Welcome to the Stop Sabotaging Your Success Podcast, episode seventy. I’m your host, Cindy Esliger. This is the podcast focusing on what we can do today to take control of our careers and overcome the inevitable barriers to success that we encounter along the way. 

In today’s fast paced and rapidly changing work environment, it’s more important than ever to be continuously moving forward in your career. The idea of there’s no going back means that once you’ve gained a certain level of knowledge, skills, and experience, you cannot simply rest on your laurels and expect to succeed. Rather, you must continuously push yourself to improve and grow in order to stay relevant and competitive. Otherwise, you’re at risk for career stagnation and nobody wants that. 

In this episode, we’ll explore the importance of identifying your career goals, building the knowledge base and the skills required to meet those goals, as well as taking the initiative to keep progressing, and the importance of building relationships in order to keep moving forward. 

To do this, it’s important to first identify your career goals and aspirations. What do you want to achieve in your career and what steps do you need to take to get there? This may involve setting short-term and long-term goals, as well as developing a clear understanding of your strengths and areas for improvement. 

Once you have a clear sense of your goals, it’s important to embrace your ambition, rather than hide it, and take ownership of your career. This means taking the initiative to seek out new opportunities for growth and development, whether that’s through additional training and education, seeking out challenging assignments and projects, or pursuing leadership roles within your organization. 

Building the skills required and gaining the knowledge necessary are also critical to moving forward and progressing in your career. This may involve developing technical skills in your field as well as building your soft skills in areas such as leadership, communication, and collaboration. 

Another key factor in progressing in your career is building relationships. This includes developing strong connections with colleagues, mentors, and other professionals in your industry. Building these relationships can provide valuable support, guidance, and networking opportunities that can help you advance your career. 

Ultimately, the key to continuously moving forward and progressing in your career is to adopt a growth mindset. This means embracing challenges and setbacks as opportunities for learning and improvement, and being open to feedback and that dreaded constructive criticism we all enjoy so much. It also means being willing to take risks and try new things, even if it means stepping outside of your comfort zone and feeling like a beginner again while you learn the ropes. 

Identifying your goals and ambitions provides that much needed direction and motivation. Without clear goals, it can be difficult to determine what steps to take to advance your career or whether you’re making any progress towards those desired outcomes. By identifying your goals and ambitions, you can set specific targets and create a roadmap for achieving them. This helps you focus your efforts and make intentional decisions about your career path. It can give you a filter in order to assess and evaluate possible opportunities in order to determine what’s right for you. Knowing what you want to achieve also helps you prioritize your time and resources so that you can get what you need to get done, done.

Also, having clear goals and ambitions can provide motivation and a sense of purpose in your work. When you know what you are working towards, you can stay focused and driven, even in challenging or uncertain times. In order to achieve your career ambitions, you might want to learn a new skill or improve your ability to use a software program related to your job, network with colleagues and industry professionals to build connections, or find a way to showcase your expertise and share your knowledge with others.

Maybe you have more longer-term plans such as earning a professional certification or advanced degree to further your career and increase your earning potential, develop a stronger mentoring relationship with an experienced professional in your field, or work toward a promotion by demonstrating your abilities. Short-term goals can help you develop skills and knowledge in your current role, while long-term goals can help you achieve your career ambitions and advance to the next level. By setting specific targets and creating a plan to achieve them, you can make progress towards your career goals and achieve success over time. 

There are many advantages to setting specific and measurable goals for career progression, including providing that accountability that many of us need to achieve our goals. We are more likely to take ownership of our career progression when we have clearly defined goals and a plan for how we’re going to achieve them.

You may have noticed by now that completing your post-secondary degrees may have been the end of school, but it’s not the end of your learning. Continuously broadening your knowledge and developing your skills are essential to stay competitive in the workplace, as they provide several benefits beyond advancing your career, including adapting to changing environments, increasing your options, enhancing your job satisfaction, improving your job performance, and encouraging your engagement. 

The workplace is constantly evolving and new technologies, trends, and best practices emerge regularly. By continuously building your skills and knowledge, you can stay current and adapt to changing environments more effectively, even when the powers that be want everything done the way it’s always been done. 

Employers value those who have a willingness to learn and adapt to new situations. Continuously building your skills and knowledge enhances your employability and makes you a more valuable asset to your organization, or the next opportunity that comes along. Learning new skills and acquiring more knowledge can help you advance your career by opening up new opportunities for growth and development. It can also increase your earning potential and help you achieve your long-term career goals. 

Learning and growing in your role can increase your job satisfaction and motivation. It can provide you with a sense of accomplishment and a feeling of progress. Continuously building your skills and knowledge can improve your job performance by allowing you to perform your tasks more effectively and efficiently. 

All this can improve your level of engagement by providing you with new ideas and perspectives. It can help you identify new opportunities and develop creative solutions to those persistent problems that keep coming back to haunt you.

Building a diverse set of skills and knowledge can bring many benefits to building a successful career. Here are just three of the most important ones: 

1. Adaptability
2. Creativity
3. Flexibility

By acquiring a diverse set of skills and knowledge, you become more adaptable and can better navigate challenges and changes in your career. You can more easily pivot between tasks, projects, and roles, as needed, and adjust to new technologies, tools, and processes. It can also enhance your creativity by providing you with different perspectives and insights. You can draw from multiple sources to come up with innovative solutions to problems, even people problems, and explore new opportunities. 

The more you know, the more flexibility you have in your career choices. You can explore different paths and opportunities and pursue work in a variety of fields and industries. It may take some work to find the right fit for you, but trust me, it’s out there. 

Developing a diverse set of skills and knowledge can help you stand out from your peers and increase your opportunities for career advancement. Employers value employees who can bring a wide range of skills to the table and those who can demonstrate the ability to learn and adapt quickly.

Taking initiative is a key factor in moving things forward in the workplace and advancing in your career. It helps in demonstrating your leadership skills. Taking initiative shows that you are a proactive and motivated employee, willing to take the lead and take on challenges. It demonstrates to your colleagues and supervisors that you know what needs to be done and are able to leverage your resources to do it, and therefore you could be relied upon to move things forward. 

Taking the initiative to start new projects, streamline processes, and identify opportunities for improvement can increase productivity and efficiency in the workplace. This can lead to better results and higher job satisfaction for everyone involved, which shows that you are committed to the success of the company and are willing to put in the extra effort to achieve it. This can build trust between you and your colleagues and can lead to greater responsibilities and opportunities. 

If you’re interested in enhancing your reputation as a proactive and motivated employee, taking initiative is a good way to do that. This can lead to increased visibility, recognition, career opportunities, and growth in your career. You don’t necessarily need to wait for an invitation to make things better. Sometimes, it’s easier to just do it and ask for forgiveness later. 

Being noticed by those who make the promotion decisions can position you nicely for advancement opportunities. Taking the initiative to collaborate with colleagues, build relationships with mentors, or seek out new connections can expand your network and open up new opportunities for growth and development. 

When you share your knowledge and experience through writing, speaking, or contributing to industry associations, you can enhance your reputation and visibility within your industry. This can lead to new and exciting opportunities for you personally. Be proactive. Don’t wait for opportunities to come to you. 

Take the initiative to seek out new challenges and opportunities for your career growth and development. Make the most of whatever is available right where you are. When new projects or initiatives arise, be the first to offer your help. Taking on new responsibilities can help you develop new skills and showcase your abilities to those who might not be familiar with what you can do. 

If you notice areas for improvement in your organization, suggest solutions. This demonstrates your problem solving skills and can set you apart from those who just complain about everything and just might position you as the one to watch, with leadership potential. 

Building relationships in the workplace is essential to advancing your career since it can help you build a professional network that can provide you with opportunities for career growth and development beyond your current role and even beyond your current organization. Developing positive professional relationships with colleagues can lead to greater job satisfaction, as you feel a sense of camaraderie and support in your work environment. It can go a long way to helping you feel not so alone. 

That’s why it’s important to actually attend events and conferences related to your industry. It gives you an opportunity to meet and network with people who share similar interests and goals. Even if you don’t consider yourself a joiner, make an effort to join these professional organizations to help you connect with others and provide you with opportunities for professional development. Seek out mentorship, participate in collaborative projects, and attend team building events. 

I would be the first to admit that playing paintball in a field that looked like a war zone right out of one of those first-person-shooter video games was not what I had imagined as fun, and yet, I have to admit that it was fun. These types of team building experiences and other social events organized by your company give you an opportunity to see your colleagues differently and give you something interesting to talk about, besides work.

Remember, building professional relationships takes time and effort. Be patient, respectful, and genuine in your interactions with others and be willing to go a little outside of your comfort zone. You have to share a little of yourself in order to let people get to know the real you. 

Focus on building relationships that are mutually beneficial. By taking the initiative to get to know people within your organization and externally, you might put yourself in the path of a new career direction or a new challenge. You might even get some advice on how to handle those challenging personalities you deal with every day from someone more removed from the situation and able to help you gain perspective. Building and maintaining strong and positive relationships with colleagues and mentors can have several benefits for your career success, including pointing out opportunities for learning and growth that you might have missed.

The people who know, like, and trust you can help you gain visibility within your organization, which might lead to new opportunities for career advancement. Positive relationships with colleagues can enhance your professional reputation, helping you establish yourself as a respected and valuable member in your industry. Having people to talk to and collaborate with can also contribute to your overall job satisfaction, making it more likely that you will be happy and engaged in your work. Having strong relationships with your colleagues can provide emotional support during challenging times, helping you to navigate difficult situations, and overcome obstacles. 

We all need people. No one succeeds alone. 

Remember, it’s important to embrace the discomfort of continuous growth because it can lead to progress in the workplace. Many people resist change, feel uncomfortable stepping out of their comfort zones, and avoid taking risks, but it is essential to keep pushing forward and taking calculated risks in order to achieve that success we’re looking for. 

To make progress, it’s important to set specific and measurable goals and take action towards achieving them. Setting goals is not enough. Taking action is absolutely necessary. This may involve taking on new challenges, learning new skills, or seeking out opportunities for growth and development. This means being open to change, learning from failures and setbacks, and continuously adapting to new circumstances and challenges. By staying flexible and embracing change, you can continue to progress in your career and you might surprise yourself by achieving those lofty goals you set early-on. 

In today’s dynamic and ever-changing work environment, the importance of continuously moving forward and progressing in your career cannot be overstated. By identifying your goals, embracing your ambition, rather than hiding it, and building the necessary skills, knowledge, and relationships, you can position yourself for success and achieve your full potential in your career. 

So embrace the discomfort, set goals, and take action. Stay adaptable and resilient. Because there is no going back, if you want to succeed. You must keep moving forward, one small step at a time.

And that’s it for this episode of Stop Sabotaging Your Success. Remember to download your Guide to Taking the Initiative at cindyesliger.com/podcast, episode seventy.

Thank you to our producer, Alex Hochhausen and everyone at Astronomic Audio. Get in touch, I’m on Instagram @cindyesliger and my email address is info@cindyesliger.com.

If you enjoy listening to this podcast, you have to come check out The Confidence Collective. It’s my monthly coaching program where we dig a little deeper into what’s holding you back in your career, and we find the workarounds. We help you overcome the barriers and create the career you want. Join me over at cindyesliger.com/join. I’d love to have you join me in The Confidence Collective. 

Until next week, I’m Cindy Esliger. Thanks for listening.