As the year progresses, it is always worth following the lead of successful individuals who take time out to evaluate both what they want to achieve and where they are going on your career journey.
If you want to follow this lead, to start with ask yourself these 3 simple questions:-
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How are your goals panning out?
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Are you where you want to be in your career?
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Have those opportunities you were promised come to fruition?
Your answers could be upbeat and positive, reflecting on your many successes.
However, for many others, the answers are uncomfortable as some employees realise that their career has spluttered to a complete stop when it comes to growth and opportunity.
Before you jump ship, here are a few more questions to consider informing your decision and where your career goes next. We also recommend you download our Career Checklist .
Is it the right Business Sector or Industry for me?
Let's be honest, some sectors are in decline and are unlikely to afford you many growth opportunities. There is data from an industry leading website that predicts the areas where a high level of jobs will be lost in the next three years in the following areas:-
- Department and Retail stores
- Printing
- Newspapers
Logically think anywhere where A.I. will make its mark or where online capabilities will take over.
If sectors are in decline, you might be OK to hold onto your job, provided you are good at what you do, though maybe don’t expect challenging projects to work on or promotion any time soon.
Industry Decline: What Can You Do?
The question here is what are my transferable skills and therefore what new opportunities in growing sectors are open to me? If you want to find out more about what areas are growing, there is an interesting post here based on data from the Centre Of Economic and Business Research.
Is It My Company?
A few things to consider here; let's start at the top.
You would think that all companies are generally the same with a vision and business goals; unfortunately, that isn’t the case.
If you have identified challenges here, then maybe you can wait for a new senior management team to arrive or instead act now and plan your move.
Alternatively, you might be in a situation where promotion is slow, or your boss isn’t going anywhere soon. You either accept this and stay put, ask for a transfer or plan your career somewhere else.
Is It Me?
Then finally the uncomfortable point to raise; is it you? The most logical question to answer here is, did you make it clear when you joined your organisation that you had career aspirations and goals?
Did you do your own comprehensive research about the company and your role and what the future might hold or did you jump in with both feet because the salary looked good and your new employers head office was only 30 minutes down the road?
If you did make your new company acutely aware of the situation, how are you performing in the role, have you developed and improved?
Be honest with yourself here.
Are you blowing them away with your enthusiasm and ideas or are you unwittingly turning up and going through the motions, with an expectation that you will stand out from the crowd?
This leads me to your experience and time in the role. It’s common for different workforce generations to have different time frames on when a promotion ‘should’ happen. Perhaps you are expecting too much to happen too soon.
Being Honest With Yourself Is A Great Idea
Though some of these questions might make you reflect, they will also furnish you with great answers and ideas on what to do next.
If this post has made you think through your approach to your career, it’s likely you are/were on auto pilot and instead need to jump into the front seat and take control of where you are going.
This could as simple as talking to your manager about your goals or signing up for a new course to build upon your skill set.
Have You Outgrown Your Organisation?
Ambitious individuals will often out grow their role or organisation; it’s a fact of life, and I suspect your manager will have an inkling that you might leave.
Have a conversation with her or him and talk about your aspirations and career goals. If you are a valued member of the business, a new role or opportunity might then present itself. If not, it might be time to take stock and all things considered plan that next career move.
How Can We Help?
At Lucy Walker Recruitment we have been helping people like you develop their careers. If you would like our help to plan your next move, get in contact by calling Leeds 0113 367 2880 or why not schedule a call on the link below.
