Five Most Effective Ways to Invest in Your Career

Five Most Effective Ways to Invest in Your Career

You are accountable for your own

success. As such, it is your responsibility to discover your

special gifts, attributes and capabilities that can give you a

competitive edge and the greatest

probability to have a flourishing

career. Career management

requires quality networking, being in the right place at the right time,

earning a voice at the table, knowing your unique value proposition and how to use it, managing your personal brand, being influential – to name a few essentials.  But in the end, all of these factors require one important thing: a personal

commitment to manage and invest in your career the right way .

On the surface, this sounds simple –but it is actually quite time consuming and requires strategic

thought and planning. Making an

investment in your career requires

you to know what you should invest

your time, money and resources in.

Think of it like the stock market; most people rely on financial experts and / or online tools to help them manage their portfolios based on a multitude of factors that include: the amount of money they are willing to invest, how much risk they are comfortable taking, what type of commitment they will make to manage their investment decisions and keep track of their desired outcomes – amongst many others. Similarly, when you invest in your career and personal development, you must do it with the end game in mind. For example, what performance improvements and career advancement outcomes do you expect, and when will you be able to see favorable financial results and lifestyle changes as a result of your investment?

I have seen too many people waste

time and money on making career

investments that don’t align with their passionate pursuits and

ultimate career ambitions. They

can’t see the opportunities around

them that they can effectively seize

for their own advancement and

personal satisfaction. For example, I have seen many invest in learning

about the real estate market because their friends made a lot of money in it. However, after spending thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours, nothing tangible resulted from their investment. This is a common occurrence with people who are so influenced by what others believe they should do in their careers that they become disconnected  from themselves.

This is what initially happened to me when I started my career. My older brother (a successful executive in his own right) wanted to direct and guide my career. He wanted me to be like him. What he failed to realize was that we were different people, with different skills and completely different personalities and character traits. This is an example of why many people get career anxiety. They begin to hate their jobs and / or become dissatisfied with the succession track they are on – because they are now regretting the career choices they

made based on how they were

influenced by others along the way. In my case, I soon realized

that my brother’s well intentioned

attempts didn’t make sense for me

as I began to lose touch with my

goals and aspirations.

To invest properly in your career,

you must know yourself extremely

well . Knowing yourself requires

you to understand the factors that

positively inspire you to achieve

something substantive and relevant

– with passion – every day.  For

some people this takes a long time to discover. For others, they know

themselves well enough to make

good career investment decisions.

What do you believe are the most

important areas for your career

investment? What areas have you

already invested in and what were the outcomes?  What areas are you currently focusing on now?

Many people don’t have career investment plans because they rely

on the organization they serve to

provide them. A select few recognize that the investments your

employer makes in your career are

no longer enough – and most of the

time these investments align with

the company’s goals, not your specific performance improvement

needs for skills and experience that

must be transferable across all

industries and organizations that

you may choose to engage with in

the future. In today’s global market,

you can no longer afford to wait for

your employers to invest in your

professional growth and development. You must know

yourself and your career ambitions

well enough to recognize the

necessary career investments you

must make and determine your

wisest career investment path.

For those ready to give it serious

consideration, here are the five most effective ways to invest in your career:

1. Invest in Your Strengths: Use

Them More Frequently

Become increasingly aware of your

natural strengths that allow your

skill sets and capabilities to thrive

and make the commitment to invest in them. For example, if you are a good negotiator, never assume that your technique doesn’t require fine tuning. Take a negotiations class, enhance your abilities and then put them to work more frequently.

To get your mindset in the right

place, try this: the next time you

are in a meeting, carefully observe

your colleagues. Notice the dynamics in the room – and begin to ask yourself: what are other people doing to invest in the betterment of their careers?

The ultimate prize is to find

happiness in your career and in

your work by fueling your strengths

and passion.

2. Invest in Intelligence and

Know-How: Apply it More Actively

Never stop learning. This begins by

investing your time to acquire the

right intelligence and know-how that will accelerate your career

advancement. For example, most

people want to build their personal

brand – yet don’t invest in the

process of developing one and thus

miss opportunities along the way.

Never assume that you don’t need to get smarter, wiser and more strategic about how to better manage your career. Be proactive.

Get to know the goals the industry

you are serving desires to achieve

and how you can contribute. Build

relationships with key thought

leaders. Identify the best executive

search firms that can support the

career path you seek – and get to

know what your direct competitors

are doing to secure the position(s)

you may be targeting.

3. Invest in the Right Relationships: Give Them Time and Attention

Build a personal advisory board who can properly guide your career

goals. Identify your circle of influence. Who are they today?

Are they guiding you rightly?  Are

you truly investing in these relationships in ways that are

continually helping you move your

career in the direction you want it to go?

Invest in how to network the right

way. Your networking should be

viewed as a professional development boot camp ( read about this here). Learn to value your time and how to connect with the right people.  Nurture the

relationships that matter most. Give

them proper time and attention and keep the most meaningful

relationships active at all times.

4. Invest in a Career Coach:

Sustain Your Momentum

Staying focused can be difficult with

so many different responsibilities to manage. This is why most people

lose momentum when attempting to advance their careers. Most people start and stop the career

management process – finding it

difficult to manage their time.

Make career management a new

best practice; a process that becomes an embedded part of your daily activities, goals and objectives. If possible, invest in a career coach to increase your commitment levels and hold yourself accountable.Today’s competitive landscape requires you to stay on track by investing in someone that can provide you with the tools and perspective to keep you focused.

5. Invest in Your Family and

Personal Life: Create Balance and

Strengthen Your Career

Balance is the key to success – in

both business and in life. Contribute to the success of your career by investing in work/life balance and dedicating more time and attention to your personal and family life .

My family and personal friends are

an essential component to my career success. They help clear my mind and enrich my points of view.

Engaging in activities separate from

your career allows you to broaden

your observations through a different lens and appreciate new

types of ideas and ideals that can

help shape your thinking and

contribute to your professional

growth.

Invest the right way and more

effectively manage your career.

Think of your investment as a

personal enrichment process:  an

investment that is always working

for you because it focuses on making you a better person both in and outside