Most of us start our working life in an entry-level position at the bottom of the career ladder. While we gradually do claw our way to the mid-level, only a handful make it right to the rarefied upper positions replete with corner offices.
If you are not where you would like to be and are really serious about scaling the highest echelons of your profession, achieving career success is easy as long as you know how to go about it.
A career guru says, “If you want your career to go faster, then accept that you are going to have to put some pace into it”. Here are a few mantras for working your way to the top:
Passion: The ambition and drive to get ahead is what will help you to make things happen. As it has been rightly said, “Getting to the ‘top’ is all about believing that you deserve to be there”. Build the necessary maturity, sensitivity and flexibility so that you are game for everything that life and work can throw your way.
Clear vision: The key to the top is to dream big and then strive at turning the dreams into reality. Write it in your career objectives and chalk out an individual growth plan accordingly. This mission and key goals will keep you going even under the most adverse circumstances. Never give others the power to determine your career destiny. You and you alone are responsible for your career success. Try to consider all the options in keeping with your potential and go out and achieve them for yourself.
Reputation: Success is built on what you have achieved, not what you want to do or could have done. Keep track of what you do and do not shy away from touting your victories. Persevere in building a strong track record of diligent work and achievements. Also, keep looking for other ways to promote yourself professionally.
Network: If you keep your nose stuck to the grindstone, ‘getting to the top’ will only remain a pipe dream. Afterall, who you know is as important as what you know/do. Join professional organisations, participate in industry events and hobnob with the higher-ups in your company in order to build a strong network of trustworthy relationships.
Simply socialising with your contacts can open doors that you otherwise never dreamed possible.
Go the extra mile: Giving your best and then some more is what counts ultimately. Be willing to do more than you are asked to and go out of your way to achieve exemplary results. As a top career guide elaborates, “Many employees finish their task and then go and make personal phone calls or play on the Internet. The ones who move up the career ladder are those who seek more responsibility when they have completed their tasks. You have to have the initiative to work, or to ask for work.”
You still cannot afford to bask in your laurels. There is still much more to do and to learn. Constantly seek to update your skills and expand your knowledge.
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