: Giulia Bertelli

Many of today’s managers realize that there’s no longer a competitive advantage to being smarter than everyone else. All that has been commoditized. Many argue that it is the application of behavioral science to management that can drive gains; for instance think of the gains generated by mitigating bias in decision-making.

Portfolio managers now focus on what can be generated by “knowing thyself” and being more invested on self improvement than the next person.

But in today’s world there’s a never-ending deluge of lists on how to become a better [add your professional role here] — I mean even I wrote an article about the nine steps to a leadership mindset.

It’s easy to list steps but it’s hard to follow them.

Cathy Caprino is a career and leadership coach and a senior contributor to Forbes magazine. I’m sure she has shared her fair number of lists — like any other inspiring figure. But she is the only person who used the word “bravery” in her “list” of key ingredients for leadership.

Unknowingly, Cathy Caprino built an assessment of the link between the management of self and individual portfolios. 😀

The Most Pressing Question Potential Career Changers Struggle To Answer

Indicatively, here are the questions you need to ask yourself.

1. What do you read, watch, listen to, follow that captivates you like nothing else?
2. What angers and upsets you in the world that compels you to do something to address it?
3. Who are the people who inspire and uplift you and make you feel more alive? What are they focused on?
4. If you could take one course or program for free on anything at all, what would it be?
5. What have you always found easy and exciting to do but thought, “I could never make a living at this?”
6. What deep struggles and challenges have you overcome that you’d like to help others deal with more effectively in their lives?
7. What skills or talents do you love to use that makes others say, “WOW! You’re amazing at that!”
8. What area do you secretly fantasize about being involved in but feel ridiculous to say out loud?
9. If you knew you couldn’t fail and it would all work out beautifully (financially and otherwise), what would you try to do, and why?
10. Finally, what (or who) do you allow to hold you back today from pursuing what excites you most?

So, before start implementing strategic initiatives, work to self-improve and find your own purpose. See if you actually like to make better-informed decisions about how and where to best deploy resources. Assess yourself for a change!