Building a Career Roadmap

Janice Chaka:

Hello and welcome to the Traveling Introvert. Today I want to talk about career advancement. The are many different ways to advance your Career, and there are many people who will tell you there is only one way or you have to do this, that, and the other. And there are many different ways because everyone gets to different stages in their career in different ways. There is no one way because we all come from different spaces, backgrounds, universities, not universities, different types of jobs. There is no one way. You'll never find a job where everyone's gone the exact same path at the exact same time with the exact same timing and money and all the rest of it. It just doesn't exist because there's so much diversity in the world.

Janice Chaka:

What I do wanna talk about is a couple of things that help. I'm not saying it's the only way, but at least a few things that you can think about, that you can do in a way that works for you to help advance your career. So and and advancing your career can also mean different things. It doesn't mean that you have to claw your way to the top and be CEO of the company you're working at. It could be that you do lateral moves where you get a broad experience of different things and do different projects, and it does generally demand a little bit more dedication to your day to day tasks. It calls for more strategic approach focusing both on personal and professional growth to kind of work your way through. So the first thing really is to figure out where you are right now, like assess your current situation. By assessing it and understanding it you get to evaluate your skills and your strengths and understand what you currently bring to the table.

Janice Chaka:

Also, identify areas for improvement. Now don't get me wrong. You can't improve in every area, and that's okay. But knowing where you might have opportunities to go and if that makes sense for what it is that you want to do moving forward is a really good place to get clarity. And then it helps give you more clarity on sort of your career goals and aspirations and making sure that what you're doing is helping you move in that direction and if not, tailoring your development plan to do so. Another thing, and I tell this to everyone that I coach, is having a solid professional network. Relationships. Networking, relationship building is how so many successful careers are built.

Janice Chaka:

Focus on building and maintaining relationships. These connections can provide invaluable support, advice, and opportunities and then leveraging your network effectively, remembering that giving back is as crucial as benefiting from it. And always, always, always be learning. Continually upskill and educate yourself. The importance of ongoing learning and development cannot be overstated enough, and it doesn't even have to be in your field. It could be in an adjacent field or totally different field, but just having the idea that you should be always learning something, something new, something different. Looking at things from a different perspective is invaluable, especially if you bring that then into the workplace. Staying updated on relevant skills or new technology is also helpful.

Janice Chaka:

And identify the knowledge and skills that enhance your marketability and devise a plan on how you're gonna work towards The, and it could involve enrolling in courses, obtaining certifications, seeking mentorship, or just sitting down and having a conversation with someone who is in that field And then, seeking and embracing constructive criticism. Growth is fueled by feedback. Value your feedback from managers, from peers, from mentors, from clients as it provides insights into your performance and try not to be sort of hurt by it and and take it personally. It highlights areas for improvement by actively seeking out this feedback and listening with an open mind and then incorporating it into your development plan, your willingness to adapt and improve will will be really useful and helpful moving forward. And, of course, demonstrate exceptional performance. Be good at your job. That also really, really helps. So incorporating these strategies in a way that works for you and drafting a personalized action plan for the next 3, 6, 12 months that can be changed and is flexible will help you move forward in your career.

Janice Chaka:

Thanks for listening. This is Janice at The dotcom helping you build your brand and get hired. Have a great rest of your week.