Net The Right Job For Career Goals

Landing a good job is not just about the pay and perks or the title. It has as much to do with your ultimate career goals and how much the career profile you seek fits in with that requirements.

So the first requirement for fulfilling your career dreams would be to draw up career goals, the more specific, the better.

Most people could easily give a target salary or title when asked at the job interview about their career goals. But not many would have a concrete vision of what they want to do, or are willing to do, to reach that target, says Laura Garnett, a performance strategist, writing in The Muse.

So the first requirement for fulfilling your career dreams would be to draw up career goals, the more specific, the better.

Without that vision about career goals, you would not be able to speak with authority on the path taken in the career thus far—and where you want it to go.

At this point, you could ask yourself a few questions like: “When I think of myself 10/20/30 years from now, who do I want to be? What do I have to do in terms of career to get there?”

Next could be “What do I enjoy doing – how can I make my career better fit what I enjoy doing?” followed by “How can I better reflect my personal value system within my career?” and the like.

At the end of this exercise, you would be able to figure out, for example, that your ultimate goal would be to become the Chief Operating Officer (COO), Strategy/Operations in the firm. Then you could chart out the steps in career progression to reach that goal, including developing the requisite skills and knowledge needed.

Unlike the old school way of thinking of moulding yourself to each opportunity you apply for with the downside being that you only project a generic view of who you are, once you are clear about who you are and what you are looking for, the more likely you will be to find it and be hired for it, Garnett says.

The next step would be convincing the interviewer that you are the right fit for the job. You could undertake a pre-interview research to learn more about the company so as to come up with specific initiatives you would like to take that would help the organization’s growth.

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It would also be worthwhile to back up your vision with achievements in the past with specific examples and it would be an added bonus if it is proved that you had a leadership role in any of these.

However, those who do not have any specific achievements as yet need not despair. If you are able to convey your excitement and enthusiasm for the job to the recruiting officer, you may very well get selected.

In case you realise that you are not the right fit for the job, you need not entirely rule out a career. An honest talk with the hiring manager about what exactly you are looking for may get you an even better opening in another section.

Adopting an honest, clear, and discerning approach at interviews could be one of the fastest ways to unearth the right opportunity, says Garnett. (Image Courtesy : www.fact.mn )