Sophie Joern* says women can maximize their career goals by focusing on their personal growth.
Many people like to think about their career and personal goals as two separate things that operate independently of each other.
Though in reality, these two types of goals should be intertwined to promote the greatest balance.
By focusing time and energy on your personal development, you can also accelerate your career growth at the same time! Here are 5 different ways you can maximize your career goals by focusing on your personal growth:
Work on your personal finances.
By freeing yourself from financial burdens that may make you feel stuck or tied to a job that is not fulfilling, you have a greater ability to define and make actionable moves towards your career goals.
Create a budget by auditing your spending over the course of a month, be honest with yourself.
Write out all the necessary expenses (like housing, grocery, transportation, etc.) and make note of the line items that you could do without (like subscriptions, excessive shopping or dining out, etc.).
Compare it to what your income was for the month and define what your total necessities are and what you could cut out if needed.
Work on building an emergency savings account for approximately 3 months of necessary expenses.
Use this new financial freedom you have created and allow yourself to explore career options that are fulfilling to you!
Develop soft skills.
There are many areas of personal development that carry over greatly to your career ambitions.
Listening, for example, is one of the top skills that great leaders possess and can help you with problem-solving.
Boundary setting can help you feel more confident in all aspects of your life and give you the courage to ask for that raise or go for the promotion.
Brush up on your research skills so you know how to leverage resources and gather information when called on by your supervisor or to help you find that next opportunity.
Define your values.
Finding what your core values are through personal self-discovery can help you uncover what is most important to you and what to look for in a career path and employer.
Most interpersonal issues arise from a malalignment in values, whether it is between yourself and a coworker, manager, or company as a whole.
Employees who work for a company with similar values feel more fulfilled and experience less burnout on average.
Invest in yourself.
Think about new skills or topics you would like to learn more about.
Investing in education on a topic that interests you makes the information more intriguing to learn and retain.
Building your transferable skills and having interests makes you a competitive candidate for job interviews, promotion opportunities, and relationship building.
Mindset work.
This is one of the most important personal development skills.
When you seek to better understand your authentic self, you can begin to look for ways to align your own self values with those of a potential employer or business model if you are self-employed.
Teaching yourself that you are always worthy, valued, and important to the world can ultimately build the confidence and clarity you need to move forward down a path of fulfillment, in both life and career.
Practice self-care, meditation, reflection exercises, talking with a coach or therapist, and allowing yourself grace to process new chapters in your life.
You are your most important investment! If you do the work, you will see the difference.
Personal growth looks different for everyone but searching for opportunities to align your self-improvement will ultimately help you down the career path you desire.
Remember to take care of your mind, body, and soul and think outside the box – the possibilities really are endless!
*Sophie Joern is an HR + Recruiting professional and career coach who helps others confidently align their career with their personal values.
This article first appeared at fairygodboss.com.
