Important Traits of Successful People You Should Develop Upon Choosing a Career

In any organization, there will always be someone who seems to know how to find their way up the corporate ladder. These are the people who keep getting promoted, and some of them even get promotions in a very short time. It is easy to assume that perhaps they are good friends with the boss, or they are just purely lucky all the time.

But when you try to analyze the habits and the career path of these people, you will realize why they always get a promotion. Here are some traits these people have that make them deserving of career advancement:

a. They are solution-seekers.

People who always get promoted have the ability to solve problems. Instead of complaining or criticizing, they figure out ways for improving the situation. When they identify a problem, they don’t just keep quiet; they speak up and suggest solutions. Thus, if you want to be noticed at work, be proactive and be a problem solver.

b. They don’t mind stepping out of their comfort zone.

The easiest thing to do is stay within your expertise and experience, because this is your comfort zone. Doing this, however, will not get you more experience and learning. For you to be considered for a promotion, you’ve got to show your willingness to take on assignments that others wouldn’t. You also shouldn’t mind doing something you are not very comfortable with.

c. They analyze their boss.

It is important for you to learn what your boss values both in business and in life. When you get this information, it will be easier for you to do things according to what your boss favors. You will get noticed easily, and this will also be an important step for you to learn how to succeed in business.

d. They focus on the bigger picture.

Successful people do not just accomplish their task for the sake of completing them. They know their daily tasks matter to the overall operations of the business, so they make an effort to do things right. By thinking of the bigger picture, you will be able to anticipate what has to be done even of nobody tells you.

e. They collaborate and treat people well.

Liking your coworkers doesn’t always mean you can work well with them. Being a team player is a special trait that requires some conscious effort. You’ve got to develop your team building skills so you won’t have a hard time working with other people.

To be successful in choosing a career, it is also important that you build positive working relationships with your colleagues. If you are targeting a management position, for instance, you will have to be a people-person to be successful. You won’t succeed in getting the support of your team if you can’t even gain their trust.

Questions to Ask Yourself When Choosing a Career

When it seems like your career is stuck in a rut and you can hardly find a reason to be excited to go to work each day, you may easily be tempted to consider changing careers. There seems to be a greener pasture out there, but is there really? Just because you are emotionally ready to switch careers doesn’t mean it is the right time to do the big change. You must take the time to evaluate the situation and assess yourself to know if you are truly prepared to do something different.

Here are the questions you need to ask yourself before you decide to change careers:

1. Why are you so eager to change careers?

Unless you clearly know and understand your own reason for leaving your current career, you may find yourself jumping out of the frying pan and straight into the fire. We all have different reasons for not wanting to stay in our current career. What’s important at this point is the awareness of your own reasons.

2. Is a career change the real solution?

It is often too easy to believe that it is your career that you want to change, when the reality is that you’re just having issues with your coworkers or your employer. Think about what it is that can make your working life interesting and enjoyable. If you are not sure yet, you might as well try another job or applying for a different position.

3. What are your capabilities and skills?

Working in a particular industry for many years doesn’t necessarily qualify you for another career in a different industry. You need to know what you capabilities and transferable skills are. Do you have the necessary skills to be successful in the career you’re thinking of pursuing? If not, how are you going to acquire or develop such skills?

4. Can you use your existing skills?

Changing careers means doing something that might be totally different from what you are presently doing. Should you decide that you will be better off in a new career, you need to assess your skills and decide which of them are relevant and which are not. This awareness is important especially when you’re about to create a resume. Your resume should convince potential employers that they can benefit from the skills you have developed throughout your career in a different field.

5. What are your values?

Finding satisfaction in your career comes not only from the financial stability your career may offer. More importantly, your career must be in line with your own beliefs and values. Otherwise, you will never find fulfillment and happiness. Keep in mind that when choosing a career, you need to go for one that will make you happy knowing that you’re doing something right and good in relation to your own personal beliefs and values.

Hold On to Your Career

There are so many unhappy employees in the world today; some are your friends and colleagues at work who complain about how miserable their lives are because their jobs drive them crazy.  But don’t you find it amusing how they plan to stay in their current jobs and whine all the time? Yes it is easy to say that you want to quit your job but think of the entire process of quitting and starting a new one; will you be ready to go through the whole recruitment process once again? Do you have a valid reason to quit your job? Do you want to be free from stress or have more time for your family? Do you need more time to grow? Given these different circumstances, what makes you so sure that leaving your job for another one will solve all the issues in your professional life?

Before you ever decide on quitting your job, answer these questions first and find out if you have really taken the time to love your job.

1. Did I give enough contribution to the company? If you ever look back on how you were as an employee for the last couple of years, will you be happy with your performance? Take time to reflect on the good things that you have done for the company and for yourself. 

2. Did I talk to my boss about how I feel? Did I ask for his honest opinion about my work? Take time to talk to your boss and share with him your plans for the future. If he values you enough, then you will know where you stand in the company.  He will be willing to give you a helpful advice on how to improve and grow together with the organization. Remember that a good working relationship with your boss could be one of the many reasons why you want to stick to your job.

3. Have I developed and made meaningful relationships with my co-workers? Have I treated them with the same respect and courtesy that I want for myself? It is always good to work with people you are comfortable with; it makes the job lighter and the environment happier.

4. Am I asking too much from my employer? Yes, getting promoted is great but there are many factors that may lead your boss to promote someone. Deliver an outstanding performance and stay loyal to the company; prove your worth before you even think of getting promoted.

Choosing a career can be a very challenging thing to do because it can sometimes take a lifetime to figure out what is best for us. But, that doesn’t mean that we need to jump from one career to another everytime we encounter blocks on the road. We need to have a tough heart to overcome these roadblocks and just try to make the best out of every challenge that come along the way.

Choose the Right Career in 5 Easy Steps

We just can't seem to get a clear idea on how to choose the right career for us despite of the many career options available to us in the labor market, making the entire career planning and career searching process a challenging and difficult task to do. Some are lucky enough to have identified the career that they want to engage themselves into at a very young age, while the others struggle by jumping from one job to another, in the hopes of finding a career or an occupation that will totally work for them.

Choosing the right career means that it needs to match well with your interests, aptitudes, work related values and personality type so that you will have a better chance of being completely happy and satisfied with your job. Now, the first thing that you need to do is get to know yourself better because no matter how much you think you know yourself, it is still not enough. You will need a few days off from work to think things over and figure out what it is that you really want to do for the rest of your life in terms of your career. You can also go online and find self- assessment tests which could help you making this career decision. Taking the test and getting the results from that test is proven effective in identifying what and who you are as a person. If you need help with this, talk to a career coach or a counselor to help you gather more information about yourself because they will make you see things about yourself that you may not be able to admit.

After knowing yourself, write down the different careers and occupations that spark your interests. Then, start conducting informal interviews to know more about the jobs that you are interested in, in order to know if your qualifications meet the requirements needed to land that specific job. Perform these steps until you choose the best career in your list while you think about the possible occupations under this career. Now, if you think that you have chosen the right career and if you feel that you don't have all the qualifications needed to apply for this career, consider undergoing trainings and enrolling in short courses to prepare you for the position. Make sure that your finances are enough to back you up and sustain you until you get that dream job.

Choosing a career can be challenging but once you pick the right one, it can be rewarding and satisfying. Your professional life has more sense and meaning and you will be on your way towards career fulfillment. Don't rush yourself in choosing a career because the best ones are always worth the wait.

The Process of Choosing the Right Career

Aside from your family, your career defines who you are as a person that is why choosing the right one is a big deal to most people.  It is way beyond just deciding on what you need to do to make a living; it is about belonging to something that you are certainly proud of. Your career will take more than 50% of your time, because come to think of it, you need to go to work from Monday to Friday while your kids go to school and your wife stays home or works in a different company. When you get home, you will eat dinner, have a short conversation with your family because you are already tired from the day’s work and eventually you will go to bed. When you wake up, you will eat breakfast with the family and spend the rest of the day at work where you need to interact more with your colleagues.

Given the situation we have presented, it is really necessary to choose a career that we are passionate about so we don’t end up career hopping.  While others are fortunate enough to figure out what they really want to do with their lives and end up in satisfying careers without having to give so much thought about it, most of us are not. We sometimes pick our careers for the wrong reasons or we just don’t put effort in the selection process. Either way, there are some important tips you need to remember when choosing the right career, here are the following:

1.       Self-assessment – this is a very crucial step because it will take time to get to know yourself better and the things that you can do. Your skills, interests and capabilities should be considered when choosing a career. It is through understanding of oneself that can help you decide what is best for you.

2.       Explore and Research – after the first step, you need to explore different careers that will match your self-assessment. Write down at least 5 careers that you see yourself associated to and by doing a thorough research on the job duties and responsibilities, narrow them down to the top 2 choices until you select the best career for you.

3.       Create an action plan – after choosing, write your short term and long term goals. Create a strategy on how you will be able to reach these goals. Including how to pass the interview and how to manage your time wisely.

Choosing a career takes a considerable amount of time as well as careful and effective planning for it to be successful. You cannot just choose a career overnight because you will end up changing it from time to time if you are not satisfied on how your life turned out to be. These 3 easy steps will serve as your guidelines in case you have made a mistake during the whole process and will eventually help you get back on track.

Planning Your Career

Deciding on your profession takes more than simply picking out what seems to be the most attractive offer you can take at face value. Just because it looks or sounds good on paper means it is what’s good for you. Find out more about each opportunity presented to you because you might easily be deceived by how it is presented. You have to dig more into what it is about, how you are going to be qualified for it, what opportunities for advancement it presents, whether it will be a potential long term employment, or if it is going to be able to provide you with a comfortable retirement.

Consider your options.

With the amount of job titles available at present, there will be several areas that will qualify you to work. Make a short list of these jobs and do some fact finding in order to get to know the job better, what is required of you, what you are going to do, and how fulfilled you will be if you take it up. Self-actualization is an important thing to have when you perform something because it contributes a lot to the staying power of your profession. If it keeps you happy, you will be able to keep doing it for a very long time.

Work on you strengths.

Do not be obliged to take up the path that your coursework dictates. Though the course you have taken up provides you with the necessary knowledge and skills you will need in a particular field, it does not necessarily mean that is all you could ever do. If you have conversational skills, convincing powers, take pride in your handiwork, work well under pressure, and so on and so forth, you are flexible enough to do so many things in the service sector, possibly with customer relations, or as an expert in manpower.

Seek paths that lead to advancements.

When you find the right combination of the job you want to do, the one that makes you happy, gives you a sense of fulfillment, one that is able to provide you the right compensation package to afford your lifestyle, find out whether you have the opportunity to advance in the professional ladder. Careers that present opportunities for progress are what you should be after. Climbing to the top will provide you with more opportunities for a better paycheck, improved skills, a happier you, and a comfortable retirement.

When choosing acareer pick the one that brings out the best in you, utilizes your skills, makes you want to achieve more, gives you the opportunity to do so, and one that makes you want to keep doing it for a very long time.

Places to Look When Finding a Job

There are different reasons for people to want to find a job. It could be that they are starting out to look for their first employer fresh from school. They could be employed individuals who are not happy with their jobs and are trying to find another way to speed up their career advancement. It could also be individuals who seek to make a change of profession and try their luck in something new. Whatever the reason is, you will have to start somewhere. Here are some of the best places to look for work.

Your Local Paper

Your local newspaper is a fount of information for events and listings that are needed or are happening in your nearby area. Read your daily paper and find out if there are job listings nearby. This gives you the convenience of finding employment near to your house. Surely you will be able to save a lot on transportation and have very little reason to be tardy. When you are able to arrive to your workplace on time, you will be able to be more productive and maintain your focus all throughout the day. When you are late, you tend to start the day unfocused, frazzled, and stressed. This may carry on throughout the day and affect your performance.

The Internet

These days we are given the added convenience of the internet to help us in our search for the job that will make us successful and financially stable. You can easily search for listings around your locality and find jobs that may not even be included in the local paper. Sometimes people actually think that taking it up a notch and bringing business online is the way to go if you want to remain competitive. Another advantage is that you an easily filter your searches according to specific details in a matter of seconds. You will be laden with several choices right at your fingertips.

Job Fairs

Watch out for job fairs that are happening in your town or in a town nearby. These are events that may give you the opportunity to be hired on the spot, or give you an interview at least to be considered for further evaluation.

Abroad

If you are tired of the usual job offerings in your local area and are up for an adventure or a change in surroundings, try looking for employment in a different country. Your skills may be in demand somewhere else that pays better wages and offers you a better life ahead not only for you but for your family as well.

Whatever choice you make, bear in mind that a career search involves choosing a job that makes use of your skills, give you the satisfaction and the happiness that is enough to make you show up at work everyday and bring you to financial stability before you retire.

Choosing the Best Job for You

Going back to work after being unemployed for decades can be quite scary for most people. There are several reasons why some people leave their jobs and these reasons are unavoidable such as building a family, getting married, undergoing medical treatment,  or perhaps due to  due to personal reasons. Now for various reasons, such as a divorce, kids have lived on their own, boredom or the need for personal fulfillment; they have decided to go back to work. However this time you need to make sure that you are well-prepared and ready to take on another responsibility aside from the ones you have right now.

One of the best ways to reenter the workforce is to choose the best job for you. You might think that your value in the labor market has decreased due to being out of work for a while but you need not worry because you can build yourself up and if you think that you still have the same skills and capabilities you had before, then you are definitely just fine.

Whether you were a boss or a middle manager, it won’t hurt to start from the bottom but if you ever get an opportunity to get the same position as before then go for it. You just need to be prepared enough for your comeback. You can still take a refresher course and undergo some training to be better than before. Aside from that you can take time to learn the modern technology such as using the computer and the internet to give your soon to be boss the impression that you are qualified for the role they are trying to fill in.

Here are some of the few jobs that bosses and middle managers can apply for when reentering the workforce.

1. Business Owner – since your skills consist of managing people and seeing that a job is done properly, it would be a good idea to start up your own business. It could be something that sparks your interest and you love to do because you can’t afford to get stressed anymore. You can be the owner and the manager and hire a small number of people to keep your business active and get better in time.

2. Manager – you can work as a manager of a small company or small business in your area, not too far from your house so you can still enjoy quality time with your family.

3. Instructor – Since you are an expert in managing people, it is best to share your knowledge and expertise with people, teaching them the basics about a particular product or job.  As a former boss, you will know what to do and how to make them listen.

4. Consultant/Coach – this job will require you to answer questions and impart your skills and knowledge to those who need it. You will help people reach and support their goals.

Reentering the workforce may seem hard but worth it because if you need self fulfillment as a person then it’s best to do what you have to do. Strive to be happy and help people as much as you can regardless of your status and where you are right now. It doesn’t matter what job you do as long as you are happy and stress-free, then you are in the right place.