Have you ever dreamed about what job you want to have next? Whether that’s in your current company or moving to another organization, you are in the driver’s seat for what happens next. The question is, do you know how to stand out in a pool of applicants to get there?

Think about taking a 2-week road trip. You wouldn’t just get in the car and go. You would plan to stop at interesting places along the way and have a list of specific things to see throughout the journey. Your career can be a lot like an itinerary for a long trip: have a plan for your next stop in your journey and know how you are going to get there.

Sometimes we might get lost along the way to our destination, ending up with a flat tire that slows us down, or deciding that we want to stay somewhere longer than we initially planned. Or maybe we change plans all together. That’s okay too! If you need some help figuring out where to go next in your journey or plotting a map of your future roles and steps to take to help you reach your career goals, the team at WCG can help.

Own Your Career Development

To establish yourself as a standout employee who can advance in their career and support broader organizational goals, you must take initiative and drive your own development. This means having a conversation with your leader to understand how you can progress within your organization and being open to feedback about where they see you still need to grow. Before you have that conversation though, you need to build a career development plan and share it with your manager. This shows you are serious about your career and committed to learning things along the way.

Some organizations have specific documents or processes for a career development plan, but if not, find a template that works for you! Indeed offers an example if you don’t know where to start. There are ultimately 4 components of a professional development plan that Indeed recommends you have in place: 

• Professional Goals and Aspirations – Sometimes these can be hard to quantify and other times it’s crystal clear. Spend dedicated time understanding if you want a leadership role or continue to learn and grow your career through functional expertise. Being able to articulate what you want will help your leader understand how to best support your development. It is important to prioritize what’s most important to you and how that lines up for your professional goals as well.

• Strengths and Talents – There is a lot of research out there that indicates the more we lean into our strengths and manage our weaknesses, the more successful we become. A number of strengths-based assessments are available in the market, and your company might even offer employees this service. At WCG, we use MBTI career resources with our clients. Gallup’s Strengths Finder is another one you may have heard of.

• Development Opportunities – Ideally, any professional development opportunities are linked to your performance. Find ways (in partnership with your boss or mentor, of course) to intertwine your work with exposure to senior leaders by presenting something at a meeting or volunteering to work on an important project. It’s important for HR and senior leadership to get to know you and your work. 

• Action Plans – It’s great to say that you want to do something, but how will you ensure you get it done? Set SMART goals for your action plan,be realistic about the timeframe, and that they are attainable.

When deciding upon professional development opportunities, recognize that not all opportunities occur in the traditional classroom setting. There are many options to consider to grow your career. Typically, 70% of the learning is done on-the-job through challenging assignments or learning new skills. Development opportunities can  include: 

• Membership in professional organizations (in-person and online, such as LinkedIn groups) 

• Increased job responsibilities/on-the-job training in other areas

• “Field trips” to applicable development opportunities 

• Research & report-outs to the team 

• Mentoring 

• Conferences 

• Online or in-person course-based learning opportunities

How to Prepare for a Development Conversation

Once you have your draft development plan in place, prepare for the conversation with your manager or leadership team. Consider how you want to tell your story and share how you see yourself making an impact on your team and the organization. Practice sharing this with your personal board of directors. If you aren’t familiar with this term, Harvard Business Review defines it as “a more expansive network of individuals who act as independent advisers to you.” Just as a company has a board, this is a group that you assemble to support you in your development and can also hold you accountable, depending on the role you ask them to play. A friend may offer a different perspective than a career coach or a former peer would. Getting multiple perspectives is helpful.

After you have received input, have the conversation with your boss. Be prepared to receive constructive feedback in your development conversation if it occurs separately from your performance review (which is the ideal scenario). Just because you have a plan in mind, doesn’t mean that everyone agrees right away and says, “Yes, we must promote you right away!” Do not get defensive when you hear feedback or react in the moment. Acknowledge the feedback and make time to reflect and process it. Share it with your board of directors for their thoughts and input. You may also need to ask more questions for clarification as you refine your development plan. This plan should be a living, breathing document that is regularly reviewed and updated. And don’t forget to celebrate your successes along the way too!

Where to Next?

The more time you spend planning for the trip, often the more you can relax once you arrive. Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “it’s not the destination, it’s the journey.” This is so true about your career and how each opportunity you have ultimately influences the next one. Learning what you don’t like doing along the way is just as important as understanding your strengths. So now the question is: Where’s your career going to take you next? 

Do you have a career coach on your board of directors? Reach out to The Wilbanks Consulting Group so we can partner together to develop a coaching plan for your career development and success.