Career re-invention is a mindset that enables an individual to discover who they are and what they need to do to build new skills to become best version of themselves. Career reinvention is a must for a professional to be a well-rounded one. They should constantly learn and be ready to adapt to a constantly changing world.
Why does one need to Re-invent their career?
The last year (2020) changed the way we all work, travel and even our day-to-day activities. We were suddenly thrown into unfamiliar territory with having to adapt a new way of living and working. Finding a foot hold to navigate through this new way has been difficult and with its own challenges, where we have often questioned ourselves:
Is my career headed in the right direction? What skills must I build that can help me progress in my career?
What would be the apt career change? Which career would give me self-fulfillment?
Before making a 360` change into something new, you may want to consider these few key inputs:
a. Understand the Why Ask yourself the what are the reasons YOU want to change your career. Your why can be the guiding force to aid you in identifying the type of opportunities you must pursue. For example, your WHY can be: stress at work (or) a healthy work balance with shorter hours and more flexibility (or) you have an idea that has great business potential etc.
b. Take a stock your skills Outline your core skills to get a better understanding of your professional and personal strengths. List down the skills you want to develop. Next to acquiring these new skills, ask yourself
Do I need to get additional certifications (or) have to go back to school?
Would it be helpful to hire a Career Coach to mentor and enable me to build and showcase these new skills?
c. Look inward Connect to your inner self to find out what brings joy to you in your work. Take a few self-assessments to better Identify clearly what your unique strengths are.
Coach Johncey’s Discover the REAL YOU program helps you in identifying your core values, core strengths and life purpose which help you understand yourself better.
In parallel, soundboard with family, friends and colleagues to seek feedback asking them to provide insights about yourself, mainly on your key strengths, areas of improvement, leadership attributes etc. which can add to giving you a picture of how others see you. These insights will not only support to re-invent your career but also empower you to explore your personal growth.
d. Invest outward, Social impact More working professionals now seek much more meaning from what they do to earn for a living. They want to reinvent their careers so they can make a difference which can help in creating a positive social impact for their communities. As a result, social impact organizations that cater to career changers are emerging. If such is the case, you may want to bear in mind to pursue career paths that provide meaning as well as financial rewards which may lead to career fulfilment.
e. Eliminate your biggest obstacle Think about what are the main reasons holding you back from creating this new You. Be transparent and jot down your key concerns. Some of your concerns probably may include things like: – I have too many responsibilities to take such a big risk – Now is not the perfect time to make this new career change – I’ve invested too much in my current career to throw it away – I don’t know what I want to do next – I’m too scared All these self-doubts can be debunked. The key is to make the mental shift from wanting something different to actually doing something about it. The biggest obstacle of all is you. Ultimately, if you can believe it, you can achieve it.
f. Importance of a re-invent mindset for one’s personal and professional development The most fulfilling path to success and personal fulfilment often comes through the pursuit of your own self-development. Making a commitment to your own personal and professional development is often the first step to find success in whatever that fuels your personal growth.
Finding ways to re-invent your career would directly make you take stock of your career to keep you engaged and challenge you to do your best. It would also reward you with meaningful experiences that enrich your personal and professional growth.
How can one Re-invent their career?
Strategy, forward planning and an open mind would help in bringing out the best version of your new self. You can apply these basic strategies to enable you to find your
a. Explore a wide array of choices – including the unthinkable Think outside the box and list out choices which may not be the usual (or) the typical ones. For example: Outline a scenario, where you may lose a job in such uncertain times.
This event may have not happened for now but may happen in the future due to new automation (or) budget cuts. If so, what can you do to best prepare yourself for such a calamity? What would your action plan be to reinvent your career?
Apart from building some of your current earnings to support you through this difficult phase, you may have to be ready to downsize where necessary E.g.: Reduce your expenses to cater to basic needs and not any big expenditures, Move to a smaller and cheaper apartment etc.
Anything can happen in uncertain times. We often avoid confronting our worst-case scenarios. However, consciously considering the unimaginable outcomes can be less intimidating.
Doing so would enable one to think through the potential alternate choices that can be made to be better prepared for whatever comes your way.
b. Imagine your best possible future Imagining best-case-scenario futures is perhaps even harder than preparing for the worst. Here are some strategies to help you get started:
– Think of some of the challenging moments in your life that has shaped your personal career choices. List down what did you do differently to adapt in these situations.
– Construct a personal highlights list to help you recollect the moments you were at your best. The patterns you discover would act as clues to help you better understand what bring you joy in your workplace. For example: If you have enjoyed finding solutions to solve a problem (or) improve stakeholder engagement, you might want to consider learning new skills for problem solving such as analytics (or) customer interaction though customer success management.
– Think outside of your past experiences and imagine a future where you can showcase skills on some of the new emerging industry trends that you find interesting.
c. Build capabilities relevant to your future self Identify a list of new skills you want to cultivate to help you become this new You to meet your broad personal and professional goals, and then determine which jobs might be a good fit. To identify and develop new skills, we recommend the following tips: • Find opportunities to practice new skills in your current role. • Explore online programs and courses • Reach out to people you can learn from through informal mentoring (or) formal career coaching.
d. Start small Focus on what you can change in the short term. Instead of taking BIG goals, start with small steps and goals. Ask yourself “What could I accomplish if I gave myself a week?” Based on your results, outline a clear plan on what can you accomplish more if you had a month, 6 months or a year? This will help you stay committed and also have a sense of achievement when you cross off a few things you marked as to do in your list of goals.
e. Be ruthless about what you need to leave behind Moving forward means taking a clear-eyed view of what’s no longer serving you and giving yourself the space to pursue something new. Junk and trash habits and behaviours that may deter you reaching this new version of You.
f. Rebrand yourself Consider yourself as the best product and market yourself. Creating a good online presence would enable you to showcase what you can offer as a professional. It would assist not only in increasing your networking skills but help in building your professional reputation. At the very least, you should have a robust LinkedIn profile that reflects the “new” you.
g. Seek consul and advice from experienced people Enlist a Career Coach to help you to navigate this new course of your professional life. They can guide and help you find clarity by: – Gaining a better understanding of your strengths and what drives you – Provide you constructive and transparent feedback – Enable you with tools, tips and techniques to re-invent you and your career – Guide you to navigate through difficult career decisions and transition into new career paths – Hold you accountable to your goals – Empower you to create your very own professional brand
The path and the journey to reinvent one’s career is different for everyone. A few make minor changes where as some do a complete career overhaul. So, it’s up to you to figure out what drives you to achieve not only your career goals but have the most rewarding experiences doing so.
Career reinvention in today’s work environment is not only critical to staying relevant but necessary mindset if you must subscribe to and practice to stay invested of your future
So, go ahead and re-invent your career and take charge to chart the course you want to take, for they say “It’s never too late to BE what you might have been”
Please reach out and have a free consultation discussion with Coach Johncey to help you move forward in your career.
Author: Johncey George is an International Coaching Federation certified Leadership and Life Coach. He focuses on working with Introvert Professionals, helping them grow as leaders by unleashing their potential.
He helps introverts celebrate their strengths and become successful as leaders. Being an introvert himself, he understands their thinking process. He combines this knowledge, his corporate leadership experience and his coaching experience to help create more leaders among the Introverts.
Johncey has 23 years of corporate leadership experience and done his BE and Management Education from IIM Bangalore, Harvard Business School, ISB Hyderabad.
His company, Johncey George Consulting Pvt Ltd, does Leadership Development through Coaching, under the brand Coach Johncey (www.coachjohncey.com)
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