Planning for Career Success 11 Tips for a Fruitful and Satisfying Career By Dawn Rosenberg McKay Who wants career success? You do, of course. Your career may be the most important thing in your life ... or it may not be. Theres no arguing, though, that it certainly is a significant part of it. We spend at least 40 hours at work each week. Thats a lot of time! In addition to paying the rent and putting food on the table, your career should be fulfilling. Following these 11 tips will help you make sure it is. Choose Your Occupation Wisely: Before you decide to pursue any career, ask yourself this question: Can I see myself doing this all day, everyday, for many years? Life is too short to spend it wishing you were doing something other than what your are. Dont Let Anyone Tell You What Choice is Best for You: Ignore those who say, Pick this field because it has lots of opportunities right now, You will make loads of money so it doesnt matter if you hate your job and I like this career and therefore you will too. Your career choice is a personal decision and it is one that will have a significant effect on your life for many years. Oh, and by the way, the relationship between earnings and job satisfaction is minimal. Measure Your Own Success: How do you define success? Is it the size of your paycheck or having the corner office? Is it the feeling you get when you know you did a great job on a project (praise from the boss doesnt hurt) or the one you get when you know you helped someone? Perhaps you feel successful after putting in a day at work and coming home at a reasonable hour to spend time with your family. Since everyone measures success differently, only you can determine what it means to you. Your satisfaction with your career is strongly linked to how successfully you feel you have met your own, and not anyone elses, definition of it. Dont Be Afraid to Ask for Help: As much as you think you know, you dont know it all. There are people who have more experience than you do and with that experience comes knowledge. In order to have access to that knowledge, make sure your network is filled with contacts other than your peers. More experienced contacts can help you with things like learning more about an occupation you are considering, getting the lowdown on an employer before a job interview or solving a problem at work. Always Acknowledge People Who Help You: It may sound simple, but its truly a significant gesture: always thank those who offer you assistance. Whether someone gives you five minutes of his time or an introduction to a potential employer, its important you let him know that what he did meant something to you. And when that person or another needs help, you can return the favor. Consider it good karma. Own Your Mistakes: You know what they say about mistakes. Everybody makes them and you are no exception. Of course you will do what you can to avoid making a serious error, but sometimes they happen anyway. While your instinct may be to run away and hide, that is actually the worse thing you can do. Admitting your error, finding a way to fix it or at least taking an action that lessens its effects, will help restore your reputation. Be Your Own Cheerleader: Root for yourself because if you arent your own biggest fan, who will be? Take note of and pride in all your successes and positive attributes. Dont wait for someone else to tell you job well done! Reflecting on your own achievements will spur you on to accomplish even greater ones. Dont Beat Yourself Up: From time to time a little voice inside your head might whisper (hopefully not shout) that you arent good enough or smart enough. Tell it to shut up! Unfortunately there will be plenty of people quite willing to bring you down. Dont do it to yourself. When you make a mistake, admit it, fix it and move on. If you are missing a skill or have some other shortcoming, take whatever measures necessary to improve. Never Feel Like You Are Stuck: No matter how careful you were about choosing the right career, at some point you may become disheartened with it. Give yourself permission to explore other options. You will probably be able to come up with a bunch of reasons not to, but remember the first tip about life being too short to spend it wishing you were doing something else? The older you get, the more you will come to believe it. Lose the Negative Attitude: For some people, every silver lining has a cloud. They see only the negative side of things, always finding something to complain about. Dont be that person. You will bring yourself down and you will bring others down with you. A negative attitude saps yours and everyone elses energy. Thats not to say you should ignore problems. Instead look for ways to fix them. Listen More Than You Speak: You can learn a lot by listening ... and miss a lot if you dont. Whether your boss is explaining a project to you or telling you about his weekend, it is important that you understand what he is saying. Careful listening will keep you from misunderstanding instructions and will help you build rapport with others. If you listened carefully to your bosss story about his hiking expedition, you may discover that you have a love of this activity in common. Who knew? Source: careerplanning.about/od/workplacesurvival/tp/Planning-For-Career-Success.htm?nl=1
Posted on: Thu, 16 Jan 2014 03:57:18 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015