Every person’s life goal is to be successful. It could be a success in education, relationships, business, or career. Happiness breeds success; success breeds happiness. It is a chicken-or-egg-situation and both go hand-in-hand. Success stories usually have a systematic way of being achieved. Regardless of the area of success, you are targeting, it boils down to two things: attitude and outlook.
Career success is an integral part of one’s overall life success. Success in career contributes to one’s general contentment as being successful in one’s job boosts self-esteem, security, ease of mind, and confidence.
Before diving into the steps and tips to attain career success, you must define what “career success” is to you. People have different cognizance of what “success” is. One person’s definition of career success could be tenure in a company that pays very well, while to another, it may be a corner office with a personal assistant. It is important that you identify what “career success” is to you so you can have a clear vision and plan on how to achieve your goal of becoming successful.
Choose your career path with discernment:
The majority start in their jobs as long as it is good enough to help to pay the bills; some are lucky to grow into those jobs and make a career out of it, some are not.
We are in control of our career path more than we realize. Career success starts when you are comfortable with where you are and genuinely enjoy the work that you do every day. If the career you ended up with is not exactly your cup of tea, you can either embrace it or start over with a totally different career. The journey to career success begins when you are happy with your job. Fake-it-‘til-you-make-it may work for some on the surface, but it eventually puts a strain on one’s work and personal life, affecting one’s overall drive and performance. So, while you can, take the time to ensure that the career you will choose is one where you can see yourself in for the long haul.
Have a distinct professional brand:
Communicating your value and what sets you apart from others is a basic, yet vital, step to being on your way to having a successful career. A professional brand is your work persona; it is how you present yourself to the public, which is your colleagues, customers/clients, boss, or business partners. Cultivating your personal brand is crucial to get noticed.
Your brand should be chronicled, translated into writing which, in essence, is your resume or portfolio. You want people to associate your brand with trust, dependability, and effectiveness. If putting your brand into words is not your forte, consider getting professional help to help convey your brand better. And at the rate of online advances right now, it would help you quite well if you know how to add a resume to your LinkedIn.
Take the initiative; go the extra mile:
Each career has its own set of universal job descriptions, roles, and responsibilities to execute. In a career in public relations, a basic task may be to build and maintain a great relationship with the public; going the extra mile could be pitching in on a well-thought-out media event to boost the company’s brand. If the boss asks you for the details and specifics, you don’t sweat it because you have all the information handy and ready from the budget, itemized expected expense, to the itinerary.
Employers immensely appreciate employees who take the initiative; those who bring fresh ideas to the table and who prod themselves to go the extra mile instead of being told what to do and how to do it. Taking the initiative shows a strong work ethic and a sincere desire to contribute to efficient workflow and overall success of the company.
Make yourself essential; be amiable:
As an employer, there is nothing more refreshing than employing someone who will make every effort to contribute and help the company prosper. Employees who are adaptive and do not get flustered quickly by changes are also the ones who do not stress easily by sudden shifts in the workplace.
We are naturally social beings. While some thrive in socializing at work, many prefer to keep a strict line between work and socializing at work. That is fine. Some thrive better when “work” and “fraternizing” are not mixed, where familiarity with colleagues will not put pressure on decision-making at work.
However, being amiable at work does wonders for one’s career. Drawing attention to yourself is much better than keeping a low-profile in terms of career advancement. Be compassionate with those around you and lend a helping hand whenever you can. Remember the term professional brand? Branding means being top of mind. Aim to be top of mind by your colleagues and boss in a positive light. If you always come to mind in terms of work productivity, you are well on your way to a successful career.
These are great traits to have as this involves and relies on the people around you. Create a demand for yourself. Creating a demand makes you essential. Being essential means more difficult to replace, which adds value to you as an employee.
Be solution-oriented, not problem-focused:
Analyzing the why’s is the way to get the how’s. Understanding the problem leads to a solution, but don’t get sucked-in by focusing on the problem alone. Instead, develop a mindset where there is a solution to everything and seek answers, instead of reasons, as to why something may not be feasible. Provide a solution and adapt a go-getter attitude.
Be gracious with feedback:
Feedback and constructive criticism are essential to one’s growth and development. Mistakes are unavoidable and we learn from it. Keep your ears to the ground and an open mind when giving and receiving feedback. Feedback is a mix of positive and negative comments and can be hard to swallow at times. Be gracious and take it for what it is: a piece of advice to do better. Show your appreciation to the one giving you feedback. Do not feel the need to defend or justify yourself as this often leads to unnecessary tension. Showing maturity and resilience is an admirable attribute to possess.
Pick your battles and take ownership:
People who are incredibly passionate about their careers tend to take everything more personally – be it the good or the bad. People who have a sincere appreciation of their job have no qualms in taking responsibility for everything they do – be it an accomplishment or a blunder.
Disagreements in the workplace are not uncommon. When faced with differences or confrontation at work, pick your battles wisely. Being passionate about the work we do encourages us to try and win every argument or debate. Having the last word is not always a good thing. Taking the high road and letting issues slide is a more difficult task than tackling it head-on, especially when it comes to petty matters. Part of the path to success is reserving your energy for more worthy “battles”.
Another trait that is essential, but not talked about enough, is taking ownership in everything you do. This means taking accountability for whatever the result is of your actions. Successful people have a good gauge of the possible outcome of the actions they make. So, taking ownership is not as daunting as it seems.
Always strive for improvement:
Whenever you have the opportunity to learn new things or improve your skills, take it. There is not a clear-cut standard of what success looks like, as it is different for everyone, but always strive for a better version of you and challenge yourself one step ahead of your colleagues – and even your boss – at all times. No matter how good and proficient we are in our career, we can always be better as improvement is continuous, never stagnant.
Conclusion
In essence, being successful in your chosen career means that you have established your value. Career success is subjective and may not look the same for everyone. However, two common factors with any career success are job stability and financial security. Working hard is no longer enough to ensure success in a career. It is a mixture of attitude, strategy, outlook, and luck. Whichever way you define your success, if you find yourself fortunate and over the moon over your career, you are on the right track.
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Andrie Steliou
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