Don't let horizon limit opportunity

The biggest impediment to professional success is the limit we place on the range of our personal horizon. If we cannot see ourselves beyond a restricted comfort zone often influenced by immaturity and nostalgia, regardless of age, careers and opportunities will pass by without the slightest recognition.

In our younger years, job prospects are not available everywhere. From a personal perspective, finding a position in "middle management" in local government is almost impossible in the Southeastern United States. Most governments here do not value or abhor this particular level of bureaucracy and stick to relatively flat organizational models. Therefore, to build experience in my chosen field, I applied for and earned jobs outside my home region.

The experiences of moving, isolation from family and friends, acclimating to unfamiliar environments without the presence of equals in age or knowledge, and learning about and meeting the expectations of supervisors and citizens in a "foreign" culture are all challenging, unpredictable, and downright painful. They also prove enlightening and essential when you grow in a chosen career, enabling a broader understanding of the surrounding environments and your role as a professional within them.

Do not avoid looking beyond your hometown or home state, or even beyond your side of the Mason-Dixon Line, career opportunities. There are some factors that deserve consideration when identified openings are sought after. For instance, learn how to prepare your application and inquiry packets to mitigate the likelihood of anti-outsider bias (courtesy "Ask a Manager", h/t Courtney Miller & Kelly Giles @TarHeelsInTransit) many employers subconsciously embrace.

Moving away at the start of a career does not mean you will always be far from "home." Sometimes, the experience gained translates to better opportunities down the road in the location from which you came. Also, one can find that new surroundings grow on them and soon feel as comfortable as those they knew prior to then. Relocation also tests our commitment to a given career and its relationship to those skills and passions we value most.

Achievement requires endurance and adaptability. Embracing change in geography with the same vigor you seek transformations in culture, technology, or politics serves as a great starting point, forging an extending attitude of pursuit toward professional excellence.