SolveYourProblem
eLearning Series: Setting Goals
You Can Achieve Any Dream You Desire
(
21 pages )
Setting
Career Goals
Your goal
Planning a career
move is much like mapping your route for a road trip.
If you don't
know where you are going, you can't decide how to get there,
but if you do know where you are going, you’ll get there
faster.
Goals like “Go
back to school” are too general and not specific enough.
You have to translate these goals into specific statements
such as "Enter a college accounting program by next
fall" or "For the next two months, search for work
in the computer securities field.” You have to know exactly
what you want to do and when to go about it.
Plan Backwards
One of the best
ways to move forward is to plan backwards. Start by asking
yourself if you can accomplish your goal today. If you can’t
why do you think that is? What do you have to do first? Is
there something you have to do before that?
Keep thinking
backwards like this until you arrive at tasks you could do
today. This will help you to attain the goal’s starting point.
For example,
if your goal is to take a two-year business administration
program, could you start today? No, you have to be accepted
to the program first. Could you be accepted today? No, you
have to apply first. Could you apply today? No, you have
to decide which post-secondary institutions to apply to.
Could you decide today? No, you have to do some research
first and so on. I could do this all day but you get the
point.
Don't worry if
your list of things to do becomes several lists.
Deal with your fears and expectations
of yourself
Look over your list of things you will have to do to achieve
your goal. Do you believe that you can do it? If you have doubts,
take some time to think them through first.
Are your expectations
realistic? Have you succeeded or failed at tasks that were
similar to this before? What can you do to improve your chances
of success this time around? For example, if there is a good
chance you will not follow through with your plans, you have
to ask yourself why.
Are you a professional
procrastinator? If so, what can you do to make sure that
you will keep going until you reach your goal? Are you afraid
of failing?
If so, work at
improving the skills you will need. Or test the waters by
taking an evening or distance education course before you
sign up for a whole program. If you are having trouble identifying
your fears or figuring out how to deal with them, talk to
people you trust. Ask for their suggestions, but always make
your own decisions.
Put your plan into action from
to do list
By this stage,
you probably have more than one list of things to do and,
if it is necessary, some plans for avoiding or dealing with
potential problems. Now you need to put them all together
into one comprehensive plan. You must list tasks in the order
in which you must complete them and set deadlines for the
completion of any major plans. Successful career planners
keep themselves on track using a variety of methods, such
as:
- marking tasks
on a monthly calendar (noting important dates such as application
deadlines or action plans)
- making weekly
or daily lists of things to do and cross off tasks as they
are completed
- using a computer
program to create timeline charts which give you your time
limits for task completion
- using a commercial
appointment book or a notebook; even a palm pilot with
a new page for each day or week.
Use whatever methods
work best for you. If it is absolutely necessary, ask a friend
to check on your progress occasionally or question you on
your successes because you are more likely to get things
done if you know you'll be asked about it.
Now you have learned
all that you could want to set successful career goals. If
you follow the things in this section and have remembered
the previous sections, you will do just fine because there
is nothing to hold you back now.
 
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