Pursuing Career Success Attitudes

You have just graduated and you are ready to take on the world. As a newbie pursuing career success, you need to realize early that the working world is very different from college. The way you approach work and your attitude towards work can determine how far you go in your career.
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As a fresh graduate new in the working world, you need to see pursuing career success as a journey. A journey with fruitful rest stops.
In the companies I have worked for, they actively recruit fresh graduates. I have been lucky to work with many newly minted graduates. Many of them have great attitude towards work that have helped them thrive in the working world.
Newbies pursuing career success should practice these attitudes:
1. CommitmentBe committed to the work and jobs assigned to you. While in university you may be able to accept a “C” for your paper, it is very different in the working world. Handing in average work to your boss signals to her that you do not take your work seriously. It sends a message that you do not care about excellence. Commitment involves sacrifice and discipline to see the work through. It involves working harder than the rest. It is also the difference between a pay raise and a promotion.
2. ChallengeThere are two parts to this. Part one is - challenge yourself. Whatever you get your hands on, ask yourself how can you make this better than expected? Can you complete it earlier without compromising on quality? Can you add value to it? Part two is - surpass challenges that are thrown your way. I have seen many newbies pursuing career success who use the statement – “I have not done this before’ as an excuse. None of us are born to do the work that we do. So, learn. Ask intelligent questions. Take up the challenge and surpass it.
3. ConcentrateBe focused. Do not be distracted by other activities in the peripherals. The after office drinks, the sports club and the gossips. This does not mean you cannot join your colleagues in their after office drinks or activities of the sports club. In fact, you should. But as in life, there is a time and place for everything. As a newbie pursuing career success, you need to concentrate on the job assigned and to complete it the best possible. Each task completed with excellence contributes to building a successful career and laying the foundations for long-term success.
4. Congenial and ConnectBe friendly. No one likes someone who is aloof. Greet people with a joyful and genuine smile. Even the tea lady. As a newbie pursuing career success, you want to have as many friends as possible across departments. When people find you friendly and connect with you they are more willing to help you. If you are lucky, they may even point out a potential mistake you may make as a freshie. When the time is right, this is where you join in the parties and the social events to get to know your colleagues outside of the office environment. But be aware that you are always watched and judged.
5. ContributeAlways add value to projects you are involved in. Is there a special skill that you bring to the table? If you have been assigned the task, in all likelihood the manager sees your chance in contributing. Make use of that opportunity. Are there any chances for volunteering? While this is a good trait, do so cautiously. For two things, you do not want to volunteer for the wrong things and end up being perceived as inefficient. Two, when you volunteer too much – unethical seasoned managers can exploit your tendency to help. You will end up overworked and not deliver your best.
There seems to be many things a newbie pursuing career success needs to possess. Do not be overwhelmed by these tips. In reality, when you internalized these and practice them mindfully – it will appear effortless.
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Find the Best Career Success Planner in You

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It's true - you are your best first career success planner. No one can plan your career success for you unless you have some basic answers yourself already. I am not saying you should be certain about what you want but an inkling would be a great start.
Most career newbies do not know what they want. That’s fine. Wanting to be a success is a good start. Now you just have to back track your steps a little and ask the right questions that will guide you to the answers you need. Remember, you are your best career success planner.
I am a big believer that we all have the answers within ourselves if we only we ask enough. Of course, that is not to say I deny divine help or otherwise. And that’s not to say I do nothing on my own either. I believe that one does what one can until one’s destiny is revealed.
When giving advice to interns in our company on career success planning, I like to adopt a common planning cycle model. As a career success planner, you should ask yourself these 4 questions. These questions may seem simple or trivial but are thought provoking if you give it the seriousness it deserves.
1. Where Am I? Why Am I Here?These are the first set of questions to ask - “Where am I? Why am I here?”. For example, if you currently have a job you do not enjoy, ask yourself how you ended up at that position. Or you may have a job you are happy with right after graduation but would like to move up the corporate ladder. Ask yourself why are you still there?
I once counseled an intern who seemed lost. He had a diploma in engineering and worked in the field for a while. He realized is was not what he enjoyed and went back to school to do communications. This time around he seemed uncertain about his future. The reason why I said he ‘seemed lost’ is because he actually wasn’t. All he needed to do was to refocus on his objective. He needed to answer - Why is he in this particular situation?
By answering these questions, you take stock of the situation. You give yourself a diagnosis of the situation and condition you are in before you can prescribe a solution for yourself. Sometimes, it even forces you to refocus on your original objective, which you may have forgotten as in the case of the intern.
2. Where Can I Be?To go somewhere, you must have a destination. And as a career success planner it is no different. “Where can I be?” forces you to think about your destination of choice. Is it a promotion to a new position you want? Or is it a transfer to another department? Or would you like to move out of the industry? This destination must be clear in your mind as we are now in the prescriptive stage of your career success planning. As a career success planner you should see this clearly.
In the case you cannot, make some assumptions and do an experiment with the rest of the planning stage. I find that sometimes playing around with thoughts can help crystallize what you want faster.
Consider your skills and knowledge that can bring you there. Think about your values and aspirations also. Another important thing to consider are your attitudes and beliefs.
3. How Can I Get There?Now that you know where you want to go, it is time to think about preparing for the journey there. As a career success planner, this is one key part of that planning. It can also be the longest depending on how long term is the plan. Assuming you plan to be the CEO of the company, obviously there is a lot more you need to do on “How can I get there?”
At this stage, you need to prepare the skills and knowledge. Think about the training that you need both formal and informal. What about your attitude? For example, do you have a success mind set? Do you have positive attitude towards work? Consider your strengths and weaknesses. Are there any weaknesses you need to strengthen? What are some of the opportunities to excel along the way?
4. Am I Getting There?No career success planner is complete without an evaluative stage. This is the segment where you give yourself periodical evaluation about your plan. Is each of your plans slowly contributing to the bigger goals? If it is not, what is it you need to enhance?
Force yourself to ask these simple yet deep questions and you will end up as your own best career success planner

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How To Find Your Dream Career

Before we begin let’s just agree on one thing. There are no quick answers to how to find your dream career. Finding your dream career is a process. How lengthy this process is depends on how sincere you are with yourself. It also depends on how much you are willing to sacrifice in pursuit of your dream career.
I have spent many hours counseling many career builder newbies on this very topic. On occasions, with some of my more senior staff also. I have personally gone through this process and here is my experience I would like to share with you.
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I admit I dislike engaging in this discussion with people who come to me with this question (who by the way, expect an easy answer). They expect a “3 Steps Guide to How To Find Your Dream Career”. Since there are none, at the end of the discussion, they get disappointed.
1. The Toughest Part - Know What You WantThe toughest part about finding your dream career isn’t about finding the dream career. It is about finding yourself. Do you know what you want? This is the first question you need to ask yourself. It is a seemingly easy question many answer by mentioning what they DON’T WANT instead of what they WANT. But that is not the answer that will ensure you to find your dream job.
Knowing what you don’t want does not mean you easily arrive at what you want.Unfortunately, the process of elimination does not work in finding your dream career. You can go through a thousand “don’t wants” and still not hit it. How to find your dream career? Start by knowing what you want!
2. Know Your ValuesIf you feel a little lost with finding what you want, start by knowing your values. Ask yourself, what do you really value? Time? That’s a common answer I get and a good one too. We all want more time for ourselves and family. So, if you value time then you know the dream career you are looking for must offer more time. Is that all? List a set of values you treasure. Then things will begin to fall in place. You have defined what it is that will fit in these criteria.
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3. Know How Much You Are Willing To SacrificeDo you have the knowledge and skill set that fit the needs of your dream career? If you do not, how much are you willing to sacrifice in order to add those skill set in your repertoire? How to find your dream career is easy. How much you are willing to sacrifice in order to achieve it is tough to answer.
4. Do It For The Right ReasonsThe trigger to how to find your dream career should never be money. It should not be because you are currently unhappy with your salary and hence you want a dream career that pays you an enormous amount of money. Money should never be the motivation. Make passion a motivation but never money.
From my college days, I have always wanted to be in the advertising industry. That for me was a dream career. But back in the heydays of the dotcom era I was headhunted to join a B2B dotcom firm. They were willing to pay me double of what I was getting (yes, I was unhappy with my salary at that time). So, I took up the offer immediately. Guess what? I quit in 3 days and due to contractual obligation I had to serve a full month! That full month was a torture. It wasn’t what I was looking for at all.
5. The Easiest PartIf you know what you want, what you value and you do it for the right reasons – then this is the easy part. Here are your “3 Steps Guide to How To Find Your Dream Career” so to speak.
Do Your ResearchFind out about the industry. Do you have friends in the industry? Find out what are the expectations, the knowledge and skills needed. The Internet is also the perfect place to start. You can read books focused on your dream career or check out sites offering career advice on certain industries. For example, the site - Job Application and Interview Advice is a compelling site written to help people Snag A Job every day. It covers all aspects of how to snag a job including job applications forms, resumes, cover letters and interview questions and answers.
Network With People In The IndustryGet to know people in the industry so you get a feel of what it is like upfront. This also sets you up for potential short-term work when the opportunity arises for some hands on experience before you make that leap. I have personally allowed friends based on recommendations to visit us after office hours. This allows them to see what it is like in our industry and to speak in depth with staff from various departments in order to understand our line.
Create A Plan To Pursue Your Dream CareerNow that you know how to find your dream career, create a plan to achieve it. How do you plan to add new skill sets? How do you plan to apply for the job? When would be able to get practical training, if that’s a requirement? Develop a plan and act upon it!

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Job-hopping : How It Affects Your Career Success

Is job-hopping and career success related to each other? What is the effect of one on the other? How long is too long for staying in a company? I must admit, the resumes that pass by my desk makes me conclude job-hopping is far too common.
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Job hoppers do it for various reasons. More often than not they may not know what they are getting into. Sometimes, it is because they do not know what they want and hence are not ready for the challenges that lay ahead of them. Job-hopping and career success is related to one another.
In my opinion, job-hopping affects career success in a negative manner. Consider this, what signals are you sending to your potential employer if you job-hop too often?
The Two-Year RuleI have a two-year rule I tell my staff and potential employees. The two-year rule is this – you must be willing to commit mentally to spend at least two years in the company before you quit. The reason is this; you need to deal with the learning curve. If you job-hop too often, you learn nothing substantial.
For me, it takes you at least a year to know the ins and outs of the company. Then another year before you can eventually be truly productive in adding value to the company. To see the true results of your contribution to the company, for me it takes at least two years. So, if you are prone to job-hopping and career success is on your mind, then it is time to rethink.
Training YouMany well-established companies have training programs. They are willing to invest in fresh graduates and newbies. However, in order for them to make that decision they need to look at past track records. Ask yourself, if you are a manager –who are you more likely to invest training time and money on? Someone who is job-hopper and shows tendency to job-hop or someone who is stable? Companies are more likely to invest in people who are stable. The reason is simple. They are able to contribute back into the company. Everybody wins. If you are constantly job-hopping, you send a signal that you are not ready to commit.
Companies like to invest in people who see their career goals align with their corporate goals. Job-hoppers usually cannot see their career path beyond the next year.
Decreasing the Incidence of Job-HoppingOne of the best ways to quit job-hopping is to truly know what you want. Once you know that, you will have singular focus in the pursuit of your career goals. Of course, it is understandable that as a fresh graduate or newbie at work it is tough to know that. You may be interested in some other industries.
If there are other fields that you are interested in then make a plan to find out about them. Start with the Internet, and then ask friends who may know people in those fields. Speak to them; ask them about the expectations of the company and the role of the position you are interested in. You may not have all the answers but at least you get some idea. That would decrease the chances of you job-hopping.
Make Learning a Key ObjectiveIf you are new in the work force and have been job-hopping quite a bit, my advice to you is this - truly find out what you want. Once you know that, find a company that is willing to train or how they are willing to commit to their employees’ career in the long term. If they have structured training programs, join them.
Make learning the relevant skills and knowledge in that industry your key objective. The skills and knowledge that you learn will contribute to your career success in the long term. It is something that you can bring with you the rest of your life. Once you see the benefits of committing to a company who is willing to train you for more than two years, hopefully you won’t be job-hopping often anymore.
Free Article for DistributionReprint Rights:You may publish or reprint this article as long as it is published in its entirety with no changes to the article. You also agree to add an active link to our website and include the FULL Resource box/SIG line at the end of the article.Resource Box/SIG line:Long Yun Siang or Long, as he is popularly known runs http://career-success-for-newbies.com with his wife Dorena as their way of paying it forward. Their website – based on their real life experiences - provides tips, tools and advise for newbies pursuing career success.
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