11 Things You Can Do to Further Your Career  

by Rick Zabor    you can read other article at Other Articles

Career development takes effort and planning. The Enterprise IT marketplace is fast changing from both a technology and software solutions perspective. If you hope to be successful long term in this kind of a marketplace you need to focus on the business solutions rather than the technology. Today it's valuable to be a Peoplesoft expert but long term it's more important to develop your solutions expertise in HCM, Financials, Portals, SCM, CRM and the like.

 

Below is a list of things that you can do today to be further ahead in your career 12 months from now.  The most successful Professionals that I've known over the past 17 years as a Search Consultant have two traits. They are organized, and they are motivated. Create a Career Notebook with tabs that will make it easier to find and follow up on your work.

 

Your Inventory

1. Make a Likes/ Dislikes Inventory. List what you like and dislike about your current and past positions. Grab a copy of your resume and for each position list your likes and dislikes. Keep the likes and dislikes restricted to job activities and people types.  When it comes to making future career choices always review the opportunity with respect to your likes and dislikes inventory and you will make a better career decision.

 

2. Create your Skills and Accomplishment Inventory. From your resume make a list of your accomplishments and  marketable skills. Most resumes are not written with a full comprehension of accomplishment and marketable skills so this will take an effort  ( see Writing a Resume to Further Your Career  ).  This exercise will allow you to see value “holes” in your career. Once you've identified these holes you'll be more aware of  any opportunities that will help you to fill them.

 

3. Review and Rewrite your Resume on Your Birthday. It's a good idea to keep your resume up to date and use it as a working career document. A resume written in a Performance Based style with an accurate skills inventory will be helpful for identifying and winning appropriate career opportunities and your best career tool. Don't wait for your birthday to get your resume up to date! But if your resume is outdated consider giving yourself the career gift of a well written resume.

  

Your Possibilities

4. Dream about YOUR future. Label a tab in your notebook as “Possibilities”. Keeping a short journal of the direction you might see your career heading is also a useful tool. Once you have an idea of your possibilities you can work to make the reality. What are your possibilities for your career in 5 years, 10 years, 15 years, or more from now?  Do some freethinking. Do you see yourself traveling?  Making more money?  Managing others?  Doing research?  Managing projects, writing programs, troubleshooting, providing support? You can learn more about any future position by reading job boards and more importantly by talking to people.  If you want to be a Project Manager or Director seek one out and chat with her about her work. You can find all sorts of willing participants at professional organizations or conventions. Seek them out and find out what they do and why. How did they get into the position? What direction do they think they will take next?  The greatest complement that you can give to someone is by showing interest in them. If you run into someone who is hard to speak with just be patient or find someone else to interview. If you chat with someone keep their contact info as you'll want to include them as part of your Professional network.

  

Do the Work

5. Find a mentor. Do you know someone at work who your admire and respect?  Could they be a mentor for you? A mentor can provide you with a shortcut to furthering your career. Typically mentors will be more accomplished in their careers and should be along a similar path that you wish to take.  Can't find someone at work,  then look for someone at a professional organization or possibly on a mentor website or a forum on line.  Professional associations often organize a mentoring program. If you are a member and yours association doesn’t have a mentoring program then start one! Mentors can help you develop your career faster but choose a mentor wisely. A mentor can provide advice and important connections but you'll still have the responsibility of making your own career decisions.  Here are some helpful links.

http://www.mentornet.net/

http://www.mentoringgroup.com/

http://www.advancementoring.com/

  

6. Be a mentor.  Mentoring someone is a powerful way to help someone make better career decisions and accelerate their careers. Giving to others is the best way to grow your own Professional Network and mentoring can pay huge returns in the future. Helping others with their careers will force you into deeper career introspection. 

 

7. Start, Build, Grow or Work your Professional Network. Start thinking about ways to build your professional network. There is no substitute for doing the work of building and working your professional network. Start by looking for opportunities to help others. Many job hunters start to build their networks only when they are seeking new employment. While that activity may bear fruit in the early stages it is the mature network that offers the greatest career harvest. Seek and build RELATIONSHIPS by helping others first. Get to know and help your fellow workers as best you can thoughout their careers. Keep their contact info handy and contact them on a regular basis. What may seem like chitchat is important to developing professional relationships.  Some online networking products such as www.linkedin.com may also be helpful.

 

8. Join a Professional Organization. Think about participating in a professional organization. A Professional organization may be the best place to identify and develop new contacts, find a mentor, further your understanding of choices, and help keep current in the marketplace. Think of your membership as an extension of your education and as an investment in your career. Become an active participant and volunteer whenever you can. If you develop a reputation as being able to deliver when called upon, you will be sought out. 

 

9. Help a Recruiter. Identify and build a relationship with the professional recruiter and gain from their market knowledge. The next time a recruiter calls you try to help with a referral but then ask some of the follow questions:

1.How can I help you?

2.What are the most valued current skills?

3.What options do I have to help me get to my next position xxxxx?

4.Any comments on my resume?

 

An accomplished recruiter focused in your marketplace can prove to be an invaluable resource to you and your career. He is familiar with success stories and career failures. He can also be a powerful connection your professional network, a potential mentor, can add value to your resume, and knows what is of value in today's marketplace. When asked specific questions he will typically take the time to help you. You'll always get a better response if you offer to help him first.

 

10. Develop your marketplace.  Do you plan on staying in one location for the duration of your career? Are you interested in relocating to a specific area? Start to develop a list of the companies in your locale and you will be prepared for the future. Try to identify companies who may value your current and future skill set.  One way to do this is to search job boards for local postings of positions requiring your skill set. Keep a running list of the companies, the position titles, the compensation ranges and any contact info. Over time you will develop a good potential marketplace for yourself. You can do more by building your professional network consisting of professionals from those companies.

 

11. Make a name for yourself (Subtly).  We all know people who have reached higher positions and who have made a name for themselves by stepping on other's toes.  THIS IS NOT WHAT I RECOMMEND. Make a name for yourself by striving for excellence in everything you do (within time constraints), being proactive in your efforts to deliver results of market valued activities, making good business decisions, and  helping others. Career development is all about accomplishment of the right tasks. Make a list of the  accomplishments that you feel are valuable for getting you to the next level in your career and plan to reach them.

 

These are only some suggestions to help you progress in your career. I am interested in your comments and suggestions. You can reach me at zabor@peoplestaff.com.

 

Rick Zabor helps hiring managers write Performance Based job descriptions and candidates write Performance Based resumes. He is interested in your comments and suggestions. You can reach him at zabor@peoplestaff.com.

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