5 Ways To Win In Your Career
By Chisimdi's blog - July 10, 2020
For most of us, our career is one of the biggest facets of our lives. To a considerable extent, the success of our career determines how our lives turn out. It determines our financial freedom in most cases, and if we will live as fully as we desire.
No matter how hard we try, it is also hard to detach our emotions from our career. If your career is going badly, the chances are high that you won't feel very fulfilled, and just like all the times when things don't go as well as we want, it will be hard to be happy.
I have put together ways to win in your career. With these, you won't put everything to chance and HOPE that your career goes as well as you want it to. Instead, you will DO what you should to win in your career.
Seek learning opportunities
No matter how good you are, you can get better. I used to think there was no need for me to learn how to write better since writing came naturally to me. The god of writing must have thrown back her head and had a good laugh.
If you have a talent-related career, you shouldn't rely on your talent alone. Your talent is the icing on the cake. It is NOT enough. As a talented person, it falls on you to put it more work than people who aren't so talented. Why? It's easy to relax and think, 'oh well, I'm very good at this. Everybody says so.' In that case, people who aren't as talented put in the work, and you don't.
No matter what your career field is, it would be best if you intentionally positioned yourself to learn more and get better. Thankfully, there are online courses which are the rave right now. There is Google, YouTube and other tools to search for and find the information you need.
Do not wait till you have questions to seek answers. Do not wait till you have the need for it, to look for ways to learn. Always be on the lookout for ways to acquire knowledge that will help you advance in your career.
Have goals
You have some expectations for your career; we all do. You most probably want to be doing so well, you get wide recognition, make a significant impact and earn the money of your dreams.
I want that too.
However, it's not enough to have dreams and aspirations. It's not enough to be ambitious. You have to narrow it down to win in your career. Having specific goals is a step in the right direction. What do you hope to achieve in a month, months and years? How do you hope to achieve them?
Having career goals will give you guidance and clarity on your career journey and how best to achieve what you want to.
Your goals can't be too big or too small. What's important is that your goals align with your reality, and you are ready to PUT in the work that's required.
Pay attention to industry leaders
Industry leaders can be people in the same career field as you who are getting it right. For a book writer, for instance, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie can be an industry leader. In the business field, Aliko Dangote, and Otunba Akin Alabi can be industry leaders. Industry leaders can be famous or not so recognized people. It can be a fellow with 5000 followers on Instagram. The most important thing is that they are in the same career field as you, and they are successful. Success, however, is relative, so their success should align with your definition of success.
These people have it figured out to an extent. There are some things that would have otherwise taken you years to learn, but you can learn from them in minutes. They have an edge; experience, and the knowledge that comes with success.
Learn about them and their methods, listen to or read their interviews, consume what they share on social media, and generally listen when they talk. The point is not to copy their every move. Of course, there are some things they will say you won't totally agree with. That's fine. Make sure the information you take from them aligns with your reality and situation.
For instance, the fact that they said they started a fish business with one fish doesn't mean you should do the same. You can instead take from it that they started small, and do so too in your career.
Put in the work
Everything else mentioned here doesn't apply until you are ready to put in the work. Like Nike says, 'Just do it!'
You can take every course there is, set the most precise goals, and listen to every word opinion leaders say. If you do not do the single most crucial thing; put in the work, there's only so much you can achieve in your career.
To get to the top of your career, you have to put in the work to leave the stage you are at, and grow. It doesn't mean you have to put in all the work in one day. Taking baby steps in the right direction is good enough. Understand your abilities and your journey and put in the necessary effort.
Cheers to winning in our career and all aspects of our lives!
Tell me what work you are currently putting to do better in your career. I'll be reading you in the comment section!
1 Comments
You are right. And your points are greatly appreciated. I find myself doing all of these subconsciously over time so I learnt to be conscious about them.
ReplyDeleteI will just add that finding "what motivates you" too can be a way to win. We all lose motivation sometimes and get tired or burned out but being conscious about your motivation helps you talk to yourself; reminding yourself why you start up in the first place and why it's important you keep going.
Thank you for these tips Chisimdi.
...Anonymous, A new Fan