What is one tip to define your purpose and get clear on a long-term career vision?
To help you define your purpose and get clear on your long-term career vision, we asked business professionals and leaders this question for their insights. From establishing non-negotiable elements to tracking your progress, there are several tips to define your purpose and long-term vision.
Here are nine tips to get clear on your long-term career vision:
- Establish Non-negotiable Elements
- Decide What You Are Passionate About
- Find a Mentor
- Create a 5 Year Plan
- Apply for an Internship
- Work With a Recruiter
- Seek Out Inspiration
- Get Honest With Yourself
- Track Your Progress
Establish Non-negotiable Elements
We may not always be aware of our future career potential, but we usually know what we wouldn’t like to give up. Planning professional goals through elimination can often help shortlist opportunities without restricting potential. It is especially useful nowadays as our future work can involve industries that don’t exist yet. Nevertheless, we may be confident that we will never want to work 80 hours per week or travel frequently and that can influence our choices.
Michael Sena, SENACEA
Decide What You Are Passionate About
Many people are stuck in limbo in a dead-end job they don’t enjoy that will lead them nowhere. If you want to have a purpose you need to decide what you are passionate about. Dream big, visualize your dream job – do you have the strengths for this change? Speak to family and friends – can they imagine you in your dream position? The scariest part is taking the leap of faith and pursuing your chosen career, but once you’ve made the commitment to making it happen the road ahead will open up.
Amit Raj, The Links Guy
Find a Mentor
You can benefit from a mentor’s experience to help you objectively analyze opportunities and plan your career path with a long-term vision. If you already know what type of role you aim for and just need some clarity, they will help you identify the essential skills and possible challenges you may face on your journey. If you are stuck or need to clarify your next move, a mentor will help you get through the plateau. Mentors will also hold you accountable for actions and decisions. And don’t trust that mentors come when the student is ready, it’s best to look for one actively.
Rebeca Sena, GetSpace.digital
Create a 5 Year Plan
One tip to define your purpose and get clear on long-term career vision for yourself is to set a 5-year plan for your career. Write this plan down and set a clear pathway for your goals and how you will achieve them. This will help you get a clear idea of where you want to go and how you will get there. Check-in each year and see how you are progressing towards these goals. If you are struggling to make progress, look at yourself and evaluate if you are doing everything you need to do to achieve your goals. Discipline plays a large role in accomplishing your goals, so stay disciplined and accomplish your goals!
Jeremy Gardner, MadeMan
Apply for an Internship
Whether you’re entering the job market for the first time or are looking to make a career move, internships are a great way to try out a potential career path for a shorter period of time. Unlike most career aptitude tests or even educational and certification courses, internships give you the opportunity to do hands-on work to see where your skills and interests lie. As a bonus, working in an internship helps you to learn other things about what you want in a career: the types of people you work with best, the kind of working culture that fits your goals, and whether or not you already have the right project management skills to get the job done.
Shelby Hiter, TechnologyAdvice
Work With a Recruiter
A recruiter or a headhunter can help you identify your strengths and sit down and assist you in making a game plan for your career. They can help you figure out what steps you need to take now in order to get to where you want to be in the long term. Time working with one is never wasted.
Adam Reed, Crown & Paw
Seek Out Inspiration
If there is a professional (or a few!) who you greatly admire, look to them for inspiration! See what steps they took to reach where they are currently and determine how your own career can move in a similar path. Let their achievements in the industry inspire and guide you as you set career goals and define your professional purpose.
Beth Baranski, Markitors
Get Honest With Yourself
The one piece of advice I would give someone who is striving to gain clarity in their career is to get honest with yourself. Are you excited to go to work every day, or is it time to switch paths? Don’t be afraid to pivot if you’d be happier turning over a new leaf. One question that can help you get clear is, “What am I truly passionate about?” If you can figure out a way to incorporate your true passions into your career, you’ll be excited to get out of bed every morning.
Rachel Blank, Allara
Track Your Progress
Long-term objectives must be linked to your daily activities to be effective. That means rather than setting and forgetting goals, make a plan to check in and update your progress periodically. And with the short-term goals you’ve established, it’ll be simpler to review your progress and make the necessary changes or add any new goals.
Sam Santa, Zeitholz
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