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Goals first: foresight planning for your career development
Goals first: foresight planning for your career development
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by Talentese Team 24/04/2018
Career development requires short and long-term goals planning. After the preparation, you must be able to chart an actionable plan to achieve these goals or milestones. These methods can help you in multiple ways. Career plans and paths can help you decide which field you should work in, what classes you can opt for, which extracurricular activities and hobbies you should invest time and attention to, and how you should conduct your research. For fresh graduates, having career strategies defined early in life will also help in increasing focus towards set internships, externships, and jobs.
Foresight planning towards a career path also helps in building employee branding and sets you on the right track of the most promising careers for the future. Many people, fresh graduates and experienced, take active participation in career quizzes to keep themselves abreast of the changes in the economy and job market.
Planning involves clear outlines or milestones that are identifiable, quantifiable, and achievable in the short and long term career development. Let us look at some way in which you can define your career path through adequate foresight planning.
Annually revise your plans:
Almost all of us have thought about where we want to reach within a set number of years. This is usually part of the goal-setting process that each person does at the start or end of the year. We all want to be seen working for the most awarded organizations and have the most promising careers for the future. Since you probably schedule annual visits to the doctor, get a dental checkup, and make New Year resolutions, you should also revise your career goals and plans annually as well. Schedule some time for yourself and focus on your career path. Reviewing the career path every year helps keep constant touch with your milestones and can also help you stay motivated throughout the year.
Scheduling an annual revision of your career plan will also ensure that you can plan for any uncertainties, distractions, pitfalls, and difficulties that you might face in the coming year. Knowing these issues will help in preparing for them in advance and enable you to take appropriate steps. You will also be able to steer your career towards the way you envision it and also work on your employee branding.
Be aware of your needs and wants:
Change is the only constant in life. Just like people and circumstances, our needs and wants are also subject to change. The same is the case with our individual and family likes and dislikes. This could also pertain to your job. After being in the same position for a few years, there is a chance that you might start feeling inadequate or bored. This is a signal for change. You might not have calculated this move early on, but would have to now. Attend a career quiz and speak with a guidance counselor if you require assistance.
The best way to tackle this is to make columns of your wants and needs and your likes and dislikes. Once you are ready with the figures, statistics, and changes you might want to see, you should compare your columns with your current career. If your job and your career path still compare favourably with the likes and wants columns, then you should stay on your current track. However, is this is not the case, and you find similarities with the dislikes column, you should start searching for newer opportunities and jobs.
Put your career path on paper:
Most people only think of their career path and presume they will be able to recall it at a later date. With so much stress, so many distractions, and constant inflow of information, remembering every small detail of the career path can be next to impossible. Chart your career development and career strategies on paper and store this information for later use. You can also make spreadsheets on your computer for easier access to your career path and plan.
Making milestone markers that are viewable will help you achieve them faster. You could also set quarterly reminders for the same. If you would like to share your career plan, you could set an appointment with a career guidance counselor or the Human Resources Manager of your company. They would be able to help and guide you through any changes that you might need to achieve your personal career goals.
Decide the final goal in your career development:
Usually, this decision is a long-term goal that requires almost 20 to 30 years of hard work and perseverance. While counselors and mentors might help you with multiple options to your goals, you must be firm about where you would like to reach. Speak to friends, family, spouses, partners, and take their insight on your skills sets, strengths and weaknesses, and make a career plan for improvements you need to make. Start adding information and knowledge to your current learning so that you can achieve your end goal. Milestone career markers should help you focus and concentrate on your goals. Always have quantifiable purposes so that it becomes easier to identify and determine which way you would like your career path to go. Invest in additional educational courses and certificates to increase your knowledge base. Always be on the lookout for avenues that can improve your career development opportunities. Staying satisfied and motivated at work will help you achieve your career goals in lesser time with foresight planning.
by Talentese Team 24/04/2018
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