When it comes to the future of work, none of us knows with certainty what it will look like or what industries or skills will emerge as winners. We know however that change is here and remains ubiquitous.
For today’s graduates and employees, the future of work raises a critical question: “How does one best prepare to build a successful meaningful career when the employment landscape keeps changing?
No one knows the answer to this question because no one knows what the future will bring. The reality is that the future is always unknown and change is always constant.
To this end, here are a few things to consider as you endeavor to build a thriving career.
Develop a marketable skill
Necessary and relevant skills are what get you hired, while acquiring a unique skill differentiates you from the competition.
As the job market evolve with the advent of Artificial intelligence (AI), diverse workforce, global connectivity, new media, etc. Having critical thinking skills, cultural, emotional and social Intelligence in your repertoire of skills can boost your career significantly.
Research shows that, “Empathy is a construct that is fundamental to leadership.” If you want to grow and be recognized as a leader you will need to demonstrate to those you lead or in your team that you care.”
Knowing how and when to respond in a given situation will set you apart. In essence as Malcom Gladwell says in his book Outliers “…Not knowledge for its own sake. It’s knowledge that helps you read situations correctly and get what you want.”
Have a purpose
Knowing why you want what you want not only guides, but also helps you navigate the uncertainties of the daily grind as well as motivate you to take on challenges that you may otherwise shun.
In his book, Man’s Search For Meaning, Victor Franklwarns, “Don’t aim at success. The more you aim at it and make it a target, the more you are going to miss it. For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued; it must ensue, and it only does so as the unintended side effect of one’s personal dedication to a cause greater than oneself.”
Simply put, a successful career is one that is based on bring your best value offering to serve others. Therefore, deciding early on how you want your career life to end up before it starts is key.
Know thyself
Would you like to be alive and come alive no matter what’s going on in your life? If yes, you will need to be in alignment with who you are, why you are—purpose, what you are—valuable, as well as have clarity of what values guides you.
Our beliefs dictate our behavior, and our behavior influences how we act. For instance, if you believe you can, you are more likely to take actions toward a particular goal and thus act in congruent to your beliefs.
While purpose inspires, values directs and self-knowledge guarantees power—the unique and unassailable power that results in authenticity or what Oprah Winfrey encourages you to do: ‘own your power’.
Remarkably, we all like and are drawn to people who are grounded in being themselves because they come alive in who they are—authentic!
Find a mentor and a sponsor
Since childhood, humans intuitively know that emulating another is the easiest, quickest and best way to learn.
When it comes to growing in your career, learning through mentorship is still the best approach. Why it’s your responsibility to seek out and ask for help from those more senior and advanced persons in the role you aspire to attain.
Research studies by Center for Talent Innovation (CTI),finds that having more mentorship did not lead to career advancement but having sponsorship did.
In short, “Mentors advise you and sponsors advocates for you.Sponsorship lead to a career advancement while mentorship is instrumental to learning in general.”
In her Tedtalk, Carla Harris, a Morgan Stanley Executive and a Harvard graduate MBA elaborates on the need for a sponsor if one is to advance heir career. She goes on to share how her career got a boost to a top Wall Street banker by sheer having a sponsor.
Unlike mentorship, sponsorship advances those involved. Sponsors make a way and avail access to their protégés who in return support and drive a sponsor’s vision.
Be adaptable and Agile
For some, the future of work and all its uncertainties presents daunting challenges yet for those equipped to manage change this means opportunities are rife.
Have you read the classic book, Who Moved My Cheese by Dr. Spencer Johnson?
If yes, you know that change didn’t just start now. It has always been with us, in fact its what drives value and innovations.
Boosting your adaptability quotient: how well you adapt to change will thus determine if you thrive or die. Harvard Business Review states that, ‘adaptability is the new competitive advantage (AQ).’
Embrace it therefore by cultivating what psychologist Carol Dweck calls a growth mindset for it’s your sure proof to building a meaningful yet thriving career.
To conclude, no matter what the future of work brings, it is your responsibility to seek out a career that aligns with the core of who, why and what you are—your unique value offering in skills and talents. For in the end, success, meaning and fulfillment ensues only in such an undertaking of purpose.
What advise would you give your younger self? Or simply, what are you doing to ready up for the future of work? Share your thoughts in the comments below, thank you.
Carolyne helps professionals gain CLARITY around building a meaningful career. A speaker, author of Being Grounded: 21 Days To Come Alive and Love Your Life, and a contributing writer for various publications. To schedule your 45 minutes complimentary session with her, you can write her at carolyne@vpfstrategies.com
