Make 2008 the Best Year of Your Career
Make 2008 the Best Year of Your Career
Acknowledge the Accomplishments of 2008
Begin by reviewing what really worked for you in 2008. What were your triumphs? What did you do that you were really proud of? Did you get a new account? Increase your sales? Streamline the systems in your job? What did you enjoy doing during the year? Identify the parts of the job that you really got a buzz out of. Write them all down. The chances are you will begin to remember triumphs and achievements that you had forgotten. Acknowledge them. Even if you think you had no triumphs--you survived without getting fired--that counts, as well.
Identify Your Strengths – Know What You are Good At
What do you do really well? What do you do so well that it’s effortless for you and you assume any plonker could do it? What do other people give you really positive feedback on? These are some keys to your strengths. Another useful way to identify your own strengths is to take some of the psychometric tests available. Some of the better known ones are: DISC, Myers-Briggs and the Enneagram. Do a google for any of them, and you should be able to do one online free or for a reasonable price. Self-knowledge is a key component of finding your dream career. Knowing what you are not so good at is useful, as well.
Where Can You Contribute? Make the Present Better
Given that it’s unlikely that you will have an invite on Monday morning to your new job, what can you do in the meantime to improve your contribution to your current position. You could begin by simply asking your boss how you can serve the organization better. Admittedly he/she could be gobsmacked at first, but they probably will then be impressed, and this could help improve your relationship with them. Can you be kinder to other people in the office? What would be the one thing you could do in your job that would raise your game? How could you bring some of the strengths that you have identified to your current position? Are there any openings within the company where you could use these strengths? Could you reach out a helping hand to someone else? What can YOU do to make your workplace a better one for everyone?
Dream It and Then Do It
Imagine yourself a year from now in your dream job. Write down what you will be doing, what sort of environment you will be working in. Will you be working outdoors? In an office? Be as detailed as possible. Now, do you know anyone doing a job like this? See if you can organize to meet them. Ask your friends if they know anyone. People are generally very helpful. Ask if you can interview them about the positives and negatives of their position. This will give you a more realistic picture. Laura Berman Fortgang in her book Now What? 90 Days to a New Life Direction has an excellent section on this.
Paralysis by Perfection
One thing I hear from a lot of my clients is that they want to be sure this is the “right” job they will move to, they want to be sure they have identified the “right” career for them. And in the meantime, they moan and groan about their current position and agonize over what their “perfect” career might be. In our current world, you will probably change careers 4-5 times anyway, and you will learn something from every career choice. Identify what you want, what’s non-negotiable for you, and if you get 100% of that and 80% of the rest and your gut feeling is good--go for it. Life is constantly presenting new opportunities and getting a new job is not for life: unlike a dog or a marriage.
By line
Anne Walsh is a life coach based in Connemara, Co. Galway, Ireland. You can sign up for her free newsletter Bring your best self to light at www.annewalshcoach.com which will give you tips, hints and ideas as to how to generate more personal and professional success.
Make 2008 the Best Year of Your Career - To learn more about this author, visit Anne Walsh's Website.
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Yep, folks, it’s that time again--a time to set resolutions which we seem to assume we won’t keep, a time to think about really getting the job of our dreams. Here are some ideas/steps for making 2008 the best year of your career. So, why not take 2-3 hours to think about how you can make 2008 the year of your career.
Acknowledge the Accomplishments of 2008
Begin by reviewing what really worked for you in 2008. What were your triumphs? What did you do that you were really proud of? Did you get a new account? Increase your sales? Streamline the systems in your job? What did you enjoy doing during the year? Identify the parts of the job that you really got a buzz out of. Write them all down. The chances are you will begin to remember triumphs and achievements that you had forgotten. Acknowledge them. Even if you think you had no triumphs--you survived without getting fired--that counts, as well.
Identify Your Strengths – Know What You are Good At
What do you do really well? What do you do so well that it’s effortless for you and you assume any plonker could do it? What do other people give you really positive feedback on? These are some keys to your strengths. Another useful way to identify your own strengths is to take some of the psychometric tests available. Some of the better known ones are: DISC, Myers-Briggs and the Enneagram. Do a google for any of them, and you should be able to do one online free or for a reasonable price. Self-knowledge is a key component of finding your dream career. Knowing what you are not so good at is useful, as well.
Where Can You Contribute? Make the Present Better
Given that it’s unlikely that you will have an invite on Monday morning to your new job, what can you do in the meantime to improve your contribution to your current position. You could begin by simply asking your boss how you can serve the organization better. Admittedly he/she could be gobsmacked at first, but they probably will then be impressed, and this could help improve your relationship with them. Can you be kinder to other people in the office? What would be the one thing you could do in your job that would raise your game? How could you bring some of the strengths that you have identified to your current position? Are there any openings within the company where you could use these strengths? Could you reach out a helping hand to someone else? What can YOU do to make your workplace a better one for everyone?
Dream It and Then Do It
Imagine yourself a year from now in your dream job. Write down what you will be doing, what sort of environment you will be working in. Will you be working outdoors? In an office? Be as detailed as possible. Now, do you know anyone doing a job like this? See if you can organize to meet them. Ask your friends if they know anyone. People are generally very helpful. Ask if you can interview them about the positives and negatives of their position. This will give you a more realistic picture. Laura Berman Fortgang in her book Now What? 90 Days to a New Life Direction has an excellent section on this.
Paralysis by Perfection
One thing I hear from a lot of my clients is that they want to be sure this is the “right” job they will move to, they want to be sure they have identified the “right” career for them. And in the meantime, they moan and groan about their current position and agonize over what their “perfect” career might be. In our current world, you will probably change careers 4-5 times anyway, and you will learn something from every career choice. Identify what you want, what’s non-negotiable for you, and if you get 100% of that and 80% of the rest and your gut feeling is good--go for it. Life is constantly presenting new opportunities and getting a new job is not for life: unlike a dog or a marriage.
By line
Anne Walsh is a life coach based in Connemara, Co. Galway, Ireland. You can sign up for her free newsletter Bring your best self to light at www.annewalshcoach.com which will give you tips, hints and ideas as to how to generate more personal and professional success.
Make 2008 the Best Year of Your Career - To learn more about this author, visit Anne Walsh's Website.
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Cheryl MatthynssensCheryl is a life skills coach, licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor and a 20 year entrepreneur. Cheryl's dedication to achieving a life of balance led to her expanding her teaching from the simple managing of life's daily challenges to adding financial well being as well. A direct marketer with DrinkACT, she is gaining ground in the online community with her concepts of making sure business owners, entreprenuers and employees have well rounded life styles. She opened up a small affiliate site - The Balance Guide- to help others find resources for mental and emotional well being. Visit Cheryl's blog to see more of the diversity beyond business she has began offering online at www.thebalanceguide.blogspot.com - Visit Cheryl Matthynssens's Website |
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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Kim CastleWith nearly two decades in the advertising and design business, with clients like Domino's Pizza, General Motors, Direct TV, Pedigree, Wolfgang Puck, Higher Octave Music, Hollywood Celebrity Products, Disney, and Paramount, as well as thousands of entrepreneurs around the world define, structure, communicate, and position their business for greater profits, BrandU(R) co-creators Kim Castle and W. Vito Montone discovered that entrepreneurs could experience the same power that big brands command for a fraction of the cost with the world's only process-based results-drive Integral approach to business creation. BrandU(R) is helping entrepreneurs grow with the power of extreme clarity from idea...to brand...to market(TM) and helping one million entrepreneurs become successful and whole so that they can make a difference in the world. Are you one of them? If you want to experience clarity all the way to the bank(TM), get started now at http://www.brandu.com. - Visit Kim Castle's Website |
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George LudwigGeorge Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website |
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John BrennanJohn Brennan Ed.D. Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal Development, LLC, a training and development firm. Interpersonal Development has provided sales training and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps from over 100 companies. A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan received his doctorate from the University of Rochester. His dissertation researched the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling Technology in training people in interpersonal skills. While he has spent most of his career designing or delivering training, he was also a Vice-President of Sales of a training and development franchise with operations in 25 markets. Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered sales training in North America, Asia, Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He has been a guest speaker at numerous national and regional professional conferences. When Microsoft wanted Best Practices articles on sales for their web site, they called Dr. Brennan. The results are at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/FX011387391033.aspx His firm’s clients have included Volvo, The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the Economist Group and countless small businesses. - Visit John Brennan's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Staging DivaDebra Gould, aka The Staging Diva®, is President of Six Elements Inc., an internationally recognized home staging company. Inspired by many requests from aspiring home stagers wanting to start similar businesses, Gould created the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program. Gould has trained over 1000 Staging Diva Graduates worldwide to start staging businesses. Buying decorating and selling six of her own homes in four years lead to an interest in real estate staging which she turned into a career with the launch of sixelements.com in 2002. Since then she has staged hundreds of homes in addition to teaching home staging training. Gould is the author of several home staging resources including a series of popular ebooks made up of a Design Guide, Color Guide and Portfolio Guide. For more information about Debra Gould visit stagingdiva.com. - Visit Staging Diva's Website |
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Stephanie RobeyStephanie Robey is President and CoFounder of Pivot Positive, LLC - an Internet marketing business focused on helping people start work at home ventures. Previously, she was employed at The Search Agency with over 20 years experience in graphic design and 10 years experience in online marketing. She was responsible for launching the Conversion Path Optimization (CPO) unit where she and her team have conducted hundreds of optimization tests for online companies across multiple verticals. She is a successful entrepreneur having started and sold 2 companies and remains on the board of directors of the third, PhotoSpin.com Stephanie began her career in the direct marketing realm creating and producing direct mail for many of the major cable television companies and directly attributes her understanding of Internet marketing to those early offline experiences. Stephanie is a graduate of San Diego State University with a BFA in Graphic Arts and also holds an Executive MBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Read Steph's Blog Meet Steph and Dave Sign up for our Free 7-Day BootCamp: Self Employed & Rich - Visit Stephanie Robey's Website |
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