The new year is on the horizon. As a result, many professionals reflect on their careers, looking for opportunities to grow and advance.
Luckily, there are steps you can take today to set yourself up for career success in 2021. If you don’t know where to begin, here are five approaches that can make a world of difference.
1. Set Small, Defined, Achievable Goals
One of the biggest issues with New Year’s resolutions is that they tend to be large and ambiguous. As a result, figuring out how to accomplish them is incredibly daunting, causing many to abandon their resolutions within a few weeks or months.
However, by using a different approach, you can use goals to boost your career. Choose small, achievable objectives. For example, you may want to take a class to enhance one of your skills or update your resume in preparation for a job search.
Additionally, make them highly defined and assign a deadline. Identify the exact class you want to take and note precisely when your new resume needs to be ready. That way, your goals are focused and achievable.
2. Request the Right Kind of Feedback
While asking for what may amount to constructive criticism is hard, it is a powerful move. By asking your manager for insights into how you can improve, you find out about perceived shortcomings. But this also empowers you to improve in areas your manager views as important, and that can lead to career-boosting change.
3. Track Your Accomplishments
When you want to land a new job or a promotion, you need to be able to speak about your achievements confidently. The issue is, over time, it can be hard to remember what you’ve accomplished.
Spend some time reflecting on the past year and identify moments you shined. Then, record as many details as possible, and gather examples of your contributions if you can.
As you move forward, make tracking your accomplishments part of your routine. By doing so, you’ll have a list you can refer to, ensuring you have the details available when you need them.
4. Stay Engaged in Your Industry or Field
Most industries and fields change frequently. If you want to stay ahead of the curve, you need to monitor new happenings, emerging technologies, and evolving best practices.
If you do, you can identify trends that may benefit your career. For example, you may discover the skills you’ll need to excel in the world of tomorrow, today, allowing you to acquire them ahead of others in your field or industry.
5. Keep Networking
A strong network is a powerful career tool. However, to keep it in the best shape possible, you have to work at it. Reach out to interesting professionals to connect. Touch base with existing members of your network often. While it takes energy, it’s usually time well spent.
Ultimately, each of the five approaches above can help you improve your career before the new year. If you’d like to learn more about how you can make 2021 your best year yet, the staff at CPS Recruitment can help. Contact us today.