 |
| Martin Yate CPC NY Times Best Seller 35 Years in Career Management |
#1. I will survive and prosper
Make 2012 the year you
replace blind loyalty to the corporation with enlightened self-interest. Yes, you
will work hard and long for your employer, but never again will it be at the
expense of what is best for your life.
Make a commitment to invest learning the job search and career
management strategies that will give you greater control of your professional
and financial destiny.
#2. I will build on firm foundations
As a professional you are a
bundle of skills and capabilities, and when you sell this bundle you are a
selling a product or a commodity.
Commit to the creation of killer marketing materials.
Your resume is the most
financially important document you will ever own: when your resume works, you
work; when it doesn’t, you don’t. It’s the primary marketing device that
introduces you to the professional world and your customer base. Properly
executed, it ensures that prospective employers and future colleagues see you
as you want to be seen. Cut corners with your resume and you cheat yourself of
employment now and career success in the future.
#3. I will develop the career management tools needed
to succeed
In a typical fifty-year
work-life, where job changes occur about every four years, the most important
professional skills you can develop are:
How to write a killer resume
How to get job interviews
How to turn job interviews
into job offers
How to secure your job and
win promotions
How to strategize career
changes
No one has ever told you to
think of developing career management the skills as important to achieving
long-term professional success in your life. But since job security has become
a memory from another century, you can see that the effort expended in
acquiring career management skills will be paid back exponentially throughout
your working life. A successful career doesn’t just happen, but it still can
happen when you develop these career success skills and continue to polish them
over the years.
#4. I will connect to my profession
Most people don’t appreciate
the importance of having a professional network—that is, until they are in a
job search and realize they don’t have one. The lack of security in the new
world of work makes professional connectivity a priority, not as a transitory
demand of the job search, but as an ongoing career management responsibility. This
job hunt is probably not your first and almost certainly won’t be your last, so
it would be smart to commit time to learning a network-integrated approach to
job search. Of course, this requires that you build and nurture a professional
network.
When you connect to your
professional it community means you are connecting with the most committed and
best-connected people in your profession; that has to be worth a little ongoing
time and effort when who you know can be so important in terms of successful
career management, And when you join I hope that we can connect.
Anyone anywhere can join
LinkedIn and become actively involved with the profession specific groups,
increasing contacts, credibility and visibility. If you live in a metropolitan
area, involvement in the local chapter of at least one professional association
is the single best thing you can do for your career.
#5. I will be prepared for future job searches
Capture and save all useful
information about employers in your own job search database, so that when it
comes time for job change again, you won’t have to start from scratch: A
company that hires accountants this year will probably be hiring them every
year.
Save the jobs you come
across today, and information about the job sites they come from, and next time
you’ll start with a job map showing a majority of companies in your target area
that typically hire professionals like you. You’ll also have knowledge of the
people they like to hire and given your professional connectivity, you will probably
have people to contact immediately.
#6. I will protect my job and boost my
employability
Changing technology
constantly alters the skills you need to compete, and without current skills,
you are being paid for abilities that will rapidly become obsolete. You need an
ongoing program of skill development to keep you employable and desirable in
the job market.
One way to max your
professional skills and protect your job at the same time starts with talking
to your boss. Seek input for skills to develop and strategies to improve your
performance. Implement the advice, and follow up informally every couple of
months to share your commitment and progress. This informal follow-up keeps you
visible to the people who can affect your future.
You’ll find that commitment
to business imperatives, the common good, and consistent skill development will
deliver you membership in the inner circle that exists in every department and
company. This inner circle is where job security, plum assignments, raises, promotions
all live.
#7. I will steal time to bring my plans to life
The average American watches
an astounding five hours of TV every night. You can steal time to bring your
plans to life by tuning out just one thirty-minute sitcom each night. Use the
time to understand and build the skills for professional success that you will
use again and again throughout your professional career. Implement these simple, practical
career resolutions and you can change the trajectory of your professional life
forever. The alternative is to watch life whizz by on the boob tube, as you are
encouraged to live up to your income rather than your dreams.
No comments:
Post a Comment