Top 10 Tips on Career Planning

career planning, career development

Everyone comes across a point in time when they have to choose the career they want to pursue. Career planning is an important activity that clearly chalks out your goals and ways to plan a career to begin or to make a career change.

 1. Research

Most often, people end up in the wrong jobs due to not knowing the many different jobs available within their field of study. By visiting the blogs related to the field of your interest, you can widen your choice of employment opportunities. Keep reading magazines to know the latest trends.

  • You can visit the Government employment agencies or the Department of Labor or your Local employment office.
  • You can go to your local library to find publications that carry information on various job or career avenues available for people with your skillsets and education.
  • Browse the Internet. A good number of recruiters and companies list available jobs online. You can apply to these jobs and learn about job profiles and expectations.

2. Self Assessment

To advance in any career it is necessary to do self assessment on a regular basis so that you can strengthen your position in the current job and shine in your future job too. By doing this you can update your skills according to need.

3. Consider your Like and Dislikes

You must also take into account your likes and dislikes and aspirations while assessing your ultimate job and suitability. You should identify your dream job and then drive your efforts towards it to avoid getting stuck in a job that you do not enjoy.

4. Build your Network

Having a good contact network is really helpful to discover future careers and to explore the latest trends, and generally about new opportunities. Learning to leverage your networks holds the key to finding the ideal job.

While building new contacts don’t forget to maintain the ones you already have. Many use social media to pass along job alerts. Try to find out what is new about their careers. The larger your network the better will be your chances of succeeding in your career planning.

5. Make Your Plan

Having a plan gives you a sense of direction in your efforts to reach your career goals. Planning involves steps that can take you towards your ultimate destination. This may involve taking new paths, while making progress in your current job. Be flexible and open to different options to reach your final goal.

6. Fulfillment of current Job

Only your current job satisfaction will motivate and facilitate you to reach the higher levels of your career. Try to get the most fulfilling role in your current job and do maximum justice to it. This will give you the fillip to do better in future.

7. Set Goals

It is a necessary step in career planning to set short-term and long-term goals.

The short-term goals are aimed at goals to achieve in the coming year. The long-term career goals are set for achieving in a certain number of years depending on the career ladder available in your company or elsewhere and your capabilities.

After you begin this process, you are on track and on your way to the next stage in career planning. Reviewing and adjusting those goals is the next stage in your career plan to reach the ultimate position of your liking.

8. Gain Some Experience

Focus on gaining some hands-on experience. You may not get paid but can get valuable experience and the right contacts that can help you in moving towards your dream job and career.

The experience gained will add more weightage to your employability and value to your job profile. It is also a proof of your interest and achievement that will be considered valuable by your future employers.

9. Find a Mentor

Having a mentor who is capable of guiding you in your career planning can ensure you make steady progress in your career planning.

10. Explore New Opportunities

An important part of career planning is to look into your own company or seeking information on the educational as well as training avenues available to you from your university and other professional associations.

Happy career planning!

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About the Author

Vasantha Chary is an avid reader and a passionate writer. She believes in reaching out to people across the world through her well researched articles. She has been writing for the internet for over 4 years on a variety of topics of general interest.

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