Nearly two-thirds of employees cite being dissatisfied in their current roles because they do not see opportunities to develop and grow professionally. And with the current economic situation, many managers can't seem to find the time to help develop members of their team beyond their current roles.
As the team member looking to take their career to the next level, what are some of your options?
A mentor can be significant asset in developing your career. You will want to seek out a mentor who has a career path that mirrors your ideal career path. Typically, your mentor will be at least 2-3 levels or promotions ahead of you in that career path. Their insight into how they achieved success, in terms of the skills they acquired, the networks they joined and the lessons they learned, can be hugely beneficial in your career journey.
You may want to consider seeking out a sponsor within your organization. Typically this is someone several levels above you in the organizational hierarchy, who will advocate for you and your career when opportunities arise. A sponsor will likely spend far less time with you than a mentor, so you should be even more respectful of the time you spend with this individual and be sure to say thank you for their support of your career.
It's not always easy to find a sponsor or a mentor. Unfortunately, by the time individuals have the experience and insight to be an effective mentor or sponsor, they are also figuring out how to create work-life balance. Consequently, they may be more time constrained than you are. If you find yourself not having meaningful mentor or sponsor relationships for any number of reasons, you may want to consider getting a career coach. Because the career coach's full-time job is to provide you with career guidance, you are going to find them to be more targeted in their approach to helping you and far more accessible.
Career Centers can be a very effective resource if you have not found a compatible mentor or sponsor and cannot afford a traditional career coach. Career Centers will usually provide a breadth of services, including assessments, resume review and mock interviews.
If you have graduated from a college or a university that has an established alumni association, you should investigate their career development programs. Alumni programs typically will have career resource centers whose services range from remote/virtual career webinars to in person or virtual one-on-one career counseling sessions.
Ultimately, even if you are not getting the career advice and guidance you would expect at your current organization, there are a plethora of career development tools and resources out that are available to you. The most essential thing is to take action - any action that will take you one step closer to achieving your career goals.
As the team member looking to take their career to the next level, what are some of your options?
A mentor can be significant asset in developing your career. You will want to seek out a mentor who has a career path that mirrors your ideal career path. Typically, your mentor will be at least 2-3 levels or promotions ahead of you in that career path. Their insight into how they achieved success, in terms of the skills they acquired, the networks they joined and the lessons they learned, can be hugely beneficial in your career journey.
You may want to consider seeking out a sponsor within your organization. Typically this is someone several levels above you in the organizational hierarchy, who will advocate for you and your career when opportunities arise. A sponsor will likely spend far less time with you than a mentor, so you should be even more respectful of the time you spend with this individual and be sure to say thank you for their support of your career.
It's not always easy to find a sponsor or a mentor. Unfortunately, by the time individuals have the experience and insight to be an effective mentor or sponsor, they are also figuring out how to create work-life balance. Consequently, they may be more time constrained than you are. If you find yourself not having meaningful mentor or sponsor relationships for any number of reasons, you may want to consider getting a career coach. Because the career coach's full-time job is to provide you with career guidance, you are going to find them to be more targeted in their approach to helping you and far more accessible.
Career Centers can be a very effective resource if you have not found a compatible mentor or sponsor and cannot afford a traditional career coach. Career Centers will usually provide a breadth of services, including assessments, resume review and mock interviews.
If you have graduated from a college or a university that has an established alumni association, you should investigate their career development programs. Alumni programs typically will have career resource centers whose services range from remote/virtual career webinars to in person or virtual one-on-one career counseling sessions.
Ultimately, even if you are not getting the career advice and guidance you would expect at your current organization, there are a plethora of career development tools and resources out that are available to you. The most essential thing is to take action - any action that will take you one step closer to achieving your career goals.
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If you are interested in learning more about professional development visit http://www.tumblr.com/blog/careersonfire.
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