The big career question: What do I want to do (next)?

It’s daunting. It’s huge. No one really likes to think about it. We’d much rather make small, lateral moves, and then feel some sort of way when the grass isn’t (shockingly) any greener.

Perhaps a different approach, to make this question more manageable, is in order.

1. Start with you, right now:

• What are you excited by in your current role/career?

• What do you think is missing?

• What are your priorities right now?
  

2. Review the list from 1, highlight the ideas that stand out: Which ideas from #1 are the most interesting/compelling/exciting for you? Learn how others have made those ideas real and see what seems interesting for you. Choose your preferred method to learn more - chat to people at work or on LinkedIn, read blogs and job descriptions, watch YouTube videos.

3. Make it tangible: write your ideal job description

Outline the core responsibilities for your ideal role and the problems you’d like to solve. Even if it is only a few bullets, committing it to paper helps to crystalize your thinking.

4. Think about the bridge between where you are and where you want to go: Based on the distance between where you are now and your ideal job in #3 your next step will vary. Do you want to:

a. Modify current responsibilities or a move to a different part of your existing team Focus on how you can discuss aligning your responsibilities you’re your desired career trajectory with your team lead/manager.

b. Take your existing skills and apply them to a new company or sector Start finding roles that align with your ideal role (from #3) and focus on how you would tell the story of how your existing experience would be a benefit in this new role. **Reminder: people socialized as male apply when they meet 60% of the requirements, so if you were socialized as female, remember that you don’t need to hold yourself to 80-90%. c. Reinvent yourself a bit – the kind that comes with more experience, or credentialing, etc. Focus on learning how others have moved into this space (LinkedIn is great for seeing career paths) and identify how you can gain the experience, and where to get required credentialing.

5. Then take the next step. Because you get none of the things you don’t ask for.

In my own career, I’ve used questions like these to take myself from academia to corporate training, and from corporate training to marketing in big tech.

If you’re thinking about your next step, wherever you are along your journey, I can help. Click here to set up a free, 30-minute Chemistry Chat.