by Karen Adamedes
2020 is no longer the setting for sci-fi movies or so far on the horizon that planning for it seems to be in the dim, distant future.
It’s less than 18 months away people!
Just think – it was only 18 short months ago since Shape of You by Ed Sheeran was the number 1 single, pretty much everywhere in the world; Hidden Figures, Lion and La La Land were nominated in the Best Picture category for the 2017 Academy Awards; and two million people descended on Washington DC to participate in the Womens March.
Doesn’t seem that long ago does it?
And I’m guess that the next 18 months will fly by just as fast.
Which makes it a good time to stop, reflect and think about what you want for you and your career.
Think Back
What were you doing career wise 18 months ago?
What did you hope to have achieved by now? Have you?
Where did you want to be working now?
Who did you want to be working for and with?
Have you achieved these goals? Are you they still what you want? Do you have actions in place to work towards these?
If not, don’t despair or beat yourself up.
Real life happens and gets in the way of the best laid plans.
The important thing is what you do now. And realizing that the benefit of hindsight (aka 20/20 vision) is that you can sometimes see so much more clearly what you should have done or could have done differently.
If you are not quite where you want to be now, is there anything you can pinpoint that you could have done, or should have done differently that would have got you closer to your goal?
File these reflections away as learnings and…
Look Forward
In 18 short months it will actually be 2020!!
The time to make a plan (and put it into action) is NOW.
These 5 simple steps will help you make your 2020 vision a reality:
1. Think about where you want to be in your career
Where do you want to be? What do you want to be doing? (All the questions you just looked back on)
2. Reflect on where you are now
No brooding at this stage! Assess where you are now and move on in your thinking.
3. Work out the difference between where you are now and what you want for your career in 2020
Write down the gap between now and then. This is your plan for what you are going to achieve.
4. Make a list of the actions you need to complete
What do you need to do to make your plan/goals/vision/dreams happen?
5. Do one thing every week that contributes towards your actions
There may only be 18 months until 2020 (actually less than that really) but there are plenty of weeks…75 from today as I am writing this.
Just imagine if you implemented over 70 actions (with a couple of weeks leeway for holidays) how much you could actually achieve!
The number of networking or mentor catch ups you could have, the people you could speak with, the courses you could attend, the jobs you could apply for…take action now and you will be so much closer to your 2020 vision!
It’s exciting to think about how much you can achieve. I’m excited for you.
Let’s do it!
Karen Adamedes is the founder of Career Tips to Go and author of “Hot Tips for Career Chicks: Unlocking the CODE to success”. You can connect with Karen via LinkedIn, Twitter and/or Facebook.
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Karen Adamedes is an experienced executive, author and career-tipster. In her most recent book ‘Professional in Pajamas: 101 Tips for Working from Home’ Karen shares many of the insights she has gained during a decade of working from home, where she has negotiated multi-million dollar deals, led national teams and delivered major projects. She does admit to sometimes working in her pajamas.
One thig is having a vision, and another thing is following the right steps to see that we achieve it.
Honestly, these questions got deep into me. Although they took me hours to answer, it was well worth it.
Thanks a ton
Thanks Matt…hope they helped – Karen
Very informative article thanks