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Read more tips with career
advancement advice.
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Career Success: Get Ahead of the Crowd
By Marcia Zidle
Regardless of where you open your briefcase or palm pilot each day - at a
large corporation, a small business or the end of your dining room table –
the key to staying employable the rest of your life is your own creative
action. The person who is going to be successful is not going to succeed
just because of good work. That is a given. It is expected. Crafting your
competitive advantage is what is going to get you ahead in these crazy,
changing times. Pay attention to and practice the following three tactics to
not only stay in the game but to get ahead of the crowd.
Think Of Your Career
As A Business.
The business of career management is that---an independent business that you
manage---even if you work for someone else. In this world of downsizing,
restructuring, and mergers, you, not the company, must be in the driver’s
seat of your career. Always think of yourself as self-employed.
Ask yourself these tough but important questions: What business am I really
in? What is my product line? What is the target market for my products? For
example, if I am an accountant then, what is it that I really do that people
will pay for? Can I list three features and three benefits of my talents? Do
I know my current worth in the marketplace? It doesn’t matter what your
title is. What matters is, if what you do has value and is needed by someone
or some company.
You must start looking at your workplace with new eyes---as a marketplace of
buyers and sellers---and start thinking of your career as a business. Launch
your business called “Me, Inc.” by defining your a product line, targeting
your customers, and having a well thought-out career strategy. Therefore,
YOU, not the unpredictable winds of change, become the driving force for
your career. Exit job security. Enter career security.
Have Skills, Will Travel.
What’s your competitive advantage? What do you bring to the employment
table? You carry with you, wherever you go, a large suitcase or portfolio
that holds all of your skills, experiences, and accomplishments. What’s in
your portfolio? Is it heavy with many skills or light with only a few? Do
you know if it would be valued in lots of different places or just a limited
number?
To be competitive, you must periodically audit your portfolio and benchmark
your skills. How do you compare with your peers in terms of education,
experience, training, career progression? Are you new and improved? Or, are
you just the same person you were three, five, ten years ago? Do you have
the right mix of skills, knowledge and experiences to position yourself for
the future? Or, do you need to repackage yourself in some way? Getting ahead
tomorrow means getting better today and throughout your work life. Avoid
becoming a professional dinosaur.
The key question is not where you stand on the corporate ladder. It is:
“What do you know how to do; and where else can you do it.” A well honed and
portable portfolio will provide you with the greatest security in today’s
changing and competitive business environment.
Become Street Smart.
What will keep you in the race as the rules of the workplace road continue
to change constantly? Initiative, visibility, and flexibility are the three
cornerstones of success in the new career game.
Exercise leadership. You can’t afford to crouch behind your desk, buried in
your everyday work, and hope for the best. Go beyond your job description
and direct your energy to the top priorities of your boss, your department,
your team. Make yourself indispensable.
Stand up and be seen. Promote yourself, not by your title, but by the
outcomes or results of what you’re doing. Your reputation can either pave
your way or get in the way of your success. You can start making a name for
yourself by being involved in successful assignments that allow you to be
visible to a wide range of people who could have an impact on your career.
These assignments could include for example: Building a new team from
scratch; or overseeing the introduction of new technology; or taking on
projects that require liaison or communications between departments,
functional areas and vendors.
About the author:
Marcia Zidle, the ‘people smarts’ coach, works with business leaders to
quickly solve their people management headaches so they can concentrate on
their #1 job to grow and increase profits. She offers free help through
Leadership Briefing, a weekly e-newsletter with practical tips on leadership
style, employee motivation, recruitment and retention and relationship
management. Subscribe by going to
http://leadershiphooks.com/
and get the bonus report “61 Leadership Time Savers and Life Savers”.
Marcia is the author of the What Really Works
Handbooks resources for managers on the front line and the
Power-by-the-Hour programs fast, convenient, real life, affordable courses
for leadership and staff development. She is available for media interviews,
conference presentations and panel discussions on the hottest issues
affecting the workplace today. Contact Marcia at 800-971-7619.
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Karen Porter, The Administrative Professional Job Performance and Career Success Coach™