Why Is Career Planning Important?

From the day we can talk, we are asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” We give fantasy full answers like fire fighter, princess, and astronaut without a second thought.

As we get older, we are asked the same question, but there has been no real guide along the way to help us have a deeper response about it. We are told we need a career and to study to get us there, but beyond that, then what? Are we told we need a plan? Personally, we do not recall anyone out there telling us the importance of a plan, simply being told the importance of selecting a career path.

At a very inexperienced age we are asked to make significant life decisions by selecting a career for ourselves, make an application to a university and study said industry to kick-start our very own career journeys. But we are not asked to think long term, where do we want this course/career to take us? Where do we want our lives to be in 10, 20, 30 years? The bigger question becomes – how do we get to our big vision?

As we make our first significant career decision, we think more realistically about our choices, because after all, how often does one go to sleep as an actress and wake up as a princess? So we consider things we are good at, interested in, perhaps we have family influence to push us in a direction we may not really want. In the end, most likely, we do not really know what we want but go with the usual subjects such as Business, Finance, Marketing and IT, as we know there are plenty of jobs out there for it.

For some, these choices are perfect and tick the boxes. However, for many they find they are not enjoying the course, but continue it anyway and hope the job and career they get it better.

After studying, then comes the first job search – the junior position. Once that is landed, you may start to think ahead about the next role. But beyond that, what is the career plan? Do you go with the flow and see what comes and just move with the tides? Many of us out there do.

We go to the next role when we feel we have nothing left to learn or become bored, or simply think we have stayed long enough in one position. We grab an opportunity when provided, but do we stop to think about whether this opportunity helps our career?

So our question to you is this: When have you last stopped to ask yourself “what is my career plan?” What is the goal? Are you on the path to reaching your goal?

If you answered no, then keep reading; this article is here to help you realise why you need a career plan and how to action it in the most simplest and effective way possible.

A career plan is like any other plan you may have seen or done; it is there to guide you and keep you on track to an end goal. In order for the plan to be successful, it needs to be realistic.

You cannot go from step one to step five within a year.
You need to know and understand the industry
you are in and what is the realistic progression.
In this plan, you need to identify what skills you need to develop and build.

For example, you are a chef and wish to one day own your own restaurant. What are the gaps in your career skill set and knowledge that is holding you back from opening said restaurant today? Is it lack of experience working in one? Perhaps you do not know how to manage a business…yet. These are the steps you need to tick off to achieve your career goal.

So a plan is a detailed set of instructions you are to follow in order to achieve your target. Without it, you are walking blind, hitting and missing along the way. Without a plan you may never reach your goal or you reach it much later than you could have. A plan will hold you accountable and help you structure your career path in a way that makes logical sense. You may even realise you can skip a few steps and speed things along…but you will only realise this with a career plan in place.

A career plan is even more crucial if you are looking at a career change. There will certainly be extra steps you need to take in order to make a shift from one industry to another. Placing your goals in a visual format will help you to clearly and calmly see the steps you need to action in order to get that career moving in the right direction. So like a checklist you have packing for a holiday, you will not forget or miss a step to reaching your career goals sooner.

Do not waste any further time, download this helpful career planning guide to get your career objectives in place today. This free resource will guide you to your best plan yet.

And remember, take each step at a time, if you try to bite off more than you can chew you will not be able to reach your goals as easily as you think – small steps make for larger changes.

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Why Is Career Planning Important?

Our client, Sharlene, got the career of her dreams