Always hold back any indication of your opposition/ resistance to a proposal or idea unless and until it is absolutely necessary.Success in the corporate world is like going to war.

Be loyal and deliver for those above you, support those below you and build allies amongst those on your level – at all times.

Never rise up alone within an organization.

If you are not playing to the company culture, the style of the powers that be or have someone providing air cover for you from above bombardment, you won’t go far or last long in that organization. If you’re not at the table, then you could be on the menu – Probably Education Activist Pat Rusk and not Elizabeth Warren as many people inadvertently attribute it to.

Avoid the mindset of “I don’t play company politics”.

It ranges from being easy to work with or being a peer counselor, to being willing to do the dirty work, to always delivering what you commit to. Understand what dependability means in the organization you are a member of. The “cult of personality” popularity game ended in high school.

Make sure that you are loved in the workplace, not because you are popular, but because your colleagues know that they can always depend on you.

However, if you wish to reach the top, your proficiency in one area needs to be a platform to build your expertise in other areas. You can earn a very honest, long living being mediocre. There is nothing wrong with being one dimensional if you want a mediocre career and to forever take orders from other people. Immediately work to build other skills and reinvent yourself because one-dimensionalism is a horse you can’t ride very far.

If you become boxed-in as one dimensional, become the best at that skill but only preserve it as a back-up.Learning, making mistakes and perfecting your trade/craft at as early an age as possible positions you to spend the rest of your career excelling. Why would you be any different? – Because very few of us are child/ teen prodigies, so we have to try and discover our calling early, and work on it. The most successful people in this world who immediately come to mind as early achievers were either child or teen prodigies in their field. From there immediately dedicate yourself to becoming an expert and the leader in your field. You need to perfect your career calling (not passion) before you turn 25.There is a delicate balance of variables that should determine the age at which you choose to retire. It is not called retirement planning for nothing.

Only plan on early retirement if you are comfortable with the probability a decline in standard of living and increased chances of addiction and/or an early death.Hopefully we can absorb life’s lessons in a way that not only makes us successful, but happy! As we progress through life, hopefully we learn a thing or two along the way.

How To Love a Woman by Michael Opondo