We are currently working in an environment where change is the only constant and longevity at any company or one job is becoming increasingly uncommon. As a professional, you are now required to consistently grow and challenge yourself in order to stay competitive. As a result, you should regularly take a look at your career thus far and begin to research what could be the next move for you. There are three questions I have continuously asked myself in order to provide me with some clarity.
What am I good at? A simple exercise you can do to answer this question is to gather a list of about 5-10 names of people in your circle. It can include family, significant others, your children, friends, current and former coworkers. The goal is to ask each person to list 1-3 things they think you are really good at and why. Once you have gathered all of the responses, look through them and watch for common themes and write them down. In my case, one theme consistently came up but if there are a few that do, that’s ok as well. The goal is to get genuine responses from people who have interacted with you the most.
What do I enjoy doing? This question is one that only you can genuinely answer. A few tips on how to come up with answers is to pay attention to what activities or topics interest you. Some specific questions include:
What types of activities do you do throughout the day that you enjoy?
What are your hobbies?
What types of books do you enjoy reading?
What types of movies or shows interest you?
What positions will allow me to utilize what I’m good at and enjoy doing? Take some time to thoroughly review the answers to the first two questions as this can be used as a starting point to research positions or business ideas of interest. Your research should include reading books, listening to podcasts and most importantly connecting with people in the fields of interest. The goal is to come up with a few ideas of what could be your next move should you decide to make the jump in the near future.
If you have any questions or would like assistance in creating your specific actions plans, connect with me.