Look before you make the career leap, experts advise
09/05/2008
While many people use the New Year to reflect on their career, they should avoid making a hasty or flippant decision at this time, a career management expert has warned.
Bridget Beattie, Regional General Manager of Right Management, a leading HR consulting company, said employees should take the time to consider their unique strengths, skills, and interests to ensure they are doing what they do best, but warned against making impulsive career decisions.
- At this time of year, while many people resolve to achieve success and personal satisfaction in their careers, employees must be sure not to make impulsive, snap decisions based on only one or two factors - such as a recent disagreement with your manager, or a smaller-than-anticipated raise or bonus.
- Decisions about whether to change jobs or careers need to be based on a complete picture, and not just one incident. The grass isn't always greener," she said.
Ms Beattie recommends employees ask themselves some tough questions to help evaluate career satisfaction and success:
- Assess your level of satisfaction. Consider how much you enjoy the work you do, your career opportunities, and the culture of the organisation. If you're not happy in your role or with your employer, a job change may be something to consider. You may want to examine changing industries, job functions, or consider getting the education you need to do this.
- Assess your skills and abilities. Are you doing what you do best? Take a look at your skills, abilities and interests, and see if they are aligned with your current role. People whose skills, abilities, and interests are at their highest perform at the top of their games, and get the most satisfaction out of the work they do.
- Assess your employer's financial outlook. It is important to consider how well your employer is performing financially, and what the economic future looks like. Are sales, market share, and head count increasing or decreasing? Is your employer an innovator in its field and competitive in its industry.
- Assess your professional development opportunities. Are you satisfied with your current career path? Has your career been moving forward, laterally, standing still, or are you being bypassed for promotions and choice assignments?
- Assess your career net worth. "Career net worth is the value the market places on your unique abilities and knowledge," Ms Beattie said. Continually building your skills, knowledge and technical expertise creates demand, keeps you competitive, and generates the highest career net worth.
Assess your opportunities for 2008. In this dynamic, global market, it is critical to be able to effectively manage changes. Don't neglect actively building and maintaining your network. Great places to make new networking contacts include people from both, your personal and professional lives, trade and industry groups, and community organizations. Keep in touch regularly to strengthen those relationships.
With this focus, you'll be prepared to consider ways you can better leverage your talents and identify career paths - whether within your current organization, or with another employer - and then begin to map a plan of action," Ms Beattie said.
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