As we enter into a new year and a new decade, many of us are focusing on our goals. For some, that might mean your career. Perhaps you are keen to make some changes this year, to climb the ladder or to improve your prospects. With your personal career goals in mind, today we want to share with you 4 ways to give your career a boost.
Set yourself a goal
The very first thing that you will need to do is to set yourself a goal.
Your goal needs to be clear, it needs to be specific and it needs to excite you. You are only going to be driven and determined enough to reach it if you are excited by the prospect of achieving it.
You might want to attain a certain position by the end of the year, you might want to have mastered a certain skill within six months or perhaps you want a certain amount of recognition within your role.
Whatever you opt to aim for, ensure that it is a clear and specific goal. This will help you to plan to achieve it and it will mean that you will know when you have reached it. For example, attaining a certain position is specific, whereas doing better is a difficult goal to measure. You need to measure it so that you can celebrate it and set yourself the next goal.
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Find yourself a mentor
When you are clear on what you are hoping to achieve, it can be beneficial to find yourself a mentor.
Take a look at the skills or attitudes that you need to adopt within the workplace and then consider your options for a potential mentor. You will need to consider the individual’s skills, experience, role and their personality. It can be helpful to select someone with a similar working style to you as it will be easy to work with them, but do not discount those with different outlooks. They can often bring something completely new to the table and they can help you to see things from different perspectives.
Approach them with your proposal, outlining what you hope to get from being mentored from them and your expectations. Most people will be happy to support a colleague when they can see that it has been thoroughly thought out.
Improve your skill set
It stands to reason that if you are looking to boost your career and prospects, you are going to need to further develop your own abilities within the workplace.
If you do not have meetings regularly scheduled in, request to have one with your line manager to discuss your current position and any development opportunities. This will give you the opportunity to make your manager aware that you are keen to advance your career and take on extra responsibilities. It will demonstrate to them that you are committed to your career and they should be able to arrange upskilling sessions and training courses for you to attend.
You could opt to undertake further learning and further qualifications to improve and widen the job opportunities that are available to you. These will serve to add extra strings to your bow, but do ensure that they are likely to enhance your prospects before you enroll.
Go that extra mile
In order for you to succeed in any place, you will need to go that extra mile. This applies to practically everything that you do, and it is often ingrained in the attitudes of those people that do advance their careers quickly. Make this your mantra and make this your year of going that extra mile.
In every role that you perform, do it to the best of your ability and seek ways that it could be further improved. You might spot a new way of doing something that makes your team more efficient or able to offer a better service. Actively look for these possibilities and bring them to the attention of relevant people.
Show that you are committed and keen by always arriving to work and meetings on time, with a positive and professional attitude. Offer to come in early or work late if you have a big project on the go, support other colleagues in their work and demonstrate that you are a team player.
Use your own time productively, make the most of your working lunch, fully prepare for meetings and performance reviews and show that you are ready to take on extra responsibility.
You do not need to ‘live’ the job, but ensure that you give your best to it when you are working and are supportive and considerate of your team.
