How To Navigate A Career Crossroad Like A Boss

There might be a point in your life where you become uncertain about your career. That kind of uncertainty can feel uncomfortable, stressful, and even scary. It can stem from a stressful workplace, a micromanaging boss, boredom, or lack of growth.

You know it’s time for a change but yet you struggle to figure out what’s next. Coming to a crossroad in your career can be frightening, but it can also be exciting and liberating. Whether you’re evaluating your current position or looking to elevate your professional reputation, these applicable suggestions will help you navigate a career crossroad like a BOSS!

The first and most important step to discovering your ideal work is to be fully aware of who you are and what you want. You need to thoroughly understand and be able to articulate your strengths, weaknesses, and interests. What motivates you? What makes you happy? What do you love? What are you good at? Career satisfaction stems from a clear understanding of what you want.

When you define your personal values you discover what’s truly important to you. A part of who you want to be is rooted in your values. Make a list of what’s important to you and why they are important. Identifying your values builds your self-awareness and provides clarity. Once you become clear about your values you will gain tremendous focus and you’ll feel more aligned with your career.

Naturally we tend to drift off course and shift all over the place. Prioritizing your life increases your ability to focus on what is important. A starting point would be to arrange your list of values by order of importance. This requires some intense thinking but doing so will lead to consistency in how you invest your time and energy and yield to positive results. Time is one of our most valuable yet limited resource. If we waste the day by investing our time in actions that don’t produce the results we want, that loss is permanent.

RELATED: The Art Of Navigating Transitions

Mentoring is one of the oldest forms of influence and knowledge sharing. Embracing the concept of mentorship will have a positive impact on your professional development. A mentor does not have to be someone in your workplace, but it’s a good place to start. It could be someone in a completely different industry or someone in the same field as you. Find someone you admire and respect, or someone you find insightful. Most mentorship relationships happen informally just by meeting and establishing a relationship with someone who shares common goals and interests. Whatever the approach, it is key to align your goals with expertise and experience.

I’m sure you’ve heard this one before, so much so it’s become cliche, but networking works! Not only can networking be helpful in advancing your career but it can also encourage personal growth and confidence. You don’t need to be naturally outspoken to be successful in networking environments. However, you do need to be prepared to deliver value. Networking is effective when you have an unselfish mindset. Don’t think of it as an opportunity to just help yourself but as an opportunity to help others as well. It’s a great opportunity to form and maintain a valuable circle of contacts and build a solid network that will serve you for years to come.

It’s important to stay in a positive state of mind while going through a change. Accepting that change is a part of life is necessary for growth. Staying positive will help you deal with the change effectively. Surround yourself around positive people and exercise your mind and body. Make the necessary shifts in your life to embrace the change, and move forward like a BOSS!