CAREER MAPPING: Don't Get Lost Along The Way by Gordon Miller, available on www.hotjobs.com. Gordon Miller is the Co-Founder and CEO of The CareerEdge.com, Inc., a career coaching company. He is a nationally published author of career-related issues. His next book, The Career Coach: Winning Strategies for Getting Ahead in Today’s Job Market, is being released by Doubleday this summer.
Just as companies who use a business plan as a “road map” find the path easier to negotiate, people who use a “career map” have a much better chance of reaching their destination. Think about it. If you’re in Winnemucca and you want to get to Wichita, a map is a handy thing to have. Without it you might eventually end up Wichita. Might. Eventually. But it could take much longer than it needs to and it most likely will be a forgettable trip. Sound familiar?
Making a career map can be beneficial at any stage of the game for many of us. If you’re just entering/reentering the workplace, or perhaps been in the fray for decades, career mapping can prove to be an invaluable tool. Particularly if you are thinking of switching fields. More importantly, the “C-Map” is necessary to help you better navigate the rapidly changing workplace rules. Changes like continuing record layoffs, mergers and acquisitions, the advent of technology and it’s impact.
When I talk about developing a career map, I’m referring to an actual document. Typically, it’s a one or two page piece, a summary of your career strategy going forward. It’s a road map. A guide. It doesn’t mean you absolutely have to go by that route. If you get to someplace in your travels and the road’s under construction, you may have to take a detour. Your company has been sold? Your department has been outsourced? Your position is being eliminated? Not to worry (too much). You have a plan. A strategy.
The career mapping plan I’ve developed, which has worked wonders for the many clients I have worked with, is made up of nine specific steps:
An Overview: this first step consists of a ten thousand-foot view of want you want to accomplish in the future. One year, five years — whatever makes sense for you. There are times when the map will need to be changed suddenly. Perhaps your significant other finds a great job in another city, or you realize that the new boss and you don’t jive.
Identifying Your Market: the next step is to identify who your market is. It’s the same step a business goes through. Decide which industries or companies are most likely to continue to grow and need you.
The Marketing Plan: if you are working long hours, not making the money you want, and are quite unhappy, it may be a matter of focus. Decide which aspect of your profession is the most appealing for you and develop a plan to market yourself to get the position you want.
Identifying Your Strengths and Weaknesses: the idea is to maximize your strengths and minimize your weaknesses. But first you have to know what they are. Ask the people in your life you most respect to help. Put them down on paper. It may give you a new understanding of you.
The Positioning Statement: in order to be good at what we do, we have to know what business we are in. The positioning statement is no more than one paragraph long. It spells out here’s who I am, and here’s how I’m going to position myself going forward, and here are my capabilities, and here’s how I fit into my industry or company.
The Action Plan: now that you know what you want to do for the next year or two, you need to identify the tactics you use to carry it out. You might include research, talking to experts in your industry, and mirroring people who are already successful doing what you plan to do.
The Financial Plan: the key here is to understand that a change in career direction may have an impact of your finances. I recommend you determine up-front what could happen, good or not so good, and have a plan.
The Review: how often should you stop along your journey? Take a look at where you are on your map: check weather patterns and road conditions. If you are new to “mapping,” I suggest you do it once a week. Once you are more comfortable with the process, once a month is probably often enough. The key is to set a pattern for regularly looking at your progress.
Today’s job market is changing so rapidly that the people who hope to do well are those who have an idea about where they are going and how they are going to get there. I see too many of us making career decisions without a real strategy behind them. Good luck!
5 Steps To Your Next Job The following article is the fourth in a five part series. Last month we discussed Step Three: Getting Skilled, which helped give you ideas on how to build the skills you need for your next position, whether for a temporary assignment or a permanent job. To read previous articles, visit NRI’s website at www.nri-staffing.com and click on the Candidate Tools button. Written by Amy Lindgren, this article was taken from CareerPath.com. Next month will be Step Five: Contacting Employers.
STEP FOUR: TARGETING COMPANIES The next step is to decide which employers to contact. If you did steps one and two, (goal setting and market research), this step will be a breeze. You’ve already done most of the work!
If you have researched already, make a list of the companies that are likely to have a job like the one you want. It doesn’t matter if that job is open right now. List the company, because eventually every job becomes open.
Target employers to get the names of people who work in each company. It’s best to get the name of the person who would be your supervisor.
You can usually get the person’s name by calling the company and asking the receptionist. If that doesn’t work, ask your friends and family if they know anyone at that company. Then ask that person for the name you need.
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