At the top of their game, successful misfits are what “legends are made of”*. This is how Razor Magazine described its list of 25 Mavericks, which included: the rock-and-roll playwright, Sam Shepard; the resurrector of the musical, Baz Luhrmann; and airline and cola businessman, Richard Branson; each of whom had been a misfit in their chosen field but used their misfit qualities to succeed.
As an award-winning trainer, executive coach and published author, I have used my own story and those of my clients to create a winning strategy for succeeding in the workplace. I have worked with individuals at all levels of an organization—from senior executives earning seven-figure salaries to unskilled factory workers working third-shift. And my industry experience is just as broad. I have helped misfits become successful misfits at Hollywood studios, fast-food joints, and religious orders.
Becoming a successful misfit consists of 7 basic steps: Acknowledging that you are a misfit at work; Understanding how you can become a successful misfit; Accepting and celebrating your misfit status; Pinpointing your unique misfit qualities; Marketing your unique excellence to the appropriate employer, client or customer; Overcoming barriers to success; and Becoming a long-term successful misfit.
Using this principles I went from misfit to successful misfit. I celebrated my uniqueness and now have a loving family after years of broken relationships, an abundant income and work that serves myself and others.
*Razor Magazine – March 2003 “25 Mavericks of the Year”
David Couper is an executive career coach, training and organizational design specialist, and writer who for the last twenty years has worked in Europe, Asia, and in the USA with major organizations including the BBC, Fuji Television, Sony, and Warner Bros.
He has coached writers, actors, producers and executives at all levels; developed large scale training and organizational development programs for leadership and employees; and written award-winning education and training courses. TelCon awarded his training program, about the impact of the Internet, “Best Program Produced by a Private Network in the USA”. He also won a national award for a 1000-person educational seminar he developed.
David has published seven books. His works on interpersonal skills, counseling in the workplace, and management issues (published by Connaught, Gower, HRD Press, Longman, Macmillan/Pearson Publishing, Oxford University Press) have been translated into Swedish, Polish, and Danish, and published in the UK and the USA.
David has a degree in Communication, a postgraduate qualification in education, is certified in a number of training technologies, and is pursuing a Masters in Psychology. He is a member of the American Society of Training and Development, Writers Guild and the British Academy of Film and Television, where he is on the Education Committee.
He has dual US/UK citizenship and speaks French and Japanese.