Career Management Alliance Blog

November is National Career Development Month What an excellent month to spend some time to assess if your career is on track. This year’s theme is "Bridges to a Brighter Future: Inspire Your Career - Empower Your Lives!" Ask yourself the following questions: Is my career satisfying or am I ready to find a better fit? Am I thinking of jumping ship and working for another company? Do I want to advance to the next level? Or maybe I want to develop your leadership skills. Below are some tips to help you with your career development. Want a More Satisfying Career? If you’re in a career that isn’t satisfying anymore, consider doing a thorough self-assessment to find a better fit. Start by taking a look at your motivated skills, i.e., those things you are good at and enjoy doing. Also consider your interests, work values, personality style, lifestyle, and financial needs. Each of these components are like pieces of the puzzle. If you don’t consider each of these areas, you may find yourself in the same boat a few years down the line. Jump-Start Your Job Search Looking for a job and not seeing any results? Be creative and think ‘outside the box.’ Jump-start your job search by developing a marketing campaign utilizing several different strategies- networking, direct contact, targeted mailings, online postings, and the classifieds- to land the job you want. Fact: 85 percent of people stay unemployed due to lack of job search activity. If you’re merely posting your resume online, that’s not enough! Consider spending 35-40 hours in your job search if you’re unemployed and at least 15 if you are employed. Anything less and you won’t be able to gain momentum, which will leave you frustrated- and without a new job. Looking to Advance? Is your career stagnant? Are you looking to advance, but spinning your wheels? Perhaps a self-assessment is in order. To move forward in your career, you need to do more than just show up. Ask yourself the following questions: - Am I a positive person? - Do I fit in at work, i.e., do people like me? - Do I volunteer to serve on projects? - Am I a self-starter? - Do people come to me for suggestions? - Do I get along well with my boss? - Is my company doing well? If you answered "yes" to all of the above questions, you are most likely promotable. If you couldn't answer "yes" to every question, determine what you need to do to correct the situation. Developing Your Leadership Skills The following leadership tips are from Amy Coulter, vice president and founder, of Minneapolis-based VisionShare Inc. People want to be part of a winning team. A good leader inspires a group rather than pushes or controls them into the needed results. What are those things you can do that will spell SUCCESS for your team? Here are concrete ideas that you can implement immediately to help your team move forward: 1) SHARE your vision. 2) UNHOOK your ego from the results. 3) CHEER the team on. 4) CONNECT with your team on a human level. 5) ENDURE in spite of obstacles. 6) SUSTAIN the excitement by making it FUN. 7) SHOWCASE your success. Using these simple ideas, you can make a difference in your company’s leadership – no matter where you sit in the organization! When you have folks lining up at your office to see if they can be part of your team, you will know that your leadership has become a beacon for others in the organization to follow. I hope you're inspired to develop your career, whether it's finding a more satisfying career, a different job, advancing to the next level, or strengthening your leadership skills. Don't forget- you're worth it! Print This Post

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