Most people who achieved success worked proactively to get there. Planning your career is an important activity that many of them choose to avoid as it can be intimidating. However, creating long and short-term goals allows you to take concrete steps towards taking charge of your professional life, actions, activities and choices, making you a more desirable candidate.

1. Tips To Plan Your Career
Most people who achieved success worked proactively to get there. Planning your career is an
important activity that many of them choose to avoid as it can be intimidating. However, creating
long and short-term goals allows you to take concrete steps towards taking charge of your
professional life, actions, activities and choices, making you a more desirable candidate.
Career planning is not just an activity to be undertaken at the start of your career. It should be
undertaken at regular intervals. Businesses are constantly looking to hire and retain high-value
employees and having a career plan helps you adapt and market yourself. Read on to find out
the steps to take to get where you want to and achieve professional success.
Question Yourself
Think about your progress in terms of productivity and performance. Are you happy in your
current position or career path? Is this the career you want? Question whether your current plan
best suits your goals. Invest in your career development by speaking to your manager and
employees in different departments. Often, don’t hesitate over utilising company programs and if
they aren’t available, attend workshops to broaden your horizons and experiences. You might
just find that you would like to explore a new job in a different department.
Take Stock
Getting caught up in the daily humdrum of work can often leave you unable to reflect on your
career path but taking the time to do so is critical to your success. Think about the things that
matter to you, your skills, passions and values. Formulate a plan and take stock as as your
desires, priorities and inclinations change so that you can tweak your goals or know when to
look for different opportunities.
Set Goals
After thinking about what you like to do, decide on the manner you would like to get there. It is
possible to achieve success without setting goals but this process is made much easier with
having clearly defined long and short term goals. Setting goals brings you a step closer to
creating a career plan. An easy way to set goals is by following the SMART goal criteria - your
goal should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and timebound. Stick to goals by
writing them down and share them with someone close to you.
Prioritise Prospects
Think about your current path and the skills and experience you will need to achieve your goals.
Locate career options open to you and assess whether you will be interested in pursuing them.
Talk to people in those fields, research prospective companies and narrow down your list. Now
that you have a list of jobs that you would like to apply to and a knowledge of your current skills,
prioritise on working on the most important prospects.
Invest in You
Invest in your career development by learning about different jobs and attend various events
and workshops. Take every opportunity to find the courses that will further your goals. Speaking
to a boss or superior will help manage your career. You could also build relationships with
people outside your organisation by attending events and conferences. The better your network,
the more options you have to connect with successful people.

2. Make a Plan
A plan gives you a sense of direction and acts as a benchmark to measure your progress.
Knowing your capabilities and the direction you need to take is necessary to developing your
plan. Figure out how to do to get there, whether you need to gain more experience or the
consequences or benefits of choosing a different career. Now is the best time to make the
difficult decisions and go down a career path of your choosing.
Take the time out to prepare yourself for the future and by steering your career in the direction
you choose but stay open-minded about opportunities that come your way even if they do not
perfectly suit your ideas or goals. Planning your career might seem like a lot of work but the
rewards are well worth it. Always know where you stand, what you want and where you want to
be and to find yourself on the path to success.