Chocolates, Roses, and a Six-Figure+ Dream Job?!

How does that sound for a nice Valentine’s Day? One of my clients just landed her dream job and I hope she is getting spoiled today. She deserves it. She worked hard to get where she is!

Her experience and education paid off and it was an honor to work with her to land her six-figure dream job! I think the only thing that could make her day more special will be scoring a nice fancy dinner, some chocolate, and roses from her spouse! How fun!

Valentine’s Day is a time to celebrate love, friendship, and affection. It's a day to show the wonderful people in our lives how much we truly care about them, whether it be a romantic partner, family member, or friend.

And...it's a perfect time to think about your career and show it some LOVE!

In addition to showing personal relationships some love, this holiday can provide a few lessons for you and the relationship you have with your career.

Here are a few ways in which the spirit of Valentine's Day can help you show your career some love.

Relationships Matter in Our Careers

Just as relationships are important in our personal lives, they also play a vital role in our careers. Building strong relationships with clients, co-workers, and industry contacts can lead to new opportunities, increased job satisfaction, and overall success in your career.

Just like in a romantic relationship… honesty, trust, and open communication are key ingredients in building strong and healthy professional relationships.

Express Gratitude

Yes, Valentine's Day is a good reminder to show appreciation for those around us. This same concept can be applied to the workplace. Taking the time to express gratitude to colleagues and co-workers for their contributions, hard work, and support can go a long way in building a positive and supportive work environment.

Pursue Your Passion and Dream Job

Valentine's Day is a time to celebrate love and one of the most important things we can love is our work. If you're not passionate about your job and career, it's probably past time to pursue something that you truly love and compels you to jump out of bed on Monday morning. Okay, maybe not jump, but maybe not hit the snooze button!

This can mean switching careers, asking for a promotion, or seeking out new opportunities within your current role.

When you love what you do, it shows in your work and can lead to increased job satisfaction and success. You can deepen your love and commitment to your career by giving it the time and attention it needs.

In the entrepreneur world, it’s often said that we have to work ON our business and IN our business.

Your career is important and the time you dedicate to working ON your career is just as important as IN your career.?

How do I show my career love?

Take time to invest in it, build it, acknowledge its contributions to your life, set short-term and long-term goals, make changes to it, and connect with others to discuss it…but don’t think you have to be an expert in today’s job search. You just need to know someone who is. ;-) Join their career groups and never hesitate to ask for help.

Let’s break down the ways you can show some love to your career and perhaps get an ROI almost better than chocolates and roses.

????????Personal branding

????????Tracking your accomplishments

????????Setting goals

????????Investing in learning

????????Networking?

????????Presenting yourself

Personal Branding

Personal branding is a process. It takes time and isn’t achieved overnight. It’s the process of creating and establishing a distinctive image and reputation. It involves your unique skills, knowledge, expertise, values, and qualities. Then, you present them consistently and credibly throughout your professional platforms.

The whole point of personal branding is to differentiate yourself from others, increase visibility and credibility, and create a positive reputation. When you spend time developing your brand, you’ll have a strong identity, and people will understand what you are known for...and you'll attract your right-fit career.

For example, “I’m a Federal and Corporate Career Coach with expertise in strategic career marketing and coaching with an unwavering dedication to helping high achievers get HIRED and promoted into six-figure+ careers.”

Jot down a few ideas about your brand. Include your professional identity - which may be similar to your job title - add a sentence about your areas of specialty and the purpose of your work.?What is your zone of genius? What are you known for? What do you want to be known for?

Here's an example:

“I’m a project management professional specializing in U.S. Treasury cybersecurity. Throughout my career, I have been deeply involved in anti-fraud technology that protects some of our country's greatest financial assets. I defend the nation’s financial security with unparalleled expertise and commitment to staying ahead of cyber threats.”?

Once you write out your thoughts, you can refine them to use on your resume, cover letter, bio, and LinkedIn headline.

Tracking Your Accomplishments

Tracking your accomplishments is essential to your long-term success. One way to do this is to open a Word document and pin it . Then set a reminder on your calendar to write in it at least every week to help you easily recall your accomplishments when it comes time to craft your resume and other marketing, or when you meet with your boss to ask for a raise. ??

You could also send yourself emails about your accomplishments with the subject line: MY ACCOMPLISHMENTS – [subject and today’s date] as they happen, then search your email or group them together when you need them.

When the time comes to craft your accomplishment stories, it is so much easier to recall the details of your wins when you have information to look back on.?Just pick one and do it—consistently.

We developed a proprietary method of writing accomplishments that is unique and effective. Our method offers so much value that it has become extremely popular with our clients because it helps them at every step in their job search.

Setting Goals

In the careers industry, we talk a lot about setting goals with our clients. Recently, we provided several ideas for visualizing your goals in this blog post . Setting goals and working toward achieving them are major factors in having a successful career.

Use the ideas in the linked article above to identify your ultimate goals, the layered goals, and the milestones you’ll achieve along the way.

Set yourself up for success with your goals by reserving time in your calendar each week to review your goals and set your intention for action in the coming days. Your career will love all the attention it is receiving!

Investing in Learning

Long gone are the days when careers were one-dimensional and there is never a guarantee that your employer will provide you with all the resources needed to upskill. Take it upon yourself to invest in your learning to advance your career.?

Research trends in your industry and field of work. Pay attention to new software and new methodologies that are emerging. Ask yourself what is important for you to know to support your current role and to enable you to make a broader impact in your career.?

There are numerous platforms and resources, and it isn’t always necessary to invest thousands of dollars to learn a new skill. Once you have some ideas for topics you would like to know more about, search online sites such as Udemy, LinkedIn Learning, and YouTube to see what is available.

If a certificate program gives you an advantage, research different organizations that offer programs to decide which has the level of depth, support, and respect in the industry that is right for you.

Reach out to others who have earned the certificate and ask any questions that you have. Perhaps: "What is the ROI? Has it advanced your career? Would you recommend it?"

Networking?

Speaking of reaching out... as an advocate of networking, I encourage professionals to network throughout their careers, not just during times of need. Networking is an action that brings benefits beyond transactional referrals and job leads.

Many people network at work and in their personal lives without thinking about it. Every time you chat with a teammate to brainstorm new project approaches or talk to a neighbor you are networking and building relationships.?

Now, it is time to be a little more purposeful and deliberate with networking. You may decide to reach out to a colleague to ask them questions about a project they worked on. Maybe there is someone at the agency or company working on an exciting new endeavor that you’d like to learn more about.

Perhaps someone works in a field that you always thought was appealing. Now is a great time to enhance your career by learning more about others and their careers, projects, and experiences.?

Presenting Yourself

Another way to show your career some LOVE is to work on how you present yourself.

This comes in many forms: how you talk about yourself and your experience, the way you show up at meetings and share ideas, how you invite comments or feedback from others on topics, and how you prioritize your work life and your personal life.?

Presenting yourself in your career also encompasses how you interview. When you are in a job interview, do you convey your value proposition in alignment with your brand?

Do you have several relevant accomplishment stories at the ready? Remember that method I mentioned? It even helps you remember your stories when you are under pressure to remember them!

Have you researched your industry enough to know what might be impacting the potential employer’s priorities and plans? Did you research the agency or company as well as the interviewers so you are informed and interested during the meetings?

Do you know your value in the market today?

Did you use a ChatGPT (artificial intelligence) version of a thank-you letter, or did you put some human intelligence into it and write a stellar job proposal that invites a job offer instead?

How you come across to others when presenting yourself is an important aspect of your overall career pursuits.

When you dedicate time and attention to your career, you’ll land your dream job with ease and speed!

Conclusion

Valentine's Day provides a valuable opportunity to reflect on the relationships that matter most to us, both personally and professionally. By focusing on building strong relationships, expressing gratitude, pursuing your passion, setting goals, and working on your branding, you can take your career to new heights.

So, take a moment to reflect on the love you have for your work and let it inspire you to reach for the stars and land your six-figure+ dream job!

Now that you have several ideas on what you can do to show your career the love, dedication, and attention it deserves, what are you going to tackle today?

How can you turn these ideas into daily or weekly actions? When you do, your career will show you the love in return tenfold, or even for your lifetime. And, when you work with us—we’ll show you how to make that a reality.?

Happy Valentine's Day to you and thank you for taking the time to read this. We appreciate YOU!

If you’d like to learn about our Six-Figure Federal Career Accelerator program, our proven method of writing accomplishments, or anything in this article, please reach out to us here . We would love to meet you and help you land your six-figure+ dream job!

Did you learn anything from this article? Leave us a comment and let us know…we’d love to hear from you. ?

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