Post by: Beverly Crowell
Managing careers used to be simpler, and, we’re convinced a lot less exciting. People found jobs they liked and were good at (hopefully), stuck with them, and figured out what they had to do to get ahead. Not so simple (or boring) anymore.
As career conversationalist Penelope Trunk puts it, “We’re not just sitting in cubicles waiting for promotions to scale the corporate ladder. We’re changing careers and starting companies. We’re traveling to third-world countries to change the world. We’re even at home raising families, because we know that can be a career in itself.”
Mapping out careers in the new millennium requires a pencil with a good eraser and, becoming a self powered careeristTM. What you do want to get down on paper is who you are, what you want out of life, and a dynamic list of work experiences that keep pace with your evolving workplace.
In an era of less jobs but more work to do, a self powered career steers their best capabilities and passions toward their current roles and beyond. They stay on top of changes in their work world, align their work with their interests, brand their professional reputation, see their organization as a market for their own enrichment, and keep themselves and others satisfied and contributing.
Think about it, how are you self powering your career?