What do you want?
Twelve months from now, what shifts do you want to see? Is it a new job, a promotion, a career change, or even retirement? Or, your goal could be to develop a key leadership quality, specific skills, or a personality trait to support your career growth.
It’s not going to happen without purposeful planning and setting intentional goals. The first step is to take time to reflect and consider what is important to you at this stage in your career.
Reflect and assess:
- What were your achievements and successes in this past year?
- What were the challenges you faced?
- From these, what did you learn? How did you become stronger, better?
Anticipate and plan:
- What are your intentions or goals for the next 12 months?
- What do you want to achieve or experience?
- Why is this important to you? If you want to truly move yourself forward, ask yourself why you really want this. Uncovering this core motivator leads to real change.
- List 3 small goals, with concrete outcome dates, that support your intentions.
Choose a guiding word for the next 12 months:
Select a powerful and engaging word that speaks to and supports what you most want to achieve. Whether in your career or personal life, let that word be your mantra for the year ahead. Mine is: ‘refresh’. My guiding word reminds me that I need to ensure I refresh and take time to strengthen and renew. To achieve my career and business goals, taking time to refresh is what will sustain me. It’s a word that will guide my decisions and actions in this year ahead. Take a moment to set your intentional word for what you want to achieve and experience, or the challenge you want to overcome.
Finding you can’t take your foot off the pedal, read: Why you can’t stop being so crazy busy. Stress Therapist Di Philippi suggests you ask yourself some tough questions to get at the root of what is holding you back:
- “What stops you from saying “no” to more things?”
- “Conversely, what keeps you saying “yes” to things?”
- “What stops you from drawing some boundaries?”
- “How much choice do you have in being crazy busy? (Keep asking that one.)”
- “Have you tried sleeping more instead of less?”
- “If you had extra downtime, would you know what to do with it?”
- “Is it possible you get benefits or a payoff from continuing to be so crazy busy?”
By applying focus, getting clarity and anticipating what’s ahead, you lead yourself to success. It’s an investment of 20-30 minutes to shift your year, your career, and most importantly, your life. So start moving forward, step by step, to reach your goals.
‘Advance confidently in the direction of your dreams and you will meet with success.’ – Thoreau
What’s one thing you can do today to ensure you reach your goals?
Author: Joanne Loberg of JL Careers Inc. is a Certified Executive Coach and Internationally Certified Career Management Professional. She has a reputation as a highly sought-after Career Consultant and she has been referred to as “an absolute expert at navigating the complex territory of career advancement.” Copyright JL Careers Inc. All rights reserved.
Wishing you much career success!
Joanne Loberg
Certified Executive Coach & Internationally Certified Career Management Professional
JL Careers Inc.
