Looking for Ways to Advance Your Career? It's Time for a Career Check-Up!
By Robin Ryan
Worried about your job security? Unhappy with your current
position? Hoping to get a raise or promotion - It's time to review
your career management strategies to be sure you are in top form to
move up or on.
In today's changing workplace, the average worker will hold more
than 11 jobs during their working lifetime. Since career management
is your responsibility, learn where you stand with this brief
check-up.
Have you established your career
identity? Your professional reputation - what other
bosses, workers and associates think about you -- is more important
than your resume. It's others who decide your fate when it comes to
raises, promotions or determining who to hire for a new position,
so this year work on building on your strengths - the natural
talents you excel in. Results from an exclusive CEO survey we
conducted advise people to create a reputation of being very good
at something (i.e. writing, sales, designing, client relations,
etc.) to advance in the workplace and insure lifetime career
success. Foster your growth by networking, the top executives
advised, both internally -- within your company -- and with peers
in associations and professional groups. Networking is the best way
to get noticed and insure a future with many career opportunities
being sent your way.
What new skills will you pick up this
year? "Life-long learning is essential to keep
yourself marketable", recommends CEO and "How to Work Smart" author
Melinda Howard Erickson. If more education isn't in your plans, it
may need to be. Employers demand highly productive workers that
bring a contemporary skill set. You need to continuously add to the
skills you can sell to an employer. Too many workers let this extra
effort slide, only to see promotions go to other, better trained
and more adaptable workers. If you are job hunting, you need to be
able to jump back into the workplace with marketable skills
employers want. Important ones you need to perfect are technical
and computer skills, good writing and public speaking proficiency,
leadership competence, sales expertise, negotiating talent and the
ability to manage budgets. These particularly valued in today's
workplace.
Did you advance your technical
competence? Employers want you to improve your job
knowledge. To do so, take courses in your field offered by
associations, colleges, and e-learning training programs. Read
trade journals, keep up on trends, industry changes, and advances.
Doing so makes you a more desirable employee to retain or hire.
Join a professional organization. They provide necessary education
and resources to keep you current in your field. Through active
participation you'll develop an important network of contacts.
These people can become mini-mentors, offering guidance when you
face work problems, share new ideas and advice, helping you to
perform better on the job.
Are you ready when opportunity
knocks? Is your resume updated so you can send it
to a potential employer on a moment's notice? HR Manager Melinda
Combs, who has hired hundreds of professionals, revealed that HR
offices sort resumes with a quick 15 seconds glance to determine if
they should take a closer look, and eliminate 80% or more. Resumes
get noticed when you describe specific results and accomplishments.
Note what you have increased or decreased, how you saved money, and
contributed to productivity and the bottomline. By adding a Summary
of Qualifications section, with five to six sentences that
highlight your experience and top selling points to do the job, you
will stand out.
