Preparation Matters: Career Success Tips

Have you ever considered that you, or should I say we as individuals are a brand? Personal branding is how you market yourself and show the value that you bring to the table. Whether you're starting a new career, preparing for a future career, or changing careers, acquiring or polishing your knowledge about preparing for career success is a great starting point.

We're finishing up week 3 of our internship class at WTAMU, which has provided us with numerous helpful tools to achieve career success. One resource shared with us were tips to improve the odds of having an amazing first day when starting a new job. This video resonated with me because I was reminded of my first day with Weighing Technologies Inc a little over one year ago and how I prepared myself then and still prepare myself now to continue on the pathway of being successful in my career.

The five tips that Raf Chapman mentions in the video are 1) Mindset, 2) Plan & Prepare, 3) Be Curious, 4) Office Etiquette, and 5) Write Everything Down. The tips are centered around the first day on the job, but I can attest to the fact that these tips are vital well beyond the first day and should be top of mind everyday for anyone who is part of the workforce.

I like that Chapman chose mindset as the #1 tip because I've learned through experience that having the right mindset is necessary, especially when learning a new role or while facing challenges. Being positive, confident, and determined will help to overcome any obstacles and lead to mastering tasks that were once viewed as difficult.

The second tip to plan and prepare is also important in preparing for career success because without planning out your day or the steps that you need to take to achieve goals, this only makes matters worse when unexpected change occurs and throws everything off track. Unexpected changes are not a matter of if but when, so it is absolutely necessary to plan and prepare each day for the known because the unknown will eventually be a sure thing. I'm going to jump over to tip #5 since I believe that it goes with the tip to plan and prepare. I cannot stress enough the importance of writing everything down when you're starting a new position. With all the mountains of new information being added constantly, then that new information becomes old information, and more new information is added, a lapse in memory is bound to occur. This is likely when there are certain tasks that are not handled often, but are still part of the job even though they may not come into play but once every few months or so.

Backing up to tip #4 for office etiquette, this definitely should be at the core of all professional environments. The keyword is RESPECT. Be respectful, dress and communicate appropriately, and leave all personal matters at home.

Finally, tip #3 to be curious is simply to submerge yourself into all there is to know in your role and your pathway forward and upward. Be as a sponge and soak up all the knowledge that will prepare you for your journey's ups and downs, wins and losses, successes and failures for these will all lead to the success you're working toward.