They say it's good to have a career path, to set a goal for your future and do your best to achieve it. In these difficult times, making a long-term plan for your career may seem far-fetched, as the market seems to be in a constant FLUX -- shrinking and often forcing us to rethink our careers.
Business is likely to continue to face huge shifts in 2010. Still, there are certain core traits that can act as guidelines to help make you more employable.
Your short-term goals may pale in comparison to what you hope to achieve one day, but achieving them is at least reassurance that you are on the right track. Good short-term planning will also confirm whether you are pursuing the right career or if it's time to rethink. I usually try to set a six-month goal, setting a deadline for each project. It often takes many sleepless nights to achieve my short-term goals, but the fulfilment I experience each time I complete a project keeps me moving forward.
Here are 10 skills to acquire and refine that will increase your professional confidence level and make you win:
1. EQ. I have always talked about many people having IQ but no EQ. Emotional intelligence is so important for so many reasons, none more important than the fact that success is about getting people to commit. Fundamentally this skill is about the ability to empathize and to read people, but it's also about the ability to act on this understanding in a meaningful way, or to be a part of the solution rather than the problem. This is a critical skill to succeed in business and life.
2. Personal discipline. Employers want to hire people who have disciplined work habits and disciplined thinking. The more disciplined the worker, the less time managers must spend rethinking, retracing and reworking…basically worrying if you will be reliable. When you demonstrate personal discipline, you and your manager can spend more time on solving problems and moving the company forward.
3. FQ. IQ and EQ are certainly critical to success today, but even more important is Flexibility quotient. Practically this refers to a mindset that embraces change. Individuals who have a high FQ will often pick fast-paced, rapidly changing environments. They can use skills they have developed in one job in a totally different context. Simply said, doing things that others don't want to do or are incapable of doing is the key to enhancing opportunities and going beyond existing roles. More significant FQ points to a mindset that strives for results, whatever the variables are.
4. Think outside the box. Contributing to your organization in 2010 demands thinking outside of the box and looking for creative ways to solve nagging problems, increase productivity or produce a new product or service. When a challenge presents itself, be the first to offer a new viewpoint, discover an alternative or recommend another course of action. Your ideas combined with the creative ideas from other employees will help your organization renew itself as necessary to be competitive.
An employee who can make a difference is one who has a healthy interest not just in the status quo but in making things better. Those who search for new perspectives will be welcomed by companies.
5. Personality makes you win. I have interviewed hundreds of people, some for jobs for which you might assume personality is not so important. The reality is that whether you're technical, creative, financial or strategic - and not just customer facing people - those with personality get the best out of people with whom they interact, both inside and outside the Company.
6. Communication skills. Traditional modes of communications are constantly threatened by SMS, email, chat and other modes of communication .I don't need to underscore the importance of written and verbal skills in a business. Presenting your viewpoint, selling an idea, gaining commitment, handling difficult people, managing teams- they all depend on language skills.
8. Prioritize and evaluate daily. Two of the biggest time wasters in the world are not knowing where to start when you get to work in the morning and working on low priority items in your life. To compete in the global work environment takes meticulous prioritization of tasks and the ability to identify the highest priority item that you tackle first every morning. I see this as a crucial problem in many young professionals and organizations.
9. Persistence. A singularity of purpose, consistency, a determination, an ability to endure not only sets one apart but is often the difference between those who succeed and those who don't. If for no other reason, persistence equals opportunity to be in the right place at the right time.
10. Purpose. A clear sense of purpose and a stake in that purpose binds individuals, teams and companies together. Even the least passionate person, a less-than-stellar communicator, a person who easily gives up, can become a passionate, champion employee if he has a sense of purpose.
10.1 Passion. It is important to enjoy what you are doing, that positivity and passion touches other people. Enthusiasm can absolutely differentiate you from an equally qualified but slightly pessimistic soul. If you enjoy something, you have a greater chance at excelling at it and therefore being in demand to do it.
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