Archived Articles: Work
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Jacquie has many articles available for reprinting in your company newsletter or e-zine, or to pass on to your friends. You are welcome to reproduce these articles, provided the article is printed in its entirety, a link is provided to www.wiseways.com.au and the following acknowledgment is included at the end:
© Jacquie Wise – Coach, Counsellor, Speaker, Trainer and Author, specialising in personal, professional and spiritual development
Think Laterally and Succeed
It all used to be so simple. We grew up expecting that all we had to do was to select a career, educate ourselves to pursue it, settle into an organisation that could use our talents, work hard to climb the corporate ladder, and collect the gold watch at retirement age.
We don't need to be told that things have changed. The ability to adapt to those changes is the key to survival, success and fulfillment.
Whatever the obstacle to your career path, the solutions are similar. You will need to think laterally, be flexible and be prepared to make compromises, at least until you have acquired greater bargaining power. Instead of specialising, the best way to prepare for an uncertain future is by being a generalist with specialities.
To optimise your options, make planning an on-going activity, encompassing continuous expanding of knowledge, skills and experience. We tend to respond to events in a "knee jerk" fashion, reactive rather than proactive. Consequently, we fail to anticipate obstacles and risks, and are ill equipped to deal with them appropriately if they do arise. If the crises has already hit, it is no longer wise to allow too much time to elapse focusing on a single goal.
If you want to move into areas with the most opportunity and growth potential, it will help if you can forecast trends. Job advertisements are often the first indication of changes on a larger scale. Continuous study will reveal a pattern. Note which companies are recruiting and which are not - which functional areas are in growth or in decline and the salary levels or type of people sought.
A growing trend in employment is that more people are developing composite careers - in essence, a selection of part-time positions, offering various advantages over the traditional single career that can be a rut. The part-time positions may involve the same function for different employers, or they may be composed of an array of totally different functions.
A composite career enables you to use all your skills and to develop more. The more you diversify, the less vulnerable you are in times of economic instability, because your various involvements protect you from total loss. Instead of being locked into a position which you might hate, your various functions are more likely to meet your personal as well as professional needs and priorities. A composite career can also serve as a transition, enabling you to position yourself to gain entry into your chosen career at a later stage.
Companies needing a more flexible workforce are more receptive to job-sharing schemes. One of your options may be to put forward a job-sharing proposal, perhaps with a partner interested in the same option and whose strengths your complement.
Common mistakes to avoid include:
- Acting without direction - even before you know what you want
- Not recognising partial progress, so not attempting minor achievements
- Not making even the smallest start because the whole is overwhelming
- Failing to define success, so failing to look for it or to recognise it
- Failing to research adequately or to seek help
The first step, then, is to gather information. Having identified your priorities, current skills and those you need to acquire to enhance your potential, check the reality of your perceptions. Attend lectures, read periodicals, books and newspapers. Talk to friends, neighbours or people in the profession you are aiming at. Develop a network of former employers or colleagues, clients, your banker, or doctor, teachers and club members - anyone from whom you can gain feedback or further contacts.
Second, in the light of new information received, brainstorm to generate as many alternatives as possible, which should include methods of gaining expertise, confidence and credibility as well as career options. Analysing alternatives too early stifles creative thought: focus on generating ideas first.
Look for opportunities in vaguely defined job descriptions, which allow you maximum leeway; in projects within your own organisation that no one else wants that require liaison between departments; in reduced responsibilities that offer new experience; or in developing countries overseas.
Visibility does not come by chance. It is the direct result of how people present themselves. Seek out situations in which you can show others what you can do and which will set you apart from your competitors. Volunteer, become an office-bearer or active member of a task force, write an article, speak to a group. Above all, learn to articulate your skills clearly and concisely.
Formulate a plan to overcome the fears that hold you back.
Be prepared to take the back roads instead of the direct, four-lane highway. You may even get to your destination twice as fast.
Wise Words
Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realise they were the big things.
Robert Brault