Happy New Year!
Seriously, I mean that. I hope you have a happy new year. After the last couple of years, we all deserve it.
Traditionally the new year is a time for setting new years resolutions, but to be honest, I am not a fan of that. Setting a few minor changes at which I will inevitably fail, leaves me somewhat cold.
That said, I do like to use the new year to take stock of my life in a broader sense, and it is what I want to talk about today. Not my life, but yours, and in particular, your career.
Whether you work in-house or run your own business, it is easy for your work life to lack direction. Although I hate the generic interview question “where do you see yourself in five years,” there is a good sentiment behind it.
We need to be thinking about where our career is going. Otherwise, it is easy to get swept along and end miles away from our destination.
Where Are You Heading?
Of course, that means we need to know what our destination is, which can often be elusive. First, many of us don’t know where we want to go in our careers. Then some of us think we want to do one thing, but that is not what we actually want.
That second point is widespread among those I mentor. I often hear agency owners talk about growing their agency or freelancers, saying they want ‘better’ clients. However, often if you dig a little deeper with them, these are not their true objectives, yet they don’t even realize that.
For example, an agency owner who wants to grow their business might really want to do so because they want to take home more money. However, growing a business isn’t the only way to achieve that goal.
Or that freelancer who wants better clients might mean easier clients because they feel overwhelmed and stressed. But, again, many approaches to reducing stress have nothing to do with changing your client base.
Decide on Your Destination
So here is my advice if you are also not a fan of short-term new years resolutions, decide on your destination. Where do you want to be in your career? Forget the five years thing because nothing happens on a schedule. However, at least know where you want to go.
So how do you decide on that?
Begin by picturing what you want your life to be like. What do you want your perfect life to be? Do you want to work less, travel more, make more money, have more time with family, or something else?
Challenge yourself over that picture. Ask yourself why you want it. Is there a more profound need you have that you could achieve differently?
Next, ask yourself what kind of career would support that? Would you work in-house or for yourself? In-house brings stability, but your own business offers flexibility.
Think about the shape of the role you would be fulfilling? For example, do you want full-time or part-time? What about where you work? Do you want to be able to work from anywhere?
What about the type of work? Does it need to be interesting, or would you be willing to sacrifice that for money or flexibility?
Don’t overly worry about how ambitious or otherwise your destination is. However, keep it within the realms of possibility; otherwise, you will get demoralized. You can always revise your destination in the future.
Once you know where you want to go, you can look for ways to get there.
How to Get to Your Destination
I don’t worry too much about the path or timescales for reaching my destination.
Life is too unpredictable to chart a straight course to your destination. However, if you have a clear picture of where you want to be, it will guide your decisions along the way.
It will also help you spot opportunities, which might help you move closer to your destination. They come along more often than you think, but we often fail to notice them unless we can see their value. You will only recognize that if you know where you are heading.
Having a destination in mind also helps you realize when you are in a rut or stuck in a dead-end job. It will give you the confidence to make a change when required.
Of course, all of this is easier said than done. It can be hard to identify what you are looking for from life and work. It can be harder still to work out positive steps you can take towards your goals.
Get Some Help
It helps to get some support. Somebody who can guide you in your career and, to some extent, your life. That can be anyone, although I always favor those I admire who live some aspect of the life I want.
It could be a friend to hold you accountable, an expert you admire in your field, or even a community of people, like the Boagworld Slack Community.
Then, of course, there are professional coaches like myself. We don’t have any magic answers, but it can be helpful to speak to somebody who also speaks to many others in your situation.
The most significant benefit you will receive from involving somebody else is accountability. Although this stuff is essential, it is not urgent and can quickly end up on the back burner. Having somebody to talk to prevents that from happening.
So, if you want to make this happen, I want to make you an offer. If you are interested in me mentoring you in your career, I will knock off 10% off my regular coaching prices for January. I am limiting the time, not to pressure you, but to help you prioritize and prevent this from slipping.
If that is of interest, drop me a reply to paul@boagworks.com, and I will tell you more about how it works. Otherwise, I would encourage you to find anybody who can support you on this journey. As I said, you need accountability to get you on track towards your destination.
Thanks,
P.S. If you are a developer who needs a career change to reach your destination, I encourage you to check out this developer position at Headscape (the agency I co-founded). They are looking for a new developer and provide a lot of flexibility in working.
