How long-term is your career plan? Having an idea of where you are heading and what you are working towards is important. While it is not uncommon to have a vague plan for the future, it is not something that you can leave to chance. Without looking ahead, you are at risk of losing motivation, making choices that won’t support your ambitions further down the line and ultimately getting stuck in a job rut. Career planning can help with this and provide a broad framework to get you to your goal.
Find Your Passion
Without understanding your own goals, and the reasons for them, you may struggle to make career decisions. You don’t need to start with a specific job title in mind. Instead, think broadly about the factors that influence you and what you enjoy. For example, it could be communicating with people or leading others or improving lives. Think of these as the building blocks. Then, connect these passions with your skill set – what you are good at. This will steer you towards a job or educational path that fits well with your natural talents. You may find that you want to set up a business of your own or searching out degrees that combine business and technology skills.
Develop Transferable Skills
Every employer is on the lookout for transferable skills. Generic qualities include operating under pressure, time management, teamwork and negotiating with others. Most interviewers will ask you to demonstrate these competencies by giving an example of a time when you used those skills successfully. You can use the STAR model to answer these questions.
Look for Opportunities
Once you have a clearer picture of what you’d like to do, it’s the ideal time to match this to opportunities. It doesn’t have to be a job that fits the description perfectly. You may find a volunteer opportunity that will give you some experience. Or perhaps working for an animal charity if you’re aiming to be a veterinary surgeon. If you interests fall within marketing, consider helping small local businesses develop a marketing plan. If you’re currently working, speak to your manager about opportunities on other projects which may help you to develop other skills.
Breaking down your milestones into small, achievable steps is the key to building momentum. You may also want to seek out a mentor at work. The right person can help you to develop and stretch your abilities. Make your long-term goals reachable through a series of smaller steps, and you’ll be ticking things off your list before you know it.
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