It’s all very well advocating the concept of “managing your career proactively” but what does that mean in practice; what do you actually have to do?
In essence it's a 6 step process: the process itself is relatively straightforward, but the steps themselves require mental toughness, persistence and tenacity. The steps are:
1 Define who you are. You do this by building your personal brand in writing and by identifying your top three career drivers.
2 Define your career goal. This involves the definition in writing of your short-term, medium and long-term career objectives.
3 Decide how to approach the market. Knowing what you want, you now need to decide how to market yourself effectively. What do I need to do in addition to applying for advertised jobs.
4 Hone your product. That means 'you': work on becoming the best you possible; the best written you, the best verbal you and the best mental you.
5 Be persistent. Do something every day, no matter how small, towards steps 1 to 4.
6 The really difficult one. Don't stop doing number 5 - ever.
