Category Archives: Career Growth

Top 5 Ways to Derail Your Career Growth

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“I had an 18-year corporate career in publishing and marketing that was highly successful on the outside, but on the inside, it was not…”

“And I made a great number of huge mistakes.  I did some important things right too, but my missteps were legendary (at least in my own mind).”

“When I look back on my 30 years of working, and the careers of the hundreds of folks I train, coach and teach, five blunders stand out from all the rest as the most negative, damaging, and irreversible in your career and professional life.”

Author: Kathy Caprino, Photo: Wiki

Read more: Kathy Caprine on Forbes

streetsmartprof‘s insight:

Our passions can come out at the wrong time if we let our emotions run wild. There are times to sit on your hands and keep quiet while the boiling water in your mind simmers down.

I’ve always used a friend and/or peer as a sounding board before making any major decisions which could impact my career. What ever you choose, find something which works for you.

Then make sure to stop, think and look at the future consequences before jumping too far. After a sufficient amount of time, make decisions on your next move to help grow your career, not undermine it.

My favorite of all 5, never burn bridges.

See on www.forbes.com

Advance Your Career Growth at a Startup – 4 Ideas How

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“One of the things people love about working at small startups is the flat management structure.”

“Instead of presenting your ideas to your manager’s manager… you can focus on simply executing them.”

“But even in this type of environment, a year or so after you’ve gotten a job you love, you might be looking for new challenges (and maybe even more money).”

“So, how do you continue to advance your career…?

by Alison Johnston Rue

Read more: http://mashable.com/2013/08/22/advance-career-at-startup/

streetsmartprof‘s insight:

Alison covers 4 ideas of how to accelerate the growth of your career in a startup company.

She covers each idea and provides around how to initiate each one:

1. Join a Growing Company

2. Be Upfront About Your Goals

3. Pick Up New Projects

4. Be a Leader

Worth a quick read if you are considering which type of startup to join and/or are already working for a young company.

See on mashable.com

For Career Growth, Plant Where You Can Bloom

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“Plant yourself where you can bloom.”

“This is a lesson I learned the hard way. I wasted years of my early career waiting for validation from a few key people to do what I already knew I was made to do.”

“They kept me on a string for years and I was obliged to stay there, sure that they were the only road to where I was going.”

“Time has taught me not to look to another person as my key. My beliefs are my key. My actions are my key. They can trap me, or they can set me free.”

by Chance Scoggins

Read more:

http://www.chancescoggins.com/the-best-advice-you-should-never-take ;

streetsmartprof‘s insight:

The flip side of finding a place you can grow is to grow where you are planted.

The author provides an example why this may not be your best advice.

“Imagine yourself planting a seed in a toxic waste dump. You could dig the perfect hole. You could water it, feed it, give it sunlight and air – but no amount of tending that seed will produce fruit. And what if it did…would you want to eat it?”

Understanding the culture you will thrive in during your career is a necessary requirement. Make sure to always go in eyes wide open.

See on www.chancescoggins.com

4 Career Growth Questions For Your Boss – Forbes

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“Are you on the right career path?”

“Are you growing and being challenged?”

“If you answered no to either of those questions, you need to ask your manager for a career path meeting. Ideally, this is a one-on-one meeting you’ll have every six months.”

Move up http://i.forbesimg.com t Move down”Here are four questions to ask your boss to make sure you are growing and developing in the right direction.” by Kevin Kruse Read more: http://www.forbes.com/sites/kevinkruse/2013/06/26/career-path/

streetsmartprof‘s insight:

Most of us want to end up in our dream job as our career advances. Granted, some have landed in their dream job immediately out of school, while others will take some time to achieve this.

However, if you don’t know what your dream job is, this makes it difficult for your boss to help you grow in your career.

It is not uncommon for people to be “passed over” when new positions are opened up in the company. Yet if your boss does not know you have any interest in specific types of projects and/or oppertunities, the only one we can blame for being passed over is ourselves.

Net/net, don’t wait for your boss to call a meeting to discuss where you want to end up. Drive your career growth from your end, as much as the boss may and/or should do from their end.

See on www.forbes.com

Help Grow Your Career – Align with what Highly Successful People Do

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“As I become more experienced and more successful in business,  I’ve begun to realize that most successful people don’t make a lot of money  because they are lucky or because they know the right people.”

“Nor do I believe  that people are simply born destined to become wealthy.”

“Rather,  I’ve come to recognize that many of these individuals make highly intelligent  career decisions that lead them to get where they are. Here are 4 of those:” by Personal Branding Blog

Read more: http://www.business2community.com/human-resources/4-career-decisions-that-highly-successful-people-make-0491598

See on www.business2community.com

How to Build Your Personal Brand for Career Growth

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“In today’s complex and highly competitive marketplace, it is more important than ever to take the reins of your career.”

“Your “brand” is you, it’s your way of telling the world what you stand for, your values, your expertise and why should people care.”

“Developing and maintaining your personal brand will allow you to not be trapped into thinking you can only be or do one thing.” by Megan Marrs

streetsmartprof‘s insight:

If you are looking for the beginning around “how” to build your personal brand which matches your dream job. Read on. Megan does a great job describing where to start and how to think about the steps you need to use to build your brand. http://www.nwitimes.com/business/using-personal-brand-to-advance-your-career/article_b05adbc6-b467-528e-a12e-950b6ab44cc9.html

Most articles I find struggle with the building blocks around branding and where to begin. Granted, you want a clear picture of what it is you want to build. But putting all the pieces together is easier said than done.

As you read the article, think about your brand and your personal dream job. The two are in alignment providing you have a clear path of where you want to end up.

Odds are your best capabilities are some of the things you enjoy the most and can develop the fastest. These are part of who you are and can certainly help grow your career in the direction of your dream job.

See on www.nwitimes.com

Advance Your Career with a Volunteer Opportunity

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“Do you need more project management experience to move forward in your career? Or maybe learning a new software program would help”

“Whatever expertise you want to develop, there’s likely an organization or project already in progress that could help you do it.”

“Another way to search for the right opportunity takes just the opposite tack: start with what you can give instead of what you want to get.” by April Greene

Read more: http://idealistcareers.org/how-to-find-a-volunteer-opportunity-that-will-advance-your-career/

streetsmartprof‘s insight:

The article discusses using two main approaches while searching for volunteer opportunities.

1 What experience and/or knowledge do you want to gain.

2 What experience and/or knoledge can you contribute.

Providing resources to locate potential ideas by the Idealist search engine: http://www.idealist.org/search/v2/?search_type=volop&search_browser_options_initial_sort=published_date

Here is a success story about Jessica who turned a volunteer opportunity into a full time job. http://idealistcareers.org/job-seeker-success-story-how-i-turned-a-volunteer-opportunity-into-a-job/

Prior to reading the article I had not considered using a volunteer postion to help develop skills and capabilities while growing a career. In hind sight, it is a great way to network, give back to your community and obtain on the job training all at the same time.

See on idealistcareers.org