If you feel as if you’ve been treading water somewhat in your career and things aren’t really progressing in the way that you had once hoped they would, there’s plenty you can do to change that. It all comes down to taking the initiative and taking the steps that’ll ultimately help you get to where you want to be.
So if you’re unsure of the next steps you want to take in your career but you know that you need to start being a little more proactive, you’re in the right place. We’re going to talk about some of the specific steps you might want to take and how they’re likely to help you, so read on.
Take Control of Your Personal Brand
If you want to start moving forward sustainably in your career, it might be a good idea to take control of your personal brand once and for all. When you do that, you can take your career into your own hands and make sure that you’re the person in control of your decision-making. You shouldn’t look at yourself as an employee of someone else; instead, focus on you and what’s right for you and your personal brand going forward, even if that means looking for opportunities elsewhere.
Master Your Niche
If you already have a particular niche that you work on, your next step might be to truly master it. Having niche skills and a niche area of expertise marks you out and makes you stand out from other people around you. That’s really helpful when you’re looking to make progress in your career. Do what you can to find a way to own your niche and truly become an expert in your field because that’ll maximize what you can achieve later in your career.
Start Expanding Your Network
They say it’s not what you know but who you know, and there is some element of truth to that when you’re looking to progress your career. It really all comes down to having connections who can alert you to opportunities or have you in mind when a new opportunity arises. That’s why it’s definitely worth your time to network within your industry and help other people. You never know how they might be able to return that favour to you one day.
Create a Long-Term Development Plan
It’s important to have some sort of development plan in place if you want to make progress in your career. It really is in your best interests to come up with a plan for how you’re going to upgrade your skills and how you’re going to get to where you ultimately want to be. It’s never been more important to think about these matters if you fail to plan, there’ll be someone out there who probably planned and prepared themselves better. So come up with a personal development plan that structures your progress.
Start Setting Your Own Work Schedule
When you start taking charge of your own work schedule and putting yourself in the driving seat, you place more responsibility on your own shoulders. For some, this might just be more flexible with your work and become more productive as a result. For others, it might mean leaving the employed life behind and instead of working for themselves. For example, if you choose to be a tutor online or do any kind of job online, you tend to be in control of when and how you work.
Take on New Responsibilities at Work
When you get the opportunity to, you should do your best to put yourself forward to take on new responsibilities. You never know when these new opportunities might be able to arise and when you can make the most of them. Taking on extra work might not be all that fun, but having responsibility marks you out as reliable and it also gives you the chance to prove yourself in a professional setting. That’s precisely what you want, so when you get the chance to take on new responsibilities, grab it with both hands.
Work on Your Confidence
If you’re someone who lacks a little confidence, you should try to address that sooner rather than later. We all need to feel confident in order to fulfill our potential. For many people, it’s their lack of confidence that really ends up holding them back and achieving the things that their talents would suggest they’re capable of achieving. So be sure to work on it if you know it’s a weak area for you. The sooner you do so, the sooner you’ll start moving in a more positive direction.
Request Feedback
Getting feedback from the people you work for and even from the people you alongside on projects can be something that’s very valuable. When you get that feedback, you can get an idea of what you’ve been doing well and what you need to get better at. It can be hard to see those things from your own personal perspective. So getting feedback from people who see your work and professional style from another angle can help a lot.
Be Prepared to Grab Opportunities That Come Your Way
It’s important to be prepared to grab opportunities when they come your way and to be prepared to say yes to things more often. Too often, people shy away from opportunities or new roles because they feel they’re not ready or not good enough. But by putting yourself out there and being prepared to grab those opportunities, you can achieve so much more and make much faster progress in your career as well.
As you can see, there are plenty of things you can do to start taking the initiative in your career and being as proactive as possible when it comes to where your career is going to be heading next. There are so many more things you can do and the ideas we’ve discussed here are just the tip of the iceberg.
