The Importance of Personal Development for Career Building and Promotion

October 30th, 2011

How does personal development affect you when it comes to promotions or climbing the career ladder in your working environment? Have you ever had thoughts when you have seen someone else favored over yourself or another who you thought better suited to the position, why them? What reasons have you claimed has stopped you climbing that path of promotion and building a career? What has been the difference between you getting that position? Have you missed the opportunity and looked to blame outside influences and think that people favor others over ourselves. Ever been guilty of using the sentence,’ I am not a suck up and that is why someone else gets the job and not me ‘. Ring any bells? What about the one, ‘ my boss just doesn’t like me ‘. How about ‘ they promote their friends so no one else ever gets a chance ‘. STOP right now. Blaming others will not change the situation or help you get what you want and feel you deserve. If you do feel that way, then truthfully you are actually working in the wrong environment and job for who you are and what your personality is.

Let us take a step back and look at the situation logically and rationally. Firstly to gain any kind of promotion we need to have improved ourselves in our current role. We need to have learned the role from front to back, side to side and inside and out. We must be an expert at what we do in what ever position that may be. Have you done that? Be honest, as you must learn to be honest with yourself in order for you to grow, develop and begin building your career and long-term future.

Secondly, knowing your job from all aspects isn’t enough, you also need to have grown as a human being also. What does that mean? Think of it like this. As you progress up any kind of working ladder, you are going to be given more and more responsibility, whether that be extra work load, being given more freedom to make bigger decisions. You are going to be in charge of people, you will have to lead them, encourage them, support them, guide them and become a mentor to them. You will be given direction from people above which you must then delegate to others in a manner that best moves everyone in that direction. You are going to become more accountable for your actions.

Third, you have to learn about others. It is important to know that as you progress everyone is a different person with unique character traits and temperaments, as such all will react in a different way. Some will need a firm kick up the derrière, others a quite word with a gentle arm round the shoulder.

Taking all of these into account, you must honestly and realistically know and understand just how important it is for you to be involved in your own personal development. Not just developing your skills in the job, but also in how you interact with others, how you react to situations and environments. Understanding the importance of personal growth in expanding your comfort zones and becoming more confident in who you are. Learning your strengths but also knowing your weaknesses. Improving your character and how you handle pressure and certain situation. Understanding that you may not always be liked by others and that sometimes you must make tough but ultimately fair decisions. All of these factors are important elements in personal development. Be honest with yourself, be realistic as well and your career will only ever move in one direction and that will not be backwards or down.

Posted in Career Management

6 Ways to Completely Change Your Career

October 26th, 2011

The dismal economic state has motivated people to change careers more than ever. Here, we present to you six strategies that can help you achieve your new-found career goals and excel beyond your current capabilities. Today, changing careers can be a rather tough challenge. Not only are there less jobs, but the competition is even more fierce and cut-throat. So, it may seem impossible to persuade a hiring manager or future employer to take a chance on you, especially if you have no experience in your chosen field. Do not give up, these 6 strategies may just give you the head start you need.

First, keep in mind how much competition you’re up against. Nowadays, it’s not uncommon for hiring personnel to go through stacks and stacks of resumes from possible applicants, just like you. A stack of 200 resumes is the norm. Employers are looking for candidates with specific criteria and expertise, not to mention the right experience in the field to back it all up. If your application doesn’t contain these standards, why should you make the cut? Before you decide on changing careers, try signing up with a temporary agency in the career of your choice. You may have to make a couple of sacrifices at this stage – in salary, relevance, etc but this step will give you the opportunity to prove to yourself you can do it and more importantly, get a foot in the door.

Secondly, be ready to market yourself. This means highlighting your other skills that aren’t totally related to the job specification. For example, things that you excel in that a different type of employer might be able to put to use. Sales, customer service, social media marketing, human resources, and management are all examples. Employers love to hire well-rounded candidates with transferable skills so the more you market your other specialties, the better!

Third, if you still feel at a disadvantage, maybe going back to school and taking courses in your weak spots will greatly help. This not only teaches you more about the business, but introduces you to a new environment, and people to help you get to where you want to be.

Fourth, always network at every given opportunity. Even if you know an agency or organization is not hiring, still make the effort to create rapport, and hand off your resume. Human interaction is always better over uploading countless resumes over the internet.

Fifth, if you’ve tried everything including big-companies and smaller ones, maybe it’s time to focus solely on smaller firms, including start-ups. While bigger companies may seem more enticing, the competition is rough, there is much more paperwork to be done, and your chances of getting hired are greatly shortchanged due to more rigid job descriptions. Starting off with smaller firms provides more flexibility and possibly more opportunity.

Lastly, the Sixth strategy we can offer is don’t give up. Knocking on more doors until you find the right one is key. We know it’s easier said than done but keep your spirits up and you shall find results. Find your strengths, know your weaknesses, and then support your weakness by enrolling in a top online college to help you be well-versed in the career you are interested in pursuing. Accredited higher education coupled with desire, ability to market yourself, and networking should give you a great head start in finding employment in a new career.

Posted in Career Change