Invest in Your Career

Career Growth

At the beginning of your #career , you may be focused on getting your first #job . As you gain more #experience , however, you will probably want to think about how to advance in your career. There are several ways that this can happen:

Investing in your career is an investment in yourself

Investing in your career is an #investment in yourself, so don't view the time and money you spend as wasted. If you're going to be working at something for 30 years, why not make it something that will help you #grow ? There's no shame in being #ambitious and wanting #better things for yourself. If anything, try to think of all the work you do as building a #foundation for those future goals—it's never too early (or late) to start thinking about what kind of life you want after #retirement !

If you're employed, you should be learning on the job

It's a fact that the skills you need to #excel in your current role will change over time. For example, when I began my career in the circulation department at a publishing company, I knew nothing about #sales modeling or for that matter even #marketing . Learning #newtechnologies has helped me change my industry, do my job better and make more #money . That's why it's important to learn new things at every stage of your career—not just in college or #graduate school, but even after #graduation when you're looking for jobs and making sure your #skills are up-to-date with industry practices.

There are many #opportunities for learning on the job: You can learn from colleagues who specialize in different areas of business (marketing, accounting), customers you interact with daily (depending on where they live), and even #competitors whose products or services may be superior than yours but still within #financial reach for #potential customers like yourself!

Learning isn't just about taking classes

#Learning isn't just about taking classes. You can learn from other people, books, and the internet. You can learn from your mistakes and successes. If you're looking to become a better #programmer or #designer , this is the best way to do it—not by taking more classes but by learning on your own time and in your own way.

You can grow your network while learning new things

A #network is a group of people who help each other out. This can be friends, family or co-workers, but it also includes #connections at your bank, #gym , #LinkedIn and local #library . Your network can be #digital or #physical ; it all depends on how you use it—and that’s what will help you grow as a person and in your profession.

In order to build a strong network:

●???Meet new people through work events or by #volunteering for something in your #community that interests you

●???Reach out directly if someone approaches you asking about an #opportunity they think would be right for you

Your career growth isn't just beneficial to you, it's beneficial to your employer also

A strong job candidate is always a #valuable asset to an #employer . As you grow as a person and improve your skills, you're also #improving the value of your work for the company. Your career growth will have a #positive impact on both your #personal life and the company's #bottomline :

●???You will become a more #valuable employee. The more #expertise , #experience and #knowledge that you gain throughout your career, the better your chances of finding success at any given job. This means that if an employer hires someone with no experience but great #potential , they know there's room for #improvement within their #organization — and they can invest in this person's growth by providing #training resources or #opportunities to expand their skill set.

●???You'll have more #opportunities when it comes time to look for jobs elsewhere. In addition to being able to pick up new skills through training #programs offered by employers (such as tuition #reimbursement programs), having multiple #experiences under your belt gives you more options when searching for another #position in another company or #industry than someone who has stuck with one role throughout their entire career thus far without ever learning anything outside of what was #required during normal working hours each day."

Be careful not to overinvest in your career at the expense of other areas of your life.

While it’s important to advance your career, it’s also important not to neglect other areas of your life. If you’re so focused on #professionaldevelopment that you don't have time for #friends and #family , or if you skip the gym because you're busy working extra hours, then chances are good that your health may suffer. And if there's anything worse than eating fast food all day long and not exercising, it's having no #spiritual life at all!

●???Instead:* Make sure that the majority of your activities promote #holistic well-being rather than just one aspect of it (e.g., physical fitness). When possible, try new things—this may mean taking up #yoga or #meditation or learning how to meditate from #YouTube videos—but whatever activity gets you out into #nature is a good one too!

You should never stop trying to make yourself into a better worker.

When you’re a #newemployee , it can be scary to suggest improvements to processes or even ask for help. But you should never stop trying to make yourself into a #better worker by being open to new challenges and putting yourself out there. Don't be afraid of asking #questions , offering #suggestions , or even admitting when you need help with something.

Don't be afraid of #failure ; any time I've ever failed at something in my professional career (and believe me: there have been plenty), I've learned more than I would have done if everything had gone #smoothly on its first try. And remember that making mistakes is just #partoflife — and sometimes those mistakes are what teach us the most #importantlessons ! Asking for raises is also scary because it feels like an admission that we aren't valued as much as our colleagues think we should be...but if someone isn’t going #aboveandbeyond their job description every day at work (which everyone should), then maybe they don’t deserve their salary?

The key to career growth

The key to career growth is finding a job that will allow you to #grow . If your job doesn't offer #opportunities for professional development or growth, then it's time to move on. Your long-term #career goals can be met at many different types of jobs so don't worry if you've found yourself in an entry level position and aren't sure what type of career path you want to take just yet.