If you plan to start a career and find your first job or want to change the field, I recommend making a plan — a list of goals and steps that will bring you closer to them. But keep in mind that the plan is not a "wish board" on which you post photos of goals, visualizing dreams. A career plan is a clear strategy for moving up the career ladder, which will help determine what you want to achieve and what efforts you need to make for this.
If I were planning my career in advance, I wouldn't waste time and effort on unnecessary education. I have a degree in publishing, but after working in a publishing house for two years, I changed the field — I just realized that it wasn't mine. Having approached the choice of profession more consciously in advance, I might not have spent several years doing what I no longer do. Don't repeat my mistake — make a career plan.
Why plan a career
That's what you'll achieve if you start planning your career path in advance:
You'll work out the weaknesses. The first step in planning is to analyze your shortcomings and advantages. No matter how cynical it may sound, in order to get a dream job, you need to be competitive — have a decent list of knowledge, cases, experience, etc., so that you are chosen. If you know what you're not good enough at, you can work on it.
You realize your responsibility. According to VTSIOM, 47% of people do not work in their specialty. This is due to the fact that most approach the choice of profession unconsciously and spend precious time waiting for an interesting job. But your career does not depend on chance, but on how responsibly you approach the choice. This is what the plan will help you — you will understand that it is more real to get a dream job than it seems, and step by step you will move towards the goal.
You will not move away from your intended goal. Having set priorities, you will not be distracted by what is ineffective for achieving your goals. For example, you quit a hopeless job.
But don't forget that goals don't have to be lengthy. For example, instead of the goal "I will become a director of Nike in seven years", write a step-by-step plan: "get an education, learn English, take courses, work for two years in a large company, etc." And do not forget about the SMART formula when you set goals.
You will achieve results. Scientists from Harvard University conducted a study among students and found out that only 3% write down goals and create an action plan (after 10 years, it was these students who achieved the greatest success).
Don't waste your time. Remember my case with working in a publishing house — I spent two years on a job that I did not like, and in the end this experience was not useful — I had to start my career from scratch in a new field. The plan will help to avoid wasting time.
How to plan a career path
I have identified 6 steps that will help you create a career plan:
Study yourself
Make a list of everything that you like, that inspires you, that you are ready to give time and effort to. Describe your skills: "hard" skills, such as completed courses and vocational education, and flexible — punctuality, teamwork and much more that characterizes you.
Analyze the sphere
Having decided on the field in which you want to work, dig deeper — figure out what kind of education is required, what kind of experience, cases and much more. So you will have an idea of what steps are needed to move up the career ladder. To do this, you can read vacancies on aggregator sites, such as hh.ru .
Write down the path
Think of your career path as a route from point A (where you are now) to point B (the desired result). Here you have the main goal — the very point B, and there are steps necessary to achieve it. Write down all the steps that will accelerate the achievement of point B — for example, obtaining a diploma, internships, creating a portfolio and much more, everything is individual here.
In order for the plan to be effective, it is enough to set goals for 1-3 years. It is useless to plan for a longer period — even a plan for 1-3 years has to be adjusted regularly due to changing goals, desires and priorities.
Take the first step
If the first step in your plan is getting an education, start by preparing for the entrance exams. And if you want to find a job, apply for an internship at companies that you like. Look for questionnaires for interns on specialized services or in the "Vacancies" section on the company's website, or write to the mail, even if there is nothing to brag about in the resume yet.
Make a resume
Speaking of resumes. Write down the "flexible" and "rigid" skills, work experience (even if it was a small internship). Briefly tell us what you are interested in, add a high-quality full-face photo. Make a portfolio — for example, a presentation of your work with a description of what you did. Tell us about your responsibilities and what you were able to achieve at your previous job.
Start looking for a job
Finally, it's time to send out a resume. Look for vacancies on hh.ru and similar services, as well as on Facebook — now the social network is actively used for business and personnel search. Don't forget to write a cover letter — briefly tell us about yourself, why you would like to get this job and how you can be useful to the company. Do not neglect the cover letter — they are more often paid attention to, so it will increase the chances of getting a good job.
A career plan is needed for those who want to achieve a highly paid and interesting job, and not just go with the flow and wait for a sign higher. With the help of the plan, you will analyze which job suits you best and will be able to create a step-by-step strategy that will increase your chances of achieving your goals. Try to make a plan and, I assure you, you will not regret it.
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