Your Career Goals: Are You On Track or Side-Tracked?

How do you want 2013 to be different than 2012? Are you on track?

What usually happens is that we get all excited about changing something in our personal or professional lives. We truly want to change but then as I say “life and work intervenes”. We get busy with other commitments. And our hopes, dreams and goals get put on the back-burner. We say to ourselves, “let me just get through this crisis or project” and then I’ll get back to it – whatever it is.

What Are Your Career Goals for 2013 provided five strategies to achieve your goals whether you want to find a more satisfying job, make more money, get that promotions make a job change, push for that promotion or whatever. Here are an additional five strategies that actually get you moving and keep you moving towards what you want to achieve in 2013.

1. Stay forward-focused.

Too often we talk about what we don’t want but not about why we want it. We want to lose weight, quit smoking, stop procrastinating, etc. These are great goals. The problem is that unless we connect our goals to something is important to us, then we will likely not give it our full attention and commitment on a daily basis. So, for example, you want to quit procrastinating. OK, Why? Is it because you get stressed out and worry about getting it right and on time. You may have a boss who’s very detailed and expect things accurately and before the deadline. And you know that you want to be seen positively in her eyes because there’s an upcoming project you want to be the lead on.

So always connect your goals with the outcome you want and the importance of that outcome.

2. Take small daily actions.

So many good plans derail when we over-commit and under-deliver. To write a blog or a book, to lose 10 pounds or to stay ahead up to date on your tasks, then what can you do every day towards that goal. It could be setting aside 15 to 30 minutes every day to write or exercise, even if its walking around the block, or to create a to-do list first thing in the morning and setting aside “no interruption” time (s) to focus on these tasks.

3. Find an accountability partner.

This will supercharge your efforts. Daily or weekly check-ins have keep many high performing professionals and leaders moving ahead for years. The best example is the executive coach Marshall Goldsmith and his long term friend who have connected by phone every evening no matter where they were. They each asked each other key questions about their goals. It truly does “keep you honest” and motivated.

4. Don’t run away from the possibility of failing.

Fear of failure is the greatest single obstacle to success in life. But here’s the kicker, it’s not failure that holds us back – it’s the fear of failure -it’s the anticipation of failure. We may tell ourselves:: “If I do this and fail, I’ll look dumb; I’ll embarrass myself; I’ll disappoint; people will think I’m not competent or I’m a loser, etc.” So what? What’s the worst thing that can happen? Is it as bad as you think it would be? Check with others. We must look at failure as what it really is, a temporary setback and an opportunity to get it right the next time. Winners win more frequently than losers because they stay in the game.

5. Realize the power of optimism to bring about the changes you desire.

Visualize success, talk success, believe in your success. Expect success to happen. yes, challenges, disappointments, mistakes happen. The important things is to move on. Also stay away from negative people. If they’re not happy for themselves, they certainly can’t be happy for you.

Career Success Tip:

Success is more than working hard, being busy and burning a lot of energy. It’s a laser focus on what matters. So examine all your “to-do”s and pick the ones that count the most – the ones that can make a big difference in your life and career.

Do you want to develop Career Smarts?