New Year, New Career

In general, I’m not a big fan of New Year’s resolutions.  Too much talk, not enough follow-through. 

When it comes to career success, however, finding the job you want takes discipline, determination and perseverance.  To stay focused, hold yourself accountable by making a career-related resolution. 

These tips will help you stay motivated and jump start your job search in 2011:

• Re-evaluate your priorities.  Make a list of your most important career-related goals.  Circle the top two and focus on achieving only those most important things first.  Leave lower priority activities for later – even if they’ll “just take a minute.”  Why?  It’s a matter of focus.  Doing the things that best serve your career objectives will keep you from wasting time and energy on non-essential tasks.
• Start a new company – Me, Inc.  This year, make developing the means of your economic survival and career fulfillment the center of your life.  Think of yourself not merely as a person looking for a job, but as a corporation that always acts in the best interests of its survival.  Run your job search as a business:  learn what’s going on in your market; think of your set of job skills as the products/services you sell; view potential employers as your potential customer base.
• Brush up on hard job skills.  Industries, technologies and work environments are continually changing – are you keeping pace?  Renew your commitment to education in 2011, ensuring that your knowledge base, certifications and vital job skills stay current.
• Update your 60-second “elevator pitch.”  Take a fresh look at your personal brand.  Scan your 2010 calendar, status reports, computer files, etc. to determine what you achieved that makes you more employable than you were a year ago.  Write down a list of your significant accomplishments and work those into an updated branding message.
• Read to stay current.  Make information-seeking a habit.  Read one new book per month related to your industry or profession.  Go online and find blogs written by industry leaders to stay up-to-date on trends.  Scan them periodically to determine which are the best, and then subscribe to those RSS feeds so you automatically receive updates.  Information-seeking will not only make you more knowledgeable; it may also uncover new opportunities for employment.
• Join, and be active in, a group or association.  Whether it’s a professional group tied to your field, a civic organization like Rotary, or a networking association, these get-togethers provide regular opportunities to meet new people, learn new things and land the job you really want.
• Enlist the help of recruiting and employment experts.  At Snelling Staffing Services, we offer a wide range of employment opportunities to achieve your career and personal goals.  Through relationships with leading employers in each local community, we provide access to top companies and positions – many of which are not advertised or posted elsewhere.  Change your future.  Change your life in 2011.  Find a job with Snelling today.