One hurdle job seekers must overcome is thinking like an employee. Sure it is easier. That construct is all about you staying in your comfort zone. In reality though, it is just another barrier to achieving what you want in your career, one that you created a long time ago and that limits your networking effectiveness and, when the time comes, your ability to accelerate your job search.
You are a company of one. You are the CEO of you. In this role you have responsibility for governance, performance, personal development and marketing, which includes branding. When you pivot and begin using this perspective, everything will change. You won’t automatically win that dream job – that takes a lot of things working together – but you will create the mindset to invest more time on your career. When you take a spousal relationship for granted, you could end up in a divorce. When you take your career for granted, you probably will not achieve your capstone goals. There is nothing worse than an unrealized dream.
When you take your career for granted, you probably will not achieve your capstone goals. There is nothing worse than an unrealized dream.
So, what does this Company of One concept mean? Let’s break it down into the four elements:
- Governance – This is all about the decisions you make, the promises you make and keep. To reach the pinnacle in your life, you have to make wise judgments – the jobs you take, the work-life balance commitments you make, and how you treat others.
- Performance – The best strategy to advance in your career is through performance, achieving or exceeding your performance objectives. You can have a great professional network and a good reputation but if you do not perform your career will experience some frequent bumps in the road. You also must deliver on your commitments to family and community. As the CEO of YOU, you are responsible and accountable for your performance and achieving your goals.
- Personal Development – If you want to advance in your career then you must seriously embrace the idea of lifelong learning. If you do not stay abreast of developments in your industry you are placing another restriction on your ability to rise to the top. Moreover, the most successful leaders are not one-trick ponies. Not only do they maintain cutting edge knowledge of industry developments, but they also have a broad range of information and insight on economic trends, political and social issues.
- Marketing – Amazingly, this is an element that is left off many people’s career management list. Being a CEO is a tough job, ask anyone who has done it. It is loaded with issues and responsibilities that make some people very uncomfortable. Marketing your company of one includes elements like career planning, brand management and strategic networking. You cannot achieve your full potential if you avoid these essential marketing and brand management tasks that take you out of your comfort zone. The marketing component is not something that will magically take care of itself. You have to do it, or pay someone to do it, which will be expensive. Besides, no one knows you like you.
Master Course On Interviewing Skills Scheduled at ACHE Congress March 25
Join Chrishonda Smith, CCDP, SHRM of OhioHealth and John Self, an executive career transition coach, for a Master course on interviewing skills at the American College Healthcare Congress in Chicago, March 23 – 26. This is one of the more popular and highly rated sessions of the Congress The session is at 2:15 PM on Wednesday, March 25.