How to actively grow your career

 

To be competitive in today’s job market you have to appropriately define your goals and strive to grow yourself in line with your goals. When you deliberately invest in your personal and career development you stand a high chance of getting new opportunities, higher salaries and increased overall career satisfaction. This article provides step by step procedures for career goals and development as well as answer frequently asked questions in career growth.

Personal development and career growth are closely related and pursuing one usually encourages the other. Career growth focuses on acquiring new skills and gaining more experience to positively impact your current position and any role you are likely to pursue in your career.

By expanding your skills and thinking ahead, you are preparing yourself to handle more responsibilities. Regardless of your position, there is always more to learn. Investing in your career growth shows ambition, self-awareness, humility and tenacity.

Some examples of actions that improves experiences and career growth includes:

·        Taking the lead on a sales presentation

·        Learning and developing a new skill

·        Volunteering time or resources to help a charity through your organization

·        Attending career training courses

·        Managing a large project, more people or a bigger budget.

How to grow your career

Here are some necessary step to take to grow in your career:

Always set clear goals about your expectations

By setting specific goals, you can take conscious steps to help you achieve those goals. Being able to keep track of your accomplishments will also help motivate you for the long term.

Approach your goal with a step-by-step plan

Once you have clearly written your goal, break it down into a step-by-step action plan. A detailed plan can guide you toward your goal by providing already structured steps.

Actively search for new opportunities

Look for opportunities to attend classes and get courses but also be aware of projects to challenge you and grow your skill set. By looking for new  responsibilities, you will learn more about your potential.

Discuss your career goals with a supervisor or colleague

It's important to let your supervisor know what your aspirations are for your career. If they know that you are eager to take on new challenges, they will likely trust you with more responsibilities. Your supervisor can also be a great resource for learning about available training courses. If you don't have a supervisor or you work independently, ask a colleague in your industry if they know of opportunities to expand your skills or experience.

Keep track of your progress

Though growing is exciting, there may be times when you experience frustration or doubt. That's why it is important to keep track of your accomplishments and regularly review your progress. Also, this ensures that you remain committed to your plan and allows you to improve your efforts if your progress begins to slow.

Tap into a Community

One of the best ways to keep growing is to tap into a community of thriving professionals who help challenge each other. By connecting with other professionals who want to learn, you can achieve a higher level of mastery. You can collaborate and consider how the skills you learned in the classroom work in real-time across various scenarios.

When you network, look for people who have a similar appetite for growth and set aside time to keep each other accountable. Plan regular meetups to talk about any pain points in your industry and possibilities for positive change. Bouncing ideas off others is a great way to push yourself and expand past your own ideas.

Here are some answers to frequently asked questions about career growth:

Do career growth end in a promotion?

As much as possible avoid considering a promotion the sole reason for career growth. The primary goal should be to better yourself and your performance. You should commit to career growth because you have a desire to learn and expand your career possibilities but promotion is not guaranteed. If you find out that your current role is limiting your growth, you can always seek other opportunities.

What are some of the downsides to lack of career growth?

By doing the same thing day after day, you will not only stop growing but you might also begin to regress. You have to challenge yourself and expose yourself to new situations that allow growth to take place.

Where can you find opportunities for professional growth?

You can often find chances to learn and grow at work. Talk to bosses and co-workers about growth opportunities, such as upcoming projects or seminars. Seek out associations or events you can attend. You can also commit to professional growth by completing your own research, reading books or blogs and finding training resources online.

What can you do if you feel stuck and have stopped growing professionally?

You have to disrupt your daily routine and change your mindset before you can begin growing. Start by adopting a new attitude, finding a new job or boss in a new department or simply seeking out a new resource for learning.

Is professional development different from professional growth?

Development is the process of learning, training and trying new things that eventually result in growth. In other words, development refers to the actions that create growth.