Tag Archives: Career Development

team roles

Key Players That Make Your Professional Circle Well Rounded

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http://www.businessinsider.com/the-6-people-you-need-in-your-network-2014-7

I recently attended a professional leadership forum conference with my company focusing on networking and skill building. My biggest take away from the conference was me thinking about how do I keep my network right sized and diversified within my company. I knew that certain skills, whether soft or technical, needed to always get sharpened, but I had never really reflected on how well rounded my network is until after the conference.

This article describes  6 key players that everyone should have in their professional network. This network really applies to a network beyond your workplace. For us, this certainly means our classmates. Here are the 6 key players the article describes:

The Finance Guru 

This is someone who has greater financial literacy than you. They are someone who will encourages you to be savvy with your finances and make good financial decisions.

The Connector

This is the social butterfly. The one who is always interconnected and can introduce you to other people. He/she is the relationship developer.

The Mentor

The article describes this best with a quote from Christine Hassler “It’s important to choose a mentor who is living a life you respect and want to model — not just someone who has a job or career path you would want,”

The Innovator

This is someone that is always up to date with your industry trends and forward thinking

The Leader

This is someone who you look up to the most professionally. They are people that should be picked very selectively and are utilized for the infrequent major work situations you need consultation on.

The Frenemy

This is someone who has the same career path as you. Its good to have that because competition forces use to be better. In this case your antagonist is your helper.

Check out the article and see who is and who isn’t in your network and try to fill those gaps.

 

03-Planning the work of a team, 04-Managing a project team, 99-Applying business intelligence

Career Rocket Fuel in Three Stages

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http://www.fastcocreate.com/3027499/career-rocket-fuel-whether-youre-a-millennial-or-eyeing-retirement-heres-what-you-really-nee?utm_source=facebook

Recently, my boss shared this thoughtful article on career planning. Despite the unwieldy title, “Career Rocket Fuel: Whether You’re A Millennial Or Eyeing Retirement, Here’s What You Really Need To Get Right About Work,” it opened my eyes to a longer view of what constitutes a career.

The key takeaway for me is the thought of pacing. Author Brian Fetherstonhaugh suggests thinking of a career as a three stage process, with each stage spanning roughly 15 years. These days, people don’t stay with one company for their entire career. The article points out that it isn’t necessary to remain in one place if you have the structure to build toward something.

Stage One is a time to acquire valuable skills and experiences that are transportable to all types of work. These are the skills we are working on this summer—problem solving, communication, working with teams, reasoned decision making—not purely technical skills. Another goal in this stage is to build enduring relationships with people on all sides of us. Stage One is a time to figure out what you find interesting and what you could devote future years pursuing.

Stage Two is a time to focus in on the interests and hone the skills discovered in Stage One. It’s a time to elevate those skills to a level that differentiates you from the rest of the field. This is the time to take the skills with which have the most proficiency and become most proficient in your department, company, industry, etc.

Stage Three was the most revolutionary part of this article for me. This is a time to mentor the next generation and pass along the wisdom (hopefully) earned over a nearly full career. Thinking of coworkers in this stage made me realize how much value there is to gain by listening to people near the end of a successful career.

This article concludes with an interesting breakdown of how you might invest your time in each career stage if you wanted to optimize your return in each segment.

06-Building a case, 99-Applying business intelligence

Jumpstarting post-grad job searches

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As has been mentioned in multiple posts already, it’s never too early to begin thinking about job searches for those of us that plan on changing companies, roles, or industry’s post graduation.  Here’s a short article that offers some tips and strategies that could help the process.  There’s nothing earth shattering or likely anything you haven’t heard in the past but a good reminder nonetheless.  Also, if you haven’t subscribed to Vault, it’s a great resource for career intelligence and has helped me in the past. 

Highlights include leveraging Emory’s career center, leveraging school contacts, casting a broad net because referrals are key, staying organized, and customizing resume’s and cover letters for each opportunity. 

http://www.vault.com/blog/job-search/how-to-jumpstart-your-post-grad-job-search?utm_source=WCU_Letter&utm_medium=Newsletter&utm_campaign=7_31_2014&referer_ID=7778&utm_source=&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=86670