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Personal Advancement

Set SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely) goals and create a road map to your destination

Add career goals to your resolutions

You make the same resolutions each year: you're going to eat healthier, drop a few pounds, exercise more, quit smoking, live a more balanced lifestyle. But have you ever considered how career resolutions could impact everything from how much you earn to your sense of satisfaction?

LINDA WHITE

[ 2006-01-11 ]

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Too often, we spend more time planning a summer vacation than we do planning our careers, says Cecile Peterkin of Cosmic Coaching Centre in Toronto. "We never stop to think that we have to plan our careers in order to achieve our goals," she says.

"People have this humongous amount of talent, but are settling for mediocrity instead of celebrating life and living big. Living big doesn't have to mean a big car and a big house. It's about being creative with your life and enjoying life."

The first step to setting career resolutions is to reflect back on the past year and identify what you enjoyed doing, what you would like to continue doing and what you want to change. "Look at your satisfiers and dissatisfiers," Peterkin says. "Think about a project you completed, for example. Perhaps you liked the strategic planning. What didn't you like? What can you change?"

Given the amount of time you spend at your job and how it impacts the rest of your life, there are many benefits to setting attainable goals. "You become happier. As you switch from resentment, you seek out opportunity or opportunities become more available," Peterkin says. "If you decide to switch careers and you have a plan, you don't end up in the same position somewhere else."

She encourages you to set SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely) goals and create a road map to your destination. "You don't jump in a car and drive to Alberta if you've never been there before. Planning increases your chances of reaching your destination. As you learn things along the way, you can alter your map."

That plan should include assessing your current performance and skill set. "Assess where you want to go by the end of the year," says Ross Macpherson of Your Career Quest in Whitby.

Your resolution doesn't have to be finding a new job or career. "It could be improving your skill sets that make you more valuable to a company and increases your marketability when you decide to go. You can increase your skills through a course, certification or an MBA," Macpherson says.

"It could be signing up for a project you may not be considered for and asking to take on some additional responsibilities, such as public speaking."

Too often, people don't start managing their careers until an opportunity comes along or until they're forced into a corner. "They often put their resume together in a rushed, just-in-time approach," Macpherson says. He believes you should do something to forward your career each week.

"Break your goals down into smaller, digestible chunks. Most people drop their New Year's resolutions by February and forget about them altogether by spring. Build milestones into your daytimer. If you keep your goals in your head, it becomes a very fluid deadline" Macpherson says. "Put some accountability in place. Team up with someone: a life coach, a colleague, a friend or spouse ... if it's something you want, you won't mind someone cracking the whip."

MARKET YOURSELF

Commit to marketing yourself. "That is fundamental to your career. We can't advance our careers in isolation. Make yourself visible. Update your resume. If you're currently looking for a new job, refresh it online. If it's been with recruiters for a few years, it needs to be updated," Macpherson says.

"Get yourself in front of the right people. Volunteer. The v-p needs to know who you are. Get on a project in which they're involved. This is going to put some momentum behind reaching your career goals. Too often, people say, 'I never thought I'd be doing this for 10 years.' That's typical of someone who let their career guide them instead of the other way around.

"You can't make it to the top by accident," Macpherson says. "You make it by design."

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