Be a Pro at Whatever You're Doing Right Now | Jake Blanchard
FULL EPISODE
Closing the Gap Between Where You Are and Where You Want to Be.
Jake Blanchard has worn a lot of hats. He's a management consultant, a cybersecurity sales lead, a former healthcare supply chain specialist, and someone who has parachuted into organizations ranging from $5 billion retail companies to university health systems to help them do what they simply couldn't figure out how to do on their own. Yet he freely admits that he’s a terrible employee and a great contractor. Getting clear on that distinction changed everything for him.
Most career conversations start with the question of what you want to do. Jake's more interested in showing up like a professional at whatever you're doing right now.
It sounds simple, but simple isn’t always easy.
Jake shared a story from early in his career, sitting across from a younger guy who was a genuinely gifted skier, competing at a high level on a national junior circuit. He was talented but he felt lost because he didn't know what came next or what he was good at beyond skiing. Jake's advice to him was something he's carried ever since: you don't have to have it all figured out. You just have to pick the thing in front of you and decide to be a professional at it.
A sponsored skier doesn't show up halfway, and an NFL running back doesn't drift through practice. But somewhere between school and a steady paycheck, a lot of people stop trying to bring their best and settle for “good enough”. They settle into a role, or land somewhere that wasn't the plan, and they clock in and clock out without ever really deciding to be excellent at the thing they're spending most of their waking hours doing.
Jake's internship story is a good example of the alternative. When his scholarship opportunity with Micron dried up during the 2008 downturn, he walked into St. Luke's and asked for an unpaid supply chain internship. The internship was 160 hours. He stayed for six months, working 40 hours a week without a paycheck, because he knew the value of the experience. When he finally tried leaving, they wouldn’t do without him. Even though they didn’t have a full-time slot they hired him as a contractor. His commitment and excellence made him impossible to ignore.
"People cannot ignore excellence. They can't ignore attention to detail. They can't ignore energy and enthusiasm. They can't ignore you showing up."
That's not about grinding or sacrificing for a company's benefit. It’s about growing your skillset and doing work that reflects who you are and what matters to you.The professional mindset isn't about performing for your boss or chasing recognition from management. It's about the relationship you build with yourself; where you say you're going to do something and then you actually do it. This also shows up in how Jake thinks about smaller, daily commitments. He talks about setting a minimum standard for yourself, whether that's one pushup, running to the stop sign at the end of the street, or simply showing up curious and ready to learn. The point isn't the pushup… it’s learning to keep the promises you make to yourself. If you can keep the small ones, you won’t ignore the big ones.
The career application is the same. You might be stocking shelves, or in a role you didn't plan on, in an industry you stumbled into, doing work you never imagined you'd care about. Jake would say it doesn't matter. Bring the professional mindset to it anyway. Be curious. Ask questions. Look for the 1% improvement. The people around you... the good leaders, the ones worth working for... they notice. And if they don't, that tells you everything you need to know to take the next step.
Catch the full conversation Stop Working for Your Boss, Start Working for Yourself | Career & Leadership with Jake Blanchard on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.
