CAREER SUCCESS

Starting an excellent career requires hardwork, careful planning and your full commitment. There are essential steps you need to carry out to ensure your goal of beginning an career is established.

1.Define your goal and interest: This is of utmost importance as you need to clearly state what you want to achieve. You must know your destination before you attempt any journey, or any road would look like your path. Defining your goals and interest would be your compass to getting where you want to get to.

2. Research the job market: A thorough research of the job market would allow you know what fields and skills are in demand, to enable you know where to pinch your tent appropriately. It would also allow you know which field allows for your development and growth.

3. Develop relevant skills and experiences: Build yourself to match your field. Go for trainings, volunteering and, internships that would help develop and harness your skills. No blunt tool can function optimally without being sharpened, so sharpen yourself.

Network with people in your target industry: Build relationships with experts and experienced people in your desired field so as to get abreast with the trends and knowledge in your path of career.

Create a strong resume: Your resume is your identity to your potential employer; it is their first contact with you even before they physically meet you. Highlight your skills, experience and achievements to boost your image and suitability for your desired post.

Keep learning and growing: It is popularly said that learning is a continuous process, so you would need to continue learning and growing on your chosen field.

Stay focused and motivated: Ensure you have a positive outlook on happenings in your career paths, and continually strive at reaching your career goal by setting reasonable and attainable goals, also hold yourself accountable for your actions.

VITAL KEY POINTS TO ATTAINING YOUR CAREER GOALS

Mind your associations: It is said that "you always look like people you move around with." To go far in achieving your goals, ensure that you associate with people who have the same zeal as you to wanting success. Do not move with people whose only aim is to talk you down or distract you from achieving what you want to achieve. The funny thing is that they know they are going nowhere, and they want others to sail that same boat with them, they even go as far as dragging down others who are heading to the top or are already at the top.

Know yourself: This is a very important point that can not be overlooked, you must learn yourself that is, your strengths, weakness, what encourages and discourages you ( your driving force) especially in times when you will feel discouraged and need a push. Knowing yourself helps you to know what career paths suites you best and what you love doing and staying on it for a long time.

Be open minded: Keeping an open mind helps you to adapt to changing situations. Each career paths are prone to innovations that would require you learn, un-learn and re-learn.

Find Means to develop yourself: Get enlightened every step of the way, do not be left out of the moving train. Read books on your line of field, attend seminars and trainings, take professional exams that would help sharpen your skills more.

Keep an eye out for opportunities: Opportunity always meet preparation, once you have done your part in finetuning your knowledge and skills, you should keep your eyes open to grab any open opportunity that comes your way. Do not let favorable opportunities pass you by because you are unprepared for it or out of shape for the said opportunity. Do this and the sky would be your steppingstone.

written by; Okoro Mary Amarachi