Where are you on the ‘next step’ certainty continuum?
One size definitely does not fit all when it comes to career and development planning. A couple of things are essential though. The first is to understand where you are on the ‘next step’ certainty continuum. This will help you get clarity around the level of support you might need, if any. The second is to know yourself, which is the foundation of figuring out what you need for work you can be amp’d about.
Over the last couple of years we’ve had over five hundred people on our career planning programmes and based on our experience, we’d say people fall into one of three groups relating to their development needs.
Happy and settled
This group are generally pretty happy with the role they are in. If this feels like you, it may be because you are new in the role and keen to focus on how to be effective in the job. It could be that you’re at a point in life where you’re just not looking for stretch right now. You may be juggling family commitments or have other reasons that you need work to be the place you can feel in your comfort zone. You may even be considering winding down at the end of a career.
If you’re in this camp, typically you’ll be focused on being awesome in the role you are in.
Unclear or even a bit stuck
There are a bunch of reasons you might be in this group. Most people want to continue to grow and develop, but aren’t exactly sure on the direction, or the next step. You may like your job but need a change and aren’t sure how to take your skills into something new that you’d like better. On the other hand, you could be aware you are in the wrong role and too busy to put time into thinking deeply about how to make a change so development stays on the back burner.
It’s fair to say, if you’re in this group you are truly not alone. This is where most people are. And it’s not surprising as we don’t typically learn career planning skills during our life, so many of us have ‘fallen’ into the jobs we have. It’s usually good luck rather than good design if we love them!
If this sounds like you then it is going to take some dedicated time to uncover what specifically you enjoy about the work you do, what drives you, what you need for an inspiring next step before shaping up plans to test out.
The first place to start is to know yourself a bit better. We’ve got some tips on this below.
Clear and confident
People in this group have a plan! You are clear about what is right for you, and what your next steps could be. It feels great to have this clarity! One watch-out though, that your laser focus doesn’t become an obsession over a particular outcome (typically a role) you can’t control. That can end in tears and possibly bitterness. It’s important to maintain options.
If this sounds like you, your focus could be more along the lines of refining the plan ideas and getting creative about the various ways to continue to grow and develop your desired skills. Your manager may be able to help you with this. It is also really important to make connections with others and invite outside views to test your thinking. This could be the perfect time to consider a mentor, if you don’t already have one, to weigh up options.
Even if you’ve identified with one of these three groups today, it may not stay that way. During the course of your working life, you may find yourself experiencing all three! What is important is to notice where you are - and seek out the support you need.
Knowing yourself better
Knowing yourself helps no matter where you are on the clarity continuum, but is particularly important when the way forward is not clear.
Creating a regular, reflective practice is invaluable. Try answering these questions periodically;
Over the last six [or 12] months….
What experiences have I gained and what have I learned from those experiences?
What knowledge have I gained?
What strengths and/or skills have I honed or learned?
How might these strengths or skills be transferable?
What have I really enjoyed doing?
What have I really disliked doing?
What have I done really well?
In what environment was I most productive/creative/effective?
What am I most proud of, and why?
How might I do more of what I like and less of what I don’t like going forward?
One CEO we met recently uses the following tool with her team every six months. We love the simplicity of it.
The answers to these questions could form the basis of a conversation with your boss, a mentor, a coach or a peer to help stretch your thinking on viable future options.
Good luck!
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