Many times, I am asked ‘what are the key things I can do to take control of my own career’?  It is an interesting question and like anything there are several view on it.  I like to look at things from two points of view, technical and behavioural.

Technically the things you can do to manage your own career is to continue to learn, develop your skills and competencies, stay ahead of the game (whatever your game is) and make sure you have a clear understanding of where you can add value for those who could employ you or those you would want to work for.  This leads me onto the next step that most people do not seem to take.  Can you clearly articulate, in 30 seconds, what your value proposition is, your position statement?

 

Are you able to clearly explain to a stranger what you do (role),

where you do it (industry)

and what you do best (skills)?

 

If you can’t explain to someone what you do, you are asking them to decide for you and they with either get it wrong to some extent or just not bother.  Taking the time to ponder and define your value proposition makes communication clear and a broader group of people will be able to communicate that information on your behalf.  If people are clear what you do, it is more likely they will be able to connect you to work.

This brings me to the second part of the technical things you can do to manage your career.  Think about what you do in terms of achievements, not activities.  Most people can give you a job description of a role, most do not take the time to convert that to an outcome.  In my view, if you have done any job, it must have had some outcome, taking the time to recognise that, and keeping a record of it moving forward will really add value to managing your own career.  Remember, people will hire you on the basis of where they think you will add value to their business moving forward, and the best measure if this is what you have achieved in the past.

Finally, and I have left the biggest to last, the behavioural activity you can do that will add most value to managing your career is networking.  People with a broad network always have the most options in the workplace (provided the technical aspects are in place) I’ve often thought to myself, it’s not whether you can do the job, it whether you can sell it that counts’, and selling it means having a network.

And make sure you have a network outside of your workplace, internal networks are great if you’re advancing in the company, but once you leave that environment, people won’t know you and you’ll have to start from scratch.  In my view and experience, networking is the key to work and career mobility, all things being equal.

In summary

  • Make sure you can articulate your value proposition (if you don’t know it, no one else is going to do it for you)
  • Take note of your achievements and outcomes (don’t focus on the activity)
  • Develop a strong and wide network.

And if you are thinking about contracting or starting your own business, these things need to go on steroids.

For more information on how Career Life Transitions can support you contact us today (08) 6336 8620 or info@careerlife.net.au.