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Your Career
Action Plan for the New Year People make New
Year’s resolutions with the best intentions, but they often fail for lack
of a solid action plan. If
you’ve resolved for 2006 to move your career forward into a new industry,
occupation or level of responsibility, increase your chances of success
with this three-part action plan focused on results.
1.
Know your
career objective 2.
Update your
resume and cover letters 3.
Update your
network and networking skills
Knowing your
career objective may sound obvious and easy. If, however, you are dissatisfied
with your current position, it can be difficult to sort out the good from
the bad. You may not fully
understand the target of your dissatisfaction: Is it your job or your employer;
your company’s culture or your supervisor? Analyzing what you want in a
job is a good start in determining the best new job for
you. If you are
uncertain what type of position to focus on, start by identifying the
transferable skills you enjoy(ed) using in your current or past
positions. A professional
career coach can be helpful in sorting out what you want to keep and, more
importantly, what you want to avoid in your next
position.
If it has been
a while since your last job search, your resume may no longer reflect your
current career direction.
Don’t forget the most important elements of a strong resume: solid achievements that illustrate
your transferable skills, and key words and phrases to capture employers’
attention and interest. Cover letters
can make the difference between a warm reception or a cold shoulder. While it’s true that not all
resume screeners read cover letters, those who do are never impressed—and
are often put off by cover letters that sound phony or mass-produced. If you are uncertain of your
resume writing skills, a professional resume writer can transform your
so-so resume & cover letters into true selling tools.
3. Update your network and networking
skills A good
job-search network consists of all those persons who can provide
information about future or current career opportunities. You say you don’t have a
network? You probably do, but
you just haven’t thought about people who could fit this category. Start by identifying groups of
people that you are in contact with on a regular basis, such as
professional associations, church, college alumni groups, and neighborhood
associations. Then identify
the individuals within those groups with whom you feel comfortable and who
could help you learn of job leads. Many of my
resume and coaching clients lament their poor networking skills. I always tell them not to worry;
they are in good company because most people feel inadequate when it comes
to networking. Before you
dismiss the value of a strong network, remember: In securing all-important job
interviews, it’s very often not what you know but who you know. There are many resources available
for learning how to build and utilize a network to your job-search
advantage: books, online
articles, workshops, and career coaches trained in the most effective
networking techniques. Once you’ve put
your job-search action plan into practice, you’ll be on your way to a
better job and a better life. | |
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Deborah Walker,
CCMC Career Coach ~ Resume
Writer Read more job-search tips
and resume samples at: Email: Deb@AlphaAdvantage.com | |