The Right Mentor, Analyzing, Strategizing, Seizing Opportunity

Hello friends!

Welcome to the final four steps in successful career planning in which I detail the essential steps needed for you to embark on your journey of self-discovery and career building.

In our previous articles, we highlighted the need for self-evaluation and reflexivity in understanding yourself such as self-conquering, passion, and vision. The importance of the outside world was also stressed in which aspects such as choosing the right industry and protecting your dreams from unlawful criticism was emphasized.

In this article, we will be discussing the final four steps that are vital in solidifying your career plan: choosing the right mentor, analyzing your present situation, strategizing, and being an opportunist.

Step 7: Choosing the right mentor

“A mentor is someone who allows you to see the hope inside you.” – Oprah Winfrey

Do you have a mentor? Have you considered the necessity of a mentor in this journey of career planning?

A mentor is one who holds your hand and takes you through the road of personal and professional development. It is someone who has more experience than you in certain aspects of life, and one that can guide you to improve your skills as you advance in your career.

A recent survey by Olivet Nazarene University, Illinois reflects that 76% of people think mentors are important; however, only 37% of people currently have one.

Mentors are undoubtedly role models that you can look up to. When choosing a mentor, preferably look for one from your opted industry type in which you can garner inspiration from their life journey.

Mentors are people who have “been there” or have “done that” in which you are aiming to do.

They are storehouses of knowledge and experience packaged in one entity in which you can directly learn, share, and take profound guidance from.

They may be people close to you or even at times a chosen social celebrity. A study of their life path will give you rich insights into the challenges faced by them in building a career in a chosen field, career growth opportunities, and unseen obstacles.

However, whilst it is good to learn from your mentor to understand their ways of facing challenges; never mimic the person or become a carbon-copy of them. Maintain your self-identity throughout and celebrate your uniqueness in every step of your career journey.

When choosing a mentor, be mindful of the character that you are looking up to as a role model. Whilst it is good to be ambitious with a go-getter attitude: it is more important to be a good human being.

Often in this world, people tend to fall in for unethical practices to race ahead in the competition and find short-cuts in the ladder of success.

Refrain from choosing a mentor who has ever adopted such practices.

Choose a mentor whose values align with yours, and one whom you can appreciate, share knowledge with, and eventually exchange insights on your experiences with as well.

Strive to be a good human being and role model yourself before aspiring to be anything else.

As they say: “Being good suggests you are halfway there.”

Step 8: Analyze your present situation

It is said that “the decisions you make today will not just affect your tomorrow but will determine your future.”

Analyzing your present situation prepares the launch-pad in order for a smooth take-off tomorrow. Your present is evolving fast. Therefore, knowing how to keep at pace with it shall help you in shaping a better future.

For example, look at the world right now currently undergoing the hardships of an unforeseeable pandemic such as COVID-19. Business in general is slow and a recession is perhaps the next major challenge the world will face.

Is your chosen career industry strong enough to face the blow? Are you preparing yourself to face these challenges of the future?

No matter how far away your career goals might seem right now, remember that the world is constantly changing and different factors will inadvertently have lasting impacts on the economy.

Therefore, know that your career is personal. It is important to be conscious and analyze your present situation, plans, skill-sets, and alternate plans in order to back up your plan A.

Another major factor that influences your present situation is the type of people that surround you.

Are your friends, family, and colleagues supportive of your dreams and plans of the future?

Do they PUSH you towards your goals or PULL you down with their critical opinions?

Scrutinize the kind of people who make up your immediate surroundings. Choose positive, uplifting people who are happy to contribute to your success. Maintain distance from toxic and negative elements that can nip the bud of your dreams in developing stages.

Step 9: Strategize your Plan

You have come this far assessing your strengths, weaknesses, and the external environment. You have also discovered your passion to build a dream career. What next?

Well, it is perhaps the most important step of this journey: creating an action plan.

What are the steps that you need to take to put your career plan into action? The answer to this depends upon your present standing.

If you are a recent graduate straight out of college, there is an array of options for you in terms of acquiring a higher degree, taking on a vocational course suited for your industry, and so forth.

If you are in your mid-career stage and aim at revamping your career, analyze your already acquired skill sets, understand which skills can equip your career growth and what part-time or professional courses can add value to your resume.

Ask yourself: are there openings for your dream career in present organizations or do you need to switch jobs in order to find a better place?

Once you answer these questions, your action plan will have greater clarity and give you the required confidence to move ahead in this journey.

Step 10: Be an Opportunist

“A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” – Winston Churchill

Which category do you see yourself as? Is your glass half-full or half-empty?

Do not dwell on the miseries and hardships of life. Remember that every difficulty has a hidden opportunity: an opportunity in order for you to excel and shine even brighter.

Besides this, you need to be open to opportunities. It may come to you in a variety of ways and often in the most unforeseen situations and circumstances.

Be smart enough to grab them for they come very rarely. If you miss an opportunity, you might have to wait longer for another one to arrive and find yourself in regret.

Therefore, be alert. Instead of dwelling in the past or complaining about what you don’t have, choose to instead focus on what you do have and how can make the best use of it.

The more opportunities you grab, the better your chances of showcasing your talents and excelling in your career.

I hope that these ten steps of successful career planning that I have shared with you will allow you to have a renowned sense of confidence in building your dream career.

Remember that these are just the fundamentals that I have shared with you and that every career planning journey is unique to each individual.

The power of will lies directly with you.

Until we meet again, this is Nan Samy, your Life Coach and friend, signing off for now.

Stay happy and Stay positive!