7 Clear Actions for Assessing Your Career Health

“I love my job and my coworkers are fabulous, so why should I be concerned about my Career Health?”  You never know when someone or something is going to come along and change that.  Whether it’s a former colleague wooing you over to the competition, a new manager that interprets your job description differently, or an unexpected opening in the executive suite, you want to be ready.

1. Who Do You Know?

No matter how stable your position, it’s always a good idea to actively cultivate a healthy network both inside and outside of your profession.  View networking as a double-sided coin.  One side gives you the opportunity to benchmark for your organization and stay current on external perspectives.  The other allows you to passively let others know what you do (and how great you are at doing it!)  You never know, your next opportunity may come from someone remembering a statement you made in passing.

2. Is Your Resume Ready?

If you’ve been in school, out of the workforce, or in the same position for more than a year, you probably haven’t looked at your resume in lately.  Even if you’re not currently looking, it’s good practice to keep it fresh.  Be sure that your experience section is descriptive and shows action, and don’t leave out training and professional affiliations. Whenever you do something new, different, or exceptionally well add it to your resume! 

3. What’s Your Elevator Speech?

I once almost closed the elevator door on the SVP of HR's arm.  Fortunately, he was a very understanding individual that quickly realized that I was preoccupied with the training materials I was transporting from a meeting.  (It didn’t hurt that he knew who I was and my role in his organization.)  After apologizing for not seeing him rushing down the hall, I knew that I only had a few floors to let him know the tremendous value I added to his organization. :) Most likely you won’t have an inside track, so you’ll need to come up with a memorable one-liner that describes what you do and ALWAYS lead with it (in case you’re interrupted.)  To support your opening, develop a few sentences that explain your HOW and WHY.  This is very important in showing that you’re thorough and truly add value. When executed properly, it also makes you memorable.  Don’t forget to rehearse!

4. Are Your Skills and/or Credentials Up-to-Date?

It’s important to continue to invest in yourself!  It’s easy to fall into the rut of doing, and lose track of what’s going on around you.  Subsequently, you may pick things up quickly through reading or watching others.  This is great a great time-saver.  However in today’s environment it may not be enough to keep you where you are, let alone help you move ahead in your career.  Make sure you're seeking official opportunities to update your skills and learn new ones.  Be sure to track hours toward new credentials or re-certifications.

5. What Have You Done Lately?

In addition to updating your resume, you should be able to verbalize a few of your “big wins” in a concise manner for interviews and networking.  Think about using a format like this one: briefly describe a project or circumstance, tell what you did, and why it was (or wasn’t) effective.  If things didn’t work out the way you’d plan, it shows that you’re honest and open.   Be sure to tweak the resume version since we write and speak differently.   Don’t forget to rehearse!

 6. Create a One-Pager.

Develop an expanded professional summary.  Just as a sales rep. carries collateral (or advertising material), so should you.  Don’t create a full-color glossy ad slick with your picture on the top (unless you’re a model or actor.)  Instead, keep it simple.  Transcribe your “story” in two to three paragraphs.  Unlike your resume, this document focuses on you.  It’s an opportunity to interject your personality and interests while expressing your foundational skills and strengths.  This can be used as a follow-up to your elevator speech, networking opportunity, or after meeting with your boss or mentor.  Your one-pager is not intended to get you a job, it’s intended to get AND keep you top-of-mind.

7. References.

These individuals may be part of your active networking circle, but probably aren’t.  Your references should be people that have actually had the pleasure of working with you and/or have evaluated your performance.  Obviously they should know you, and you need to trust them.  Although it’s most likely that you won’t have a direct conversation about them providing a recommendation for you prior to needing one, it’s good to have a handful of people in mind.  When the time comes, you’ll feel confident making the call and asking for their permission.   The last thing you want to do is ask someone for a recommendation and have them turn you down when you need it most.  Or worst yet, have them provide a poor or meaningless recommendation on your behalf.

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You never know when opportunity is going to knock.  How will you answer?  Need clarity on how to develop an effective elevator speech or an expanded professional summary?  Contact Clarity Leadership Consulting for a free introductory coaching session or organizational needs consultation.