Now that 2016 is here, it’s time to start fresh in terms of your career. The good news is that you have just as great a chance at creating your career plan and building a dream career as everyone else. The bad news is that you need to get motivated and start planning now.
Let’s start with a vision of your career and what you want it to look like. Get a notebook and pen and get ready to design your career vision board!
If you are currently employed, write down 5 things you like about your current job. Then write 5 things you like about your current employer. What are the things that you wrote down and how much do they matter to you? Write from one to five, with one being the top important value and five being the least. Now you have a pretty good idea of what engages you in your career.
Now, let’s take a look at your current work-related strengths and weaknesses. Move to another section of your notebook and start writing your top 10 strengths and abilities. Think about things like: customer service, sales, project management, time management, etc. Then also list your other traits that are considered to be strengths like: outgoing personality, able to work well under stress, natural leadership ability, friendly, kind, easily build rapport with others, etc.
Next, you will make a list of your personal and professional goals for the year. This could be things like learning new skills, taking a college class to earn a degree, participating in your company sponsored training program, getting fit, eating healthier, saying “no” more often to increase work life balance, and more. These elements form the foundation of where your career will fit.
Head for a computer and take a few personality and career assessments. You may also be able to take these at your local temp staffing agency. Use this to identify if you are on the right career path and if you need to make some changes in the coming months.
Now, it’s time to develop some short term and long term goals for your career. Using all of the above information, start deciding what work tasks are most aligned with your personal values and your skills. If there are tasks you absolutely hate doing, try to ask yourself why. Map out the next 12 months, breaking down goals by the week. Baby steps will get you there.
Set up a meeting with your supervisor to discuss your career goals and how you can achieve them with the company support. If your company cares about your success, they will help you. If not, then move on to finding a better career opportunity where you can shine. A temporary to perm job can be just the ticket to long term career learning and growth.
