![[24]7.ai Employee](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Rahman.png)
12/08/2019
There’s no doubt about it, navigating your career path can be complex. Whether you’re looking for a job straight outta college, or trying to jump on the right opportunities (even if that means accepting a job you don’t really want), there’s never a shortage of questions that come up when you’re tackling something for the first time. While your friends can offer awesome advice, the top-notch inputs come from within. After all, job satisfaction means different things to different people, and job satisfaction is key.
There are thousands of things that are bound to play on your mind from tiny little worries like what to wear, to huge things like how well you’ll get on with your colleagues and boss.
Once you’ve figured out what just happened, you can start assessing the current situation. What skill sets do you offer? What’s your competitive advantage? How’s the job market? Who within your network may be of assistance in pursuing your next career move? What does your financial situation look like? How long do you think it will take to find another job? Will you need to adjust your lifestyle to accommodate a career transition? Asking these essential questions will help you assess your current position and immediate needs. Identifying the resources that either a) you’ll need to move forward, or b) you have at your disposal, can alleviate the stress associated with career setbacks.
My first job was in a very different field. It allowed a flexible work environment that I needed at the time. Career goals – just like personal goals – have a way of evolving with time and experience. Most of the time in our career, we re-evaluate and tweak our career plans!
Once you’ve taken time to figure out WTH happened, assessed your resource situation, and re-evaluated your career goals, it’s time to identify a few options that will bring you closer to your ideal career. Everyone’s career action plan will be a little different, as everyone’s career journey is a little different. Addressing the career move process with strategy, coupled with leveraging available career resources, can help you bag an awesome opportunity.
It seems like the answer to this should be “Yes”, but that would be succumbing to a siren song.
The truth is that there are many things that define our career success, depending on what we value – money, family, time, travel, learning, opportunity, growth, etc.
