Realigning Your Career Plans

Do you sometimes feel like your career has gone way off track -- where you decided that you were going to achieve certain things, and it doesn't feel like you're ever going to get there?

Well, stick with me because this week I'm going to help you reinvigorate those feelings that you had when you set out to get where you wanted to go and then show you how to put a plan together so that you can get there.

Hi, this is Grant Herbert, Leadership and Sustainable Performance Coach, and today I want to continue our conversation around the competency of intention by helping you to realign your career plans.

Over this last month, we've been looking at doing things more on purpose and stepping away from the rut of just doing things day after day, which turns into weeks, then months, and doesn't really feel like you're on purpose.

Over this period, we've been talking about things like values and vision and being able to clear out the trees in front of you so that you can actually see the forest. So, what I want to do this week is finish off this conversation by helping you put together a plan. If you have no plan, you won't know where you're going. I understand that you've had plans before, and because you've had them before and they've all fallen apart because of circumstances, you may have even given up making plans. You do them at work because you have to. But your life — your overall plan, intention and vision - is more important because whatever role you have in your career is just a part of your life. It's not above everything else in your life.

The first thing you need to do is ensure you revisit an understanding of how you look at what's already happened. I've talked about that this month, and we looked at the fact that you need to do forward-focused reflection. You need to make sure that when you are looking at the past, you don't camp there. You have a quick look just as if you were looking up in the rearview mirror in your car, and then you put your eyes back on where you’re going (that big windscreen out in front of you). Those two pieces of glass are in that proportion on purpose because we want to make sure that most of your looking is forward, where you're going; otherwise, you will run into things.

Let's go through a process to prepare for this plan of reflecting on where you've been over the last year, reflecting on what went well and what didn't. However, as I said, you're reflecting whilst staying focused on where you're going. You're not reflecting on gaining data and information to feel bad about yourself, which validates how you actually see yourself and the identity you've been working on. No, you just want to collect some information and ask, "Hey, what worked well and what did I learn from that?”

And,“What can I take forward from what I learned and use it moving forward?"

Do the Exact same thing with what didn't go so well. Take the lessons that you learned and do things differently moving forward. So, step 1 is to reflect on where you've been.

The second thing to do then is to refocus on why you're doing what you're doing. Refocus on your overall vision and mission for your life, what you feel you are called to do. Refocus on the things that you need to do, but also who you need to become so that you can get there.

Sometimes, you lose focus because things are not working well or you're stuck in circumstances. But refocusing, lifting your eyes up and asking, "Hey, where am I going, and why did I want to go there?" gets you ready to put together a plan.

Once you've reflected and refocused, the next thing you need to do is relaunch. But relaunch with a new plan to bring things back on track. So, you’re not throwing out the baby with the bathwater and giving up on what it is you wanted to achieve. You’re just looking at different ways of getting there and then breaking it down into bite-sized chunks.

So, reflect, refocus, and then relaunch.

And your relaunch is exactly that. You're only starting a new leg of your journey, not starting again. Everything that's passed has been part of the process of getting where you are right now, but you’re relaunching with a new energy and vigour because you've got in your mind again why it is that you're doing this.

What's important to you?

Who's it going to help?

And, where does it fit into your overall priorities?

Now that you've done this and you understand the process before you can relaunch, you need a new plan. To do that, you can use my R4 Method. It's a simple plan with four parts to it that all start with R so that I can remember it easily. You put the different elements together in a sequence, which I'm going to teach you right now.

So, the first thing you need to do is look at where you want to go and where you want to be 12 months from now. I call these the RESULTS.

"What results do you want to see in your career 12 months from now?"

Work out what's important to you. So those priority areas that you have looked at in our previous conversations, and those values that you have worked out for each of those, and where it is that you want to be. When you do that, look at it as if it has already happened. Use a narrative that is in the present tense. To do that, you need to start by saying, "It is," and then fill in the date 12 months from now.

"It is", [whatever date it is] and "I have." Then explain to yourself or narrate to yourself what you see.

That's really powerful, and I know it might feel a bit strange the first time you do it because you are trying to trick yourself into thinking it's already happened. But what you're doing is giving your brain a picture of where you're going.

So have a go.

What are your results?

The next thing you want to do is come back to today and go, "Alright, well, that's where I want to go. That's great, but where am I now? What's my REALITY?"

READ THE FULL ARTICLE: https://www.grantherbert.com/blog/realigning-your-career-plans

Grant Herbert (aka The People Builder) describes himself as an ordinary guy, with an outstanding wife and 5 amazing kids, who has a passion to help people escape the performance trap and regain their authenticity in every area of life. He is a VUCA Leadership Mentor, Sustainable Performance Coach, Master Coach Trainer in Social and Emotional Intelligence,?and the founder of People Builders.

Visit www.grantherbert.com to find out how you can connect.