‘What do you want to do when you grow up?’ That’s the question we’re asked as children, yet often we find ourselves decades later, still not really knowing. We sometimes find ourselves going down a career path we didn’t expect, ending up in a job that doesn’t fulfill any of those dreams we had when we were young.
Some of us, on the other hand, are in the right industry but can’t seem to progress to the right role. Promotions only seem to happen to other people. We’re stuck.
Yet there is always a path from where you are right now to where you want to be: it is simply a matter of finding it, stepping on that path, and promising yourself that you won’t get off until the finish line.
This is a ‘No Excuses Anymore’ article. We often make resolutions every New Year and they quickly fall by the wayside as life gets in the way. You put off talking to your boss about that pay rise out of fear, and you justify working in that dead-end job for one more year to pay your mortgage.
The truth is, no-one else can do this but you. Developing your career is just too important to let slide. It doesn’t matter when you start in fact, it’s much better if you start right now.
How to develop your career
The planning stage: If you don’t know what your next step needs to be
- Get out a piece of paper- as big as you can find- and start putting thoughts down. Anything that comes into your head: possible job options, the skills you have, the things that are important to you, what makes you happy, things you have succeeded at in the past. See where things correlate.
- Talk to as many people as you can about their jobs- make it your mission to find out what they do.
- Look at career guides on the internet for inspiration.
- Do a personality aptitude test – Insights Discovery and Myers Briggs are tried and tested options.
Step 2: When you’ve decided what you want to do
- Research the exact skills you will need or talk to a relevant manager within that department in your current organisation.
- Write your CV in a way specifically focused to that job alone.
- Assess any contacts you already have that can help you.
- Build a LinkedIn profile specifically targeted at that industry, and gain as many connections as you can.
- Join forums, attend networking events and subscribe to industry publications. Be a person in the know, and when you know what you’re talking about, speak up.
- Find a mentor.
- Make a portfolio of your past successes, with a link to show potential department heads or employers.
- Don’t apply for unrelated jobs, but be open to ‘stepping stone’ jobs that lead in the right direction.
- Speak up! Schedule a meeting with your manager to talk about training opportunities and your future. It’s quite possible they don’t know that you’re looking for advancement.
- Actively seek out feedback. Find out where you can improve-there might be something holding you back that you don’t even know about. Be brave.
- Get to know the right people. Network and become a person of interest.
A few Other Hints…
Be open to the idea that you might have to go ‘backwards’ to go forwards. Sometimes that will mean taking a salary cut to find your way into the job of your dreams. If you can afford it- do it.
Make sure your career planning involves lots of mini-goals. Most people lose momentum with their goals because they have one huge one that seems long term and can be quite daunting. So break up your career plan into manageable and achievable milestones- and don’t forget to celebrate when you reach them.
Finally, whatever you do, don’t allow yourself to rule out things that you want because you’re not quite ready, or don’t have the exact skill set yet.
Hugh Laurie, the actor who plays the splendidly grumpy doctor from the TV series House once said, “It’s a terrible thing, I think, in life to wait until you’re ready. I have this feeling now that actually no one is ever ready to do anything. There is almost no such thing as ready. There is only now. And you may as well do it now. Generally speaking, now is as good a time as any.”
And if you’re not willing to take his word for it, perhaps billionaire Richard Branson will do.
He quite famously says about opportunities: ‘Just say yes- and learn how to do it later.’
Until next time
Julia
P.S. Do you want to know more about how to develop your career this year? Contact us
