That is not an easy question to answer. After all, a new job could bring you a higher salary, more authority, greater responsibility, a better chance for promotion, even a better work environment. On the other hand, making a move for the wrong reason can send you down a treacherous path and away from your ultimate goal.
Consider the stories of two former clients. Their names are changed, but their stories are true. Jim Peters dreamed of becoming a Sales Manager for a national construction company. After spending five years as a salesperson for a Georgia-based construction company, he believes it’s time to move on. He feels underpaid and sees no room to move forward. After quietly talking to a few local companies (who are hiring vendors with his level of experience), he takes a higher-paying job at an architecture firm.
Four years later, Jim is ready to move again. Although he enjoys his boss, the job is more difficult than his previous job and the chances for promotion are non-existent. What’s worse, the 10% raise Jim engineered on changing jobs was also paid to his successor at his old construction sales job.
Disenchanted with architecture sales, Jim opts to return to construction sales. Learning that Washington, DC is one of the most popular construction markets, Jim starts looking there. But no firm is willing to raise his salary because his architectural sales experience is worthless. A company offers a job without a salary increase. Jim agrees, rationalizing that there will be an opportunity to move on later. Jim moves to Washington. But disappointment arises a few years later when his long-awaited promotion does not materialize. Jim eventually buys a fast food franchise with his brother-in-law.
Bill Doyle, an valedictorian civil engineering student, dreams of leading a design team for one of the nation’s leading engineering firms designing luxury hotels. But no civil engineering firm hires at his university. His resumes do not generate interviews from his target employers. Instead, upon graduation, he settles for an offer from a local utility company.
Three years later, Bill learns of the exceptional salaries civil engineers earn in the Texas oil fields. This time, submitting a resume leads to an offer and a 25% salary increase with a major oil company. Bill dicks. Five years later, the oil slump hits and Bill is fired. After six months of searching, he finds a job designing pulp and paper plants for a 20% pay cut. Eventually, Bill finds his way back into hotel design, as an individual designer, not a manager, for a rather boring national chain of hotels.
Unfortunately, both Jim and Bill made fundamental and common mistakes. They were willing to change jobs for better offers, but their moves never moved them toward their ultimate career goals. The end result was a lot of movement that did not lead to the desired destination.
Don’t let the same thing happen to your career goals. With some basic career planning, you can find the right jobs and know when to accept the right offers.
The following career planning method uses straightforward common sense. Don’t be fooled by the simplicity. The difficulty comes in the execution. You will need discipline, self-assessment and commitment.
A safe two-step plan
My advice boils down to two points: adopt a career goal, and then develop plans to execute it. These two steps allow you, not fate, to control your progress.
Your career goal should be a specific position within a specific industry (ie, you might want to be executive editor for a technical publishing company or chief engineer for a major auto parts manufacturer).
Your work plan will have two elements. Your long-term plan will be a list of all the jobs you must have to reach your career goal. This plan should include not only the titles of the positions, but also all the skills and experience necessary for each position. Your short-term work plan will list the skills and experience needed to move up to the next rung of the ladder.
For most of us, there are no shortcuts. Only with a goal in mind can you know when you have arrived. Only with a plan can you be sure that you will arrive on time, or at all.
To choose an appropriate goal, candidly assess your experience, skills, interests, strengths, weaknesses, enthusiasms, and dislikes. If you find self-assessment difficult, ask a close friend for help or consult a career counselor. Once you have a clear picture of how you work best, you can select a career goal that fits your character.
ask, ask
Try to get an idea of the day-to-day reality of the position you are applying for. Research is paramount here. Spend time in the library. Read relevant books and magazines. Talk to executive recruiters. They know what it takes to thrive in a given role. As you begin to clarify your goal, interview people who have achieved it. Find out if he really wants his responsibilities and hard work. (Either way, it’s better to know ahead of time.)
To start establishing your roadmap, ask your role models how they got promoted to their current positions. Record your career histories and consider the composite result a very rough roadmap. You cannot follow their advice to the letter, because the career landscape is always changing slightly. For example, foreign languages may become important as your business or industry becomes more international. You may need expertise in a process or technology that didn’t exist when your mentors were in your era.
So, be sure to ask your role models two additional questions: What qualifications was your successor expected to have, and what skills did you lack, but wish you had, when you started this job? As you begin to see the path to your goal, interview the people who have positions on your path. The better you understand what awaits you, the better you can meet the challenge.
When you are ready to go ahead with your plan, time becomes of the essence. You should look for each new job as soon as you are prepared to succeed in it. Moving before you have the skills and confidence can be disastrous for your career and business. Also, there is no need to move too early or too high just because a great opportunity arrives prematurely. There are always opportunities for outstanding talent.
Similarly, there is no professional benefit to staying at your current job once you’ve prepared for another. Loyalty and stagnation are two different things. As soon as you’re ready for more responsibility, seek it out. As you progress, stay on top of changes in your industry. Changes in regulations, technology, and business conditions have the potential to alter both your route and your destination. Stay flexible and regularly review your plans and goals.
Keep a high profile
Your reputation within an industry is very influential in getting interviews and securing new positions. Never assume that doing a good job is enough. It’s just a good start. The best way to build your reputation (and keep up with the job market) is to be active in a trade association. Serve on a committee in your area of interest, write articles for your group’s newspaper, and agree to speak when invited. These initiatives announce your commitment to your field.
Cultivate a network of successful people within your industry. Make it clear that you respect their achievements and want to emulate them. Most people will be flattered and happy to help. This network will provide an early warning of the best vacancies, which are rarely advertised.
If you have the choice, it’s better to stay employed and find out about job openings through your network than to quit your job and work as a detective full time. Your appeal as a successful employee is worth far more than the extra hours spent on shopping.
To review, effective career management requires a goal, a plan, and good timing. Pick a goal that is worthwhile but achievable. Develop a plan based on in-depth and up-to-date knowledge of the industry. Look for your next job as soon as you have the skill and confidence to move on. Do these things consistently and well. You will realize your true professional potential.
