February 11, 2003
What should I do with my life? (2)
This strikes me as sound career advice. Don't just plan. Act.
Nine Unconventional Strategies For Reinventing Your Career
HBSWK Publish Date: Feb 10, 2003
The turbulent business market has caused many people to rethink their careers?sometimes without choice. Here are some tips for reinventing your career from Working Identity: Unconventional Strategies for Reinventing Your Career, published by Harvard Business School Press.
Here are nine unconventional strategies for reinventing your career: act, then reflect; flirt with your selves; live the contradictions; make big change in small steps; experiment with new roles; find people who are what you want to be; don't wait for a catalyst; step back periodically but not for too long; and seize windows of opportunity.
Just do it. Act your way into a new way of thinking and being. You cannot discover yourself by introspection.
Resist the temptation to start by making a big decision that will change everything in one fell swoop. Use a strategy of small wins, in which incremental gains lead you to more profound changes in the basic assumptions that define your work and life. Accept the crooked path.
Don't just focus on the work. Find people who are what you want to be and who can provide support for the transition. But don't expect to find them in your same old social circles.
Break out of your established network. Branch out. Look for role models?people who give you glimpses of what you might become and who are living examples of different ways of working and living. Most of us seek to change not only what we do; we also aspire to work with people we like and respect and with whom we enjoy spending our precious time.
Posted by jaycross at February 11, 2003 11:31 AM | TrackBack