Posts

The 4 E’s Of Landing The Career Of Your Dreams

StrategyDriven Professional Devleopment Article
Photo courtesy of Pexels

When it comes to landing the career of your dreams, you can get quite giddy. And who could blame you? Your entire future is out there, just waiting to be harnessed. So it’s time to work exact exactly how you’re going to do that. Whether you want to ensure you get started out on the correct path from the start, or you’re currently unhappy with what you’re doing and you want to make sure that you’re able to find the right career with a suitable change, you want to get it right. And to do that, you need to combine a few different areas.

Firstly, you have your education. Whether that’s currently where you are now, or something that you’re considering to going back into. But you also have your work experience to consider, and this can often play heavily into making your career work for you too. Then, you’ve got your enthusiasm, because your determination and drive often makes a huge difference in how well you can progress in your career. And finally, there’s your evolution, because landing that career of your dreams does often involve a range of progressive steps. So let’s take a look at how you’re going to combine all four to land the career of your dreams.

Education

StrategyDriven Professional Development Article
Photo courtesy of Pexels

The Right Major

If you are just starting out with your career, and you’re still in college (or even about to start), you’re really going to want to drill down on the right major. Choosing a major can be tough is if you’re unsure of what you want to do. Sometimes, even choosing the right courses individually can be a hard task. But if you do have a rough idea of what career path you want to head down, you need to be able to make your major work for you.

Going On To Graduate Level

Then, you may want to think about what graduate education can do for your career prospects. If you are looking to change career fields, this can also be relevant to you too. You may wonder how long it takes to get a masters degree, but if you’re serious about the right career, the one or two years of extra education will benefit you immensely. It may even be a prerequisite for the career you want.

Further Training

Then, depending on what career it is that you’re chasing, you may also be interested in further training. Some industries require licensure or certification, which you may need to train for. Or, if you’re interested in something like journalism or marketing, you may want to look into vocational qualifications that can help you to stand out.

Experience

StrategyDriven Professional Development Article
Photo courtesy of Pexels

Work Experience

Following on from education, you also need to have the experience. It’s hard to say which of the two weighs up as more important, as in most career fields the two go hand in hand. So you may want to think about getting some work experience whenever you can. Gaining job experience can be done in a range of ways, but doing this while you study, or alongside another job, will often stand you in good stead.

Internships

One of the key areas of getting experience will always lie within interning. Sometimes, you may not feel as if an internship is right for you. But, a lot of the time, you will find that internships can open a lot of doors for you. Finding an internship can be competitive, but the right one will often provide you with key experience and allow you to build valuable connections too.

Starting Out

Some people often assume that as soon as you’ve landed your first job, your days of getting experience are over. But really, they’re just beginning. You often have to learn a lot when you first begin your career. In fact, you do learn throughout your career. But at the start, you need to take in everything. You need to prove yourself and ensure that you can absorb knowledge from those around you, and start to make waves in the industry that you’ve gone into.

Going Above And Beyond

You’re also going to find that you need to go above and beyond to get to where you need to be. Regardless of the industry, you’re in, or the job role that you go into, if you’re a mediocre employee, you may not go far. But when you have big career dreams, you need to chase them with all that you have. And that will often mean that you need to go above and beyond what is asked of you, in order to stand out.

Enthusiasm

StrategyDriven Professional Development Article
Photo courtesy of Pexels

Combining Your Hobbies

Your enthusiasm is often what pushes you forwards in your career. Without it, you may struggle to get to where you want to be. One of the ways that you can often show your enthusiasm for the job, and ensure that you’re able to contribute as much as you can, is to combine your hobbies. Although they’re often there for enjoyment, you’ll find that sometimes your hobbies can make you better at your job.

Starting A Side Hustle

At the same time, you may find that having a ‘side hustle’ is invaluable. When you’re trying to commit your all to your job, you may not think you have time to operate anything alongside it, but you should find that it can help you to stand out and even progress in your field. Whether you start a blog or sell a product, it could be the edge you need to keep you moving in your career.

Going The Extra Mile

At the same time, you should also be thinking about how you can go the extra mile. Your enthusiasm helps with this. Yes, it is in some ways similar to going above and beyond what it asked of you, but sometimes it can be something that you come up with on your own – like giving ideas, that can help.

Taking On Extra

Finally, you may also find that offering to take on extra work can benefit your career in a range of different ways. Not only will this look good to your bosses, and go under the idea of ‘going the extra mile,’ but you will also find that you may be able to learn new things and get yourself experience in areas that you wish to progress into in the future.

Evolution

StrategyDriven Professional Development Article
Photo courtesy of Pexels

Knowing Your Goals

The last ‘E’ in the list concerns your career progression. Because if you’re ever going to get that dream role, you need to be able to harness your own growth. To do that, you will need goals. Because it’s hard to advance without knowing where you need to be. Setting career goals may be tough to start with, but as soon as they’re in place, you will have a guide that can get you to where you need to be.

Following The Stepping Stones

Then, you need to be able to follow the steps that you’ve set out for yourself as a part of your goal setting. You may find that this is going to take you time, it could even be ten years or more, sometimes even twenty. But you need to be able to know what promotions you need, and what roles you’re to go through in order to reach the final step.

Using The E’s To Get To The End

And finally, you need to understand how you’re going to use all of the three other ‘E’s to get to this stage. By ensuring that education, experience, and enthusiasm can work together in harmony, you should find that you’re able to not only chase after your dream career path, but pass through it with ease.

How to Move Up The Career Ladder in the Medical Field

The medical field is an extremely rewarding area of work, both financially and emotionally. It is extremely high pressure and can take an emotional toll on staff as tensions run high, so it’s not for everyone. However, for those who do pursue a career in one of the various specialisms of medicine can rest safe in the knowledge that they are helping others and contributing to making the world a better place. What’s more? Most individuals in the field have brilliant job security, as there’s always demand for medical professionals in all areas of the world. Your career could allow you to stay close to home or branch out further afield. Regardless of the type of medicine that you specialise in, it is likely that you have already undertaken years of hard study or training. But completing these doesn’t necessarily signify the end of your learning experience. Every day will pose you with a new challenge, so you’ll constantly be picking up knowledge on the job. The large majority of individuals in these careers will also have plenty of room to progress, with plenty of opportunities to progress up the career ladder into more specialised roles. So, if you’re already in the healthcare profession and are wondering what next steps you should take for career advancement, we’re here to help. Here are a few sage pieces of advice to give you a boost up to the next stage of your career.

StrategyDriven Professional Development Article
Photo courtesy of Pixabay

Nursing

Healthcare is constantly becoming more specialised, so it isn’t all too surprising that hospitals are beginning to require a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from registered nurses if they intend to move up the career ladder. Nurses across the country (both those looking at heading into nursing roles and those who already occupy nursing roles) are heading back to higher education to gain the qualifications necessary to progress with their careers. This doesn’t necessarily mean going back to a physical campus to undertake lectures and seminars. An Online RN to BSN Degree Program does an equally effective job in seeing registered nurses become nurses with a bachelor in science. But it isn’t merely the qualification that will benefit your resume and career. Undertaking such a program provides the knowledge and skills that are absolutely essential to working in a constantly changing healthcare environment. The course will ensure that nurses are thoroughly prepared to take on professional leadership roles. So, what should you expect the content of such a course to entail? There are various areas of focus: holistic nursing care for individuals, families and communities; how to apply arts, science and nursing learning to the delivery of high-quality nursing care; how to translate existing evidence into safe nursing practice; how to adhere to ethics and principles while serving as an advocate and professional healthcare provider; how to communicate and collaborate with partners to provide the best care for patients; how to function as a leader and an agent of change within dynamic healthcare systems. The list goes on. So, if you plan to climb the career ladder as a nurse, pursuing further higher education may well be the answer for you!

StrategyDriven Professional Development Article
Photo courtesy of Pexels

Dental Care

Dentistry is an area of medicine focusing on oral health and the maintenance of healthy, clean teeth and gums. There are many individuals involved in the profession, however, the two that members of the public are most likely to come into close contact with are dentists and dental nurses. Many dental nurses intend to remain in their career as a dental nurse, however, the constant training that many receive on the job often sparks a further interest in progressing to become a dentist themselves. If this sounds familiar, rest safe in the knowledge that this is an entirely feasible career option. However, it is extremely important to recognise that the job roles are completely different and you will be in for a long educational journey before being able to take to the position of your dreams. A dentist is responsible for diagnosing oral diseases, promoting good oral health and disease prevention, creating treatment plans in order to maintain or repair teeth and oral health, interpreting x rays and undertaking diagnostic tests, administration of anaesthetic before operations and performing surgical procedures. The bulk of dental nursing training often takes place on the job with you picking up experience and knowledge as you go along. Dentistry training, however, is, on the whole, a more academic experience and will be undertaken in a university or college setting. Your previous experience is likely to contribute well to take up a position at a college. However, you will have to start from the beginning like everyone else on the course. The whole process will usually take around five years, so be sure that you will be entirely committed to the course before signing up. Remember, patience is a virtue and you will be rewarded greatly in the long run.

These are just a few areas in the medical field that may take your fancy. Never feel like it’s too late to change paths or directions. Chances are that your employer will support your decision to alter your specialist or advance your knowledge, as this will give them a more well-rounded and experienced staff member on the team. If you feel that you have been in the same position for too long without promotions, don’t feel afraid to approach your manager, supervisor or employer about the situation. They may assume that you are content in your role and the thought may never have entered their mind. They are extremely busy individuals, remember. Sometimes all it takes is a little nudge or show of interest on your part to get the ball rolling. Many healthcare providers will offer to pay for staff members’ education and advancement and will allow you the necessary time off to work on your qualifications and take exams. It’s always worth asking. Remember you can generally go back to your old position if things don’t work out or you feel that you’ve taken on too much. Seize the opportunities that are available to you and you will progress in next to no time.

Job Hunters: Here’s What Employers REALLY Want To See on Your CV!

The job market is fierce, for every vacancy out there there’s usually a massive amount of interest. What this means for employers is they have to trawl through CVs- and a lot of them at that, so if yours doesn’t stand out in any way it’s not going to get a second glance. While everyone’s work history and experience is different, you can find that most people’s are shockingly similar with the same bland information and phrases swirling around. Here are a couple of ways you can set yourself ahead of the competition and catch an employer’s eye.

StrategyDriven Career Management Article
Photo courtesy of Pixabay

Speaking Another Language

Being able to speak another language is incredibly impressive and is something that will wow an employer- even if it’s not linked to the job you’re applying for. On the other hand, some careers may require you to be multilingual, so it’s something well worth learning especially if there’s a particular kind of job you want. You could do evening classes and be fluent within a year which really isn’t much time at all if you consider what a complex skill it is. If English isn’t your mother tongue, getting a good grasp of it from a company like EffortlessEnglishClub could boost your chances of a job massively. Since this is one of the world’s most commonly spoken languages, it’s something employers will put a lot of value on.

A Unique Hobby

Employers have seen time and time again how people like ‘going to the gym’ ‘seeing movies’ and ‘socialising with friends’. Most people do these things, it gives very little away about your character. And your hobbies are a chance to show what you’re really like! If you partake in anything fun, quirky or unusual be sure to add this to your CV. It will help to set you apart from the crowd and give more of an insight to what makes you tick. If you’re in search of a fun new hobby, this could be the motivation you need to get out there and find something. You will enjoy yourself, and it will give your cv that bit of an edge.

Voluntary Work

Everyone should aim to do voluntary work if possible. Not only does it give something back to those less fortunate and make you feel good, but from a purely selfish perspective, it looks good on your CV too! This shows employers that you’re in touch with the world aren’t purely driven by money and have a compassionate nature. You could spend a summer abroad helping in a third world country, or you could do an hour a week somewhere local. Elderly care homes, children’s hospitals, animal rescue centres and homeless shelters are usually crying out for extra help. Other things you could do for charity too is fundraising. How about coming up with a unique idea to raise money and getting your friends and colleagues involved? It’s for a good cause and an excellent addition to your CV.

What do you have on your CV which sets it apart from the rest?

Mentoring and Lifelong Learning

StrategyDriven Big Picture of Business ArticleProfessionals who succeed the most are the products of mentoring. I heartily endorse that find a great mentor. I have had many excellent ones in my long career and have in turn mentored hundreds of others.

The mentor is a resource for business trends, societal issues and opportunities. The mentor becomes a role model, offering insights about their own life-career. The mentor is an advocate for progress and change. Such work empowers the mentee to hear, accept, believe and get results. The sharing of trust and ideas leads to developing business philosophies.

The mentor endorses the mentee, messages ways to approach issues, helps draw distinctions and paints pictures of success. The mentor opens doors for the mentee. The mentor requests pro-active changes of mentee, evaluates realism of goals and offers truths about path to success and shortcomings of mentee’s approaches. This is a bonded collaboration toward each other’s success. The mentor stands for mentees throughout their careers and celebrates their successes. This is a lifelong dedication toward mentorship… in all aspects of one’s life.

The most significant lessons that I learned in my business life from mentors, verified with experience, are shared here:

  1. You cannot go through life as a carbon copy of someone else.
  2. You must establish your own identity, which is a long, exacting process.
  3. As you establish a unique identity, others will criticize. Being different, you become a moving target.
  4. People criticize you because of what you represent, not who you are. It is rarely personal against you. Your success may bring out insecurities within others. You might be what they cannot or are not willing to become.
  5. If you cannot take the dirtiest job in any company and do it yourself, then you will never become “management.”
  6. Approach your career as a body of work. This requires planning, purpose and commitment. It’s a career, not just a series of jobs.
  7. The person who is only identified with one career accomplishment or by the identity of one company for whom he-she formerly worked is a one-hit wonder and, thus, has no body of work.
  8. The management that takes steps to “fix themselves” rather than always projecting problems upon other people will have a successful organization.
  9. It’s not when you learn. It’s that you learn.
  10. Many people do without the substantive insights into business because they have not really developed critical thinking skills.
  11. Analytical and reasoning skills are extensions of critical thinking skills.
  12. You perform your best work for free. How you fulfill commitments and pro-bono work speaks to the kind of professional that you are.
  13. People worry so much what others think about them. If they knew how little others thought, they wouldn’t worry so much. This too is your challenge to frame how they see you and your company.
  14. Fame is fleeting and artificial. The public is fickle and quick to jump on the newest flavor, without showing loyalty to the old ones, especially those who are truly original. Working in radio, I was taught, “They only care about you when you’re behind the microphone.”
  15. The pioneer and “one of a kind” professional has a tough lot in life. It is tough to be first or so far ahead of the curve that others cannot see it. Few will understand you. Others will attain success with portions of what you did. None will do it as well.
  16. Consumers are under-educated and don’t know the substance of a pioneer. Our society takes more to the copycats and latest fads. Only the pioneer knows and appreciates what he-she really accomplished. That reassurance will have to be enough.
  17. Life and careers include peaks and valleys. It’s how one copes during the “down times” that is the true measure of success.
  18. Long-term success must be earned. It is not automatic and is worthless if ill-gotten. The more dues one pays, the more you must continue paying.
  19. The next best achievement is the one you’re working on now, inspired by your body of knowledge to date.
  20. The person who never has aggressively pursued a dream or mounted a series of achievements cannot understand the quest of one with a deeply committed dream.
  21. A great percentage of the population does not achieve huge goals but still admires and learns from those who do persevere and succeed. The achiever thus becomes a lifelong mentor to others.
  22. Achievement is a continuum, but it must be benchmarked and enjoyed along the way.

These are my concluding pieces of leadership advice. Know where you are going. Develop, update and maintain a career growth document. Keep a diary of lessons learned but not soon forgotten. Learn the reasons for success and, more importantly, from failure.

Good bosses were good employees. They have keen understanding for both roles. Bad bosses likely were not ideal employees. They too are consistent in career history. Being your own boss is yet another lesson. People who were downsized from a corporate environment suddenly enter the entrepreneurial world and find the transition to be tough.

Poor people skills cloud any job performance and overshadow good technical skills. The worst bosses do not sustain long careers at the top. Their track record catches up with them, whether they choose to acknowledge it or not.

Good workers don’t automatically become good bosses. Just because someone is technically proficient or is an exemplary producer does not mean that he-she will transition to being a boss. The best school teachers do not want to become principals, for that reason. Good job performers are better left doing what they do best. Administrators, at all levels, need to be properly trained as such, not bumped up from the field to do something for which they have no inclination.

Truth and ethics must be woven into how you conduct business. If you do not “walk the talk,” who will? Realize that very little of what happens to you in business is personal. Find common meeting grounds with colleagues. The only workable solution is a win-win.

Leadership and executive development skills are steadily learned and continually sharpened. One course or a quick-read book will not instill them. The best leaders are prepared to go the distance. Professional enrichment must be life-long. Early formal education is but a starting point. Study trends in business, in your industry and in the industries of your customers.

People skills mastery applies to every profession. There is no organization that does not have to communicate to others about what it does. The process of open company dialogs must be developed to address conflicts, facilitate win-win solutions and further organizational goals.


About the Author

Hank MoorePower Stars to Light the Business Flame, by Hank Moore, encompasses a full-scope business perspective, invaluable for the corporate and small business markets. It is a compendium book, containing quotes and extrapolations into business culture, arranged in 76 business categories.

Hank’s latest book functions as a ‘PDR of business,’ a view of Big Picture strategies, methodologies and recommendations. This is a creative way of re-treading old knowledge to enable executives to master change rather than feel as they’re victims of it.

Power Stars to Light the Business Flame is now out in all three e-book formats: iTunes, Kindle, and Nook.

How to Fast-track and Accelerate Your Human Potential Beyond Perceived Limits

What if through every struggle, adversity, illness or ending in your life you adopted a new, simple, and yet a very powerful tool that helps you identify the root cause of your problems, fears, and disempowered mental states that make you feel as if you are broken and in need of a “fix”?

What if you discovered that by design you were built with a powerful ALARM that alerts you each time you are not aligned to your true essence? What if this inbuilt security system is what activates your switch that turns on your inner light, puts you back on track to accelerate your human potential, and supports you to achieve outcomes that go way beyond your expectations? What miracles would you then create in your life?

Since I can remember, I was curious to know why some people have it all and others spend their entire life suffering, struggling, and make ends meet. I wanted to know why some people die young and others live healthy until very old age. Why some people find it easy to achieve their dreams, heal fast, and easily attract opportunities in their lives and yet others were consumed by their negative self-talk, illness, and blaming others for their misfortune.

By design we are extraordinary, our evolutionary advantage is our brain and our ability to communicate, plan, reason and work together, our survival depends on our collective ability and not on our individual mind. We are connected across all of live spans to one another, through invisible forces that bind us.

To stay present in the midst of adversity, it helps to be deeply rooted within ourselves; otherwise, the mind and our emotions, which have incredible momentum, will drag us into the deepest caves of the wretched solitude along like a wild and uncontrollable river.

I trust by now I have helped you awaken your curiosity and are asking what is it that you can do to accelerate your human potential and achieve extraordinary things in your life.

There are many ways you can do this, what I would like to share with you is the five key principles of TJS Evolutionary Method that I use daily to help my clients that you too can use on your journey to creating and living an extraordinary life.

  1. Acknowledge that support and challenge will always be part of your life. To do that you need first and foremost become aware of the form in which support shows when you are challenged and the form in which the challenge is present when you feel supported.
  2. Question the Rules that hold you back from honouring the infinite wisdom of love and from being centred in your heart. Develop a bold and balanced vision of yourself and of the future of humanity: Cut through to the root of exactly what it is that you want and find the most optimal path to getting there.
  3. Thrive to achieve self-actualisation by focusing inwardly, boosting your mental, physical, emotional and etheric body with knowledge and the wisdom required to immunize itself against many of the life adversities that may come your way. Combine Science and Spirituality to evolve your being.
  4. Make a conscious choice to turn any life struggle that you may be experiencing into seeds of gratitude and fuel for love, great health, and heart based living.
  5. Get connected and pave the way for you to unlock, listen, and use your hearts intelligence to create life miracles, a global coherence that shifts the evolution of mankind towards a more balanced, collaborative and peaceful world.

Spirit-based principles and practical, do-them-in-the-moment tools shared in both books are there to help you bring into your own life the hidden miracles of your true essence, equilibrate your mind and amplify your intuition and rebalance your inner being that is required for you to be extraordinary.

Lastly, remember, you are the call for love, the solutions people need to redefine themselves in the face of life’s greatest challenges and the light they need to help them get on a path that shifts them towards love, wisdom, wealth and making a greater impact in the world.

Use these five vital principles daily, they will help you build the skills, tools and the knowledge required to overcome the physical ramifications of loneliness, accelerate your human growth, and help you live an epic life.


About the Author

Tony J. SelimiTony J. Selimi is internationally known as a human behavior, cognition and emotional intelligence expert. He is a keynote speaker, entrepreneur and the creator of the TJS Evolutionary Method. Tony is an award-winning and international best-selling author of A Path to Wisdom – How to Live a Balanced, Healthy and Peaceful Life and Loneliness: The Virus of the Modern Age. He teaches people the tools and the knowledge required to face life’s greatest adversity head on and live life in a specific state of self-mastery that helps them accelerate their human growth, potential and impact. For more information, visit www.tonyselimi.com.