Want to make big career moves, but you aren’t sure how to get there? Then you need a career development plan — and you don’t have to wait for your yearly review with your manager to create one. Whether you’re already employed, still in school, or just itching to add some career direction to your freelancing life, a career development plan will clarify your job goals and give you a roadmap to achieving your dreams. Follow these four steps for a custom career development plan that steers you in the right direction:
- Reflect
To start, you need to determine what your overall career goals actually are. Ask yourself where you want to be in a certain number of years career-wise. Five years out is a good place to start, because five years gives you enough time to really dream big. Get specific here — list what industry you want to be in and what you want your actual job title to be.
- List
Now you should make a list of all the skills and qualifications you need to snag that dream job. Start by searching through job postings on sites like Indeed.com for similar positions; these postings normally list the “must-have” and “preferred” qualifications strong candidates should possess. Some of these qualifications may be skills or personality-based, like “advanced knowledge of Microsoft Excel,” “whip smart with words,” or conversational in Spanish.” Other qualifications may be more definitive, like the need for a certain advanced degree or certification. List out all of the required and recommended skills and qualifications. If you have friends or superiors in similar positions, talk to them as well about what qualifications they think helped them land the job, and add them to your list. Keep in mind that a qualification for your dream job may be holding a certain position above the one you’re currently in — if that’s the case, you’ll want to look at the skills need to snag that stepping-stone job as well.
- Order
Once you have your list, cross off the skills and qualifications you already have. Now it’s time to order the remaining un- or under-developed skills in terms of priority. “Must-have” skills go near the top. You’ll also want to think logically about timelines, as well. For example, you’ll want to prioritize getting an advanced degree in, say, statistics, before improving on your Microsoft Excel skills — since you’ll probably cover Excel ninja tricks in your stats degree courses anyway.
- Date
It’s not enough to list out and order the skills and qualifications you need to land your dream job — for a career development plan that you’ll actually stick to, you need to include key dates as well. Break up the big skills into smaller goals, and give yourself hard deadlines for achieving each. Don’t skip this crucial step; including dates in your plan will make it actionable, instead of simply wishful thinking.
Check in on your career development plan monthly to ensure you remain on track — or even better, print out the list of skills and qualifications and the accompanying deadline dates and tack it above your desk so you’re always inspired to keep moving toward your career goal.
Where do you see yourself in five years? Share your big career goals with us in the comments below!
