Everyone has big dreams about what they want to do and where they want to be when they finally hit the employment market. Some have already found themselves in an industry doing what they set out to do, but some on the other hand are not so satisfied with where they currently find themselves.
As with every endeavour we set out to achieve in life, the success therein is greatly tied to proper planning and a deliberate effort to stick to the plan.
Here are some tips that can help identify and accelerate you towards achieving your career goals
1. Do a self evaluation 
Before you can begin to plan and achieve your career goals, you need to take a self-assessment. This only works if you are honest with yourself. Following are a few examples of what you should consider when starting your self-assessment:
- Where are you on your career path? Just started, 5 years in, etc.
- What have you accomplished in your career and your job(s).
- How do you perceive yourself?
- How confident are you in your abilities and skills?
- If you could start over and do something different in your career, what would that be?
- If you could acquire/learn new skills, what would they be?
- How do you feel about your career? Did you make the right career choice?
- Where are you most comfortable working? In teams? Working on your own? On the field? In the office? At home?
- What motivates you?
2. Define your dream job 
While setting long-term career goals and motivating yourself are great ideas, achieving your dream flows first from defining it. After all, how can you hope to achieve a dream that’s not clear in the first place? Knowing the end game, where you want to go, is an important part of achieving your goals. If you know where you want to go, you are well on your way to your goals.
3. Get relevant information about the job market 
The job market is constantly evolving and recruiters are doing the best they can to find the right candidate for a job. It will be futile to launch into the job market without foreknowledge of the current market scenarios and job demands. You should do an analysis of your desired industry and positions you want to take up.
Learn the required skill levels for the various job roles that are available in the industry. This is where the Self Evaluation you did in the earlier step comes to play. Having an understanding of the market will help you map your current skill set to the required skill levels.
4. Evaluate your current experience and skill level 
You might have been working for some time and gained some experience and hopefully learnt some skills in your current industry. You need to make a detailed list of your job description for the roles held and the things you learnt in those positions.
For fresh career seekers you need to make a chart of where you would like to start and the relevant skills required. Do a research and find out the entry levels for these roles and their related job descriptions. To get some experience, you can start out on internship role or volunteer free service to help you gain practical knowledge of your newly acquired skills.
5. Figure out what works best for you 
After doing a self-evaluation, getting relevant information about the job market and mapping your current experience and skill level, you need to find out what is best for you with regards to your mindset, tolerance and even proximity to the place of work.
Take these entire factors to note as they add up to your psychology towards performing the tasks ahead of you and how quickly you can achieve them.
6. Execute your plan 
Make a detailed checklist of steps, certifications, skills to acquire and even actual companies you want to approach or are on your watch list and check them off as you progress. You should also build new connections that relate to your desired industry and ask questions that will aid you as you follow each step.
Be diligent and focused on your plan and don’t be afraid to seek professional advice as you might need to adjust your plan due to challenges you might face along the way.
Cheers to your success! 
