Steps to Take Today to Advance Your Career

Everybody wants a better job. Everybody wants more money. However, many people are clueless when it comes to the steps to take today to advance your career. There is an overwhelming amount of advice out there for job seekers, and sometimes it can be hard to know what information to take in, and what information to skim over.

Whether you're looking to land an entry-level job, or trying to get that big promotion, or changing jobs, there are certain steps you're going to need to take. While many of these steps seem simple, you are actually going to have to employ them if you wish to be more successful.

These tips can be used in any career field, from mining jobs to Wall Street, and if you want to advance your status in the long term, these are the steps to take today to advance your career.

Write things down.

You are going to want to have a goal or mission in mind, and writing it down can make it easier to stay on track during the process. If you feel like you're getting off track, you can take a look at your goals and adjust them accordingly.

While this can seem like common sense, the actual practice of writing these things down will keep you from drifting too far away from your future goals. You can also use the list to recharge your motivation if you feel like things aren't going well. Knowing where you want to go is a key part in getting there, and it's one of the more simple steps to take today to advance your career.

Take some risks.

If you hope to get anywhere substantial, a time will come when you will have to take some risks. Nobody is going to give you anything, nobody cares enough, so it will come down to you. There is also a good side to this, because nobody is going to stop you either — they don't care. Don't be afraid to speak your mind or trust your gut, people will respect you more for it — assuming you aren't an idiot or an asshole, of course.

Don't just sit back and wait for people to recognize you're doing a great job. Sadly, people are usually only going to say something if you suck at your job. Bad employees get good jobs all the time. So, if you're waiting for somebody to just hand you a promotion, you could be waiting a while.

Of course, you are going to want to calculate the risks you're taking. Don't just shoot from the hip or run your mouth the first chance you get, think about what you're going to do. It's one of the crucial steps to take today to advance your career.

Network

It's a lot easier to advance your career if you have a well-built collection of business and professional contacts. It falls into the old adage, "it's not what you know, it's who you know." That's a saying for a reason, and getting hired in a job you want without many contacts is an uphill battle.

These contacts can be friends, mentors, bosses, etc. Jobs can come and go, but a solid network foundation can go a long way in making sure you get another job, and hopefully, one that fits you even better.

Also, if you network well you will be more at peace when speaking your mind, as you won't worry too much about the power dynamic. If you are competent enough, you can always find another job — one of the most overlooked steps to take today to advance your career.

Learn more skills.

Be smart and strategic about the skills you want to develop, and then get to work developing them. Whether you have a skills gap to fill before you can get a better job, or simply want to add to your repertoire, learning new skills only makes you more marketable. If you wish to be considered for a new assignment or job, it is your responsibility to communicate what skills you bring to the table.

You can fill the gap and get more skills in a variety of ways. It can be done through education or certain degrees, or it can even be done by yourself on your own time if you're willing to put in a lot of work. You could be going after a job that doesn't require a college degree, and in that case it's likely technical training you'll need.

Ask yourself this question: what are the critical skills for success in the position you want to land? Be honest with yourself, especially if the gig you want doesn't fall into your strengths. That doesn't mean you can't get the job you want, but you'll need additional skills — one of the most practical steps to take today to advance your career.

Do your job well.

Often glossed over when thinking about steps to take today to advance your career, but you're going to want to do your job well. So you read the Wall Street Journal, have taken some classes to develop your skills, maybe you even networked a bit, but bad news: you're terrible at your job. If you can't deliver some results at your current job and build a little track record, the chances of you getting a better job are slim.

Even if it's not a job you like much at all, deliver the goods once in a while, and when it's time to leave, they may even write you a nice letter of recommendation.

Also, doing your job well will build good habits, so if you do end up getting a better job and advancing in your career, the foundational skills will already be in place. This will streamline the transition, soon enough you will be climbing higher in your new career.