Career advice can be found at all corners of the Internet. Within a few clicks of a mouse you may stumble upon someone in a similar situation as you, an article about resigning from your job, or even land an informational interview with someone in your dream role. If you’re looking for advice as it relates to your career, you’re not alone. The advice you seek, however, can vary greatly.
When it comes to your career, the advice you seek can vary depending on what stage you are in. Most of the advice we seek centers around achieving success, whatever that may mean to you. If you are constantly chasing success, your definition of it likely keeps changing. In turn, so should the advice you seek.
While it is true that career advice is not “one size fits all,” some career advice can be pretty similar. Sometimes looking at things from a different perspective may actually be the most beneficial. Instead of trying to figure out what to do in a situation, try looking at it from the perspective of what not to do. You might be surprised with you come up with.
In an article for SmartBrief, LaRae Quy provides three great career tips that you will likely never hear, but definitely need to. They are as follows:
Sit Down With a Friend
Sometimes when you are so focused on achieving a goal, you may become lost in the chase. Having an outsider’s perspective on your journey can be greatly beneficial and give you a fresh take on your approach. By talking through your goal(s) with a friend, you can clarify what it exactly is that you want. You may even think of a new approach.
Quy recommends asking yourself the same question, such as “what do I want?” 15 times. In doing so, you can figure out what truly matters to you. If you ask a friend, their answer will most likely be different than yours.
Remember the Crossroads
No two career trajectories are the same. Even if you and your colleague have the same title, chances are the paths you each took to your current role greatly differ. The common thread is that your journey has shaped who you have become and how you got to where you are.
If you look back at your career, no matter how far into it you are, you have likely been faced with making some difficult decisions. Going to one college over another, majoring in this subject instead of that other one, moving to a new city or staying where you are comfortable, so on and so forth. These decisions helped get you to where you are today and propelled you in a new direction.
Embrace Your History
Hindsight is always 20/20 but remember that your journey has shaped who you are today. It is easy to look back and think “had I known then what I know now,” and wonder how things would be different, but you can’t change the past so you might as well reflect on it and take control of your future. Plus, once you realize this, you will be a lot happier.
Wrap Up
The definition of success varies from person to person. The common thread is that we all chase this feeling. As we continue to grow and learn throughout our careers, our definition of success follows suit. Once we think we achieve success, our goals change and we continue churning along towards our new definition. On this path to success it is common to seek advice. While most of this advice is the same and may focus on goal setting, these three tips are not as common, but need to be heard.
Before You Go
View Current Job Openings
Follow NexGoal on Twitter
“Like” NexGoal on Facebook
Connect with NexGoal on LinkedIn