Create an Asset Plan to Advance Your Career
As we approach the end of the year, many people reflect on things that they’ve accomplished over the past twelve months and things they wished they’d achieved. Since it’s National Career Development Month, we wanted to provide a guide to help you think about what you want to achieve this next year and how to create a plan to get there. Whatever you want to do, you can use the acronym ASSET to help you get started.
A - Assess where you are
The first step in creating a career or professional development plan is to assess where you are versus where you want to be. This can be done in a variety of ways, but it is the first step in creating a specific plan to help propel you to where you want to go. You can use
- Where am I currently? Look at both your position
- Where do I want to go or what do I want to do?
- What are my values and what is important to me?
The last question is especially important. Make sure you align your values with your goals; otherwise, you’ll end up in a spot where you find yourself either stressed out all the time or bored or unhappy. It’s important to know the “why” behind what you want to do and achieve, so you can stay healthy emotionally, mentally, as well as physically.
There are also assessments available depending on how you want to grow. Formal instruments like the DiSC, CliftonStrengths, EQ-i 2.0, and others can help you grow in specific areas and have different reports depending on where you want to put your development focus.
S - Set your goals
By now, most people are at least somewhat familiar SMART goals or have at least heard of them. Using the formula (S-specific, M-measurable, A-achievable, R-realistic, T-time-bound) set a few goals that are specific to your development as a professional. Establishing SMART goals helps for a couple of reasons. It helps you be able to track your progress. Where are you doing well? Where do you need to adjust your course?
Here’s a poor example of a SMART goal: Become a better leader.
(How can you measure “better”? What is the timeframe to do so?)
Here’s a better example of a SMART goal: Read 2 leadership books in 60 days.
(Checks all the boxes of a SMART goal.)
Be sure to set your goals in smaller chunks, especially those that are more long-term. You might need to split a larger goal into smaller, more bite-sized goals to help you stay motivated and on track (just keep those SMART too!). Also, list your goals in order of priority, so you can quickly identify which goals you want to complete first.
S - Specify your strategies
How will you achieve the goals you set for yourself? What strategies will you use to ensure that you achieve your goals in the timeframe you set for them, and continue on the path to your development?
Use a variety of strategies to keep yourself engaged and motivated to pursue your end-game. If you need to upskill or re-skill, look at local options or virtual options and online courses. If you need outside help, look at forming a mentor-mentee relationship through a professional network or local or regional networking group. If it’s appropriate, think about hiring a success or leadership coach to help you navigate through specific issues or challenges you’re having.
No strategy is wrong, it just depends on what you want to accomplish and how you want to get there and in what timeframe. Don’t dismiss volunteer or even experiential experience as strategies for development. There are plenty of opportunities to help you grow depending on your needs.
E - Engage your resources
What resources will you need to accomplish your goals? What help do you need to get? Whether it’s an online course, a professional coach, a networking group, or another resource you need, be sure to plan for what you need and implement them into both your strategies and your timeline when setting your goals.
Here are some examples of potential resources for your development plan:
- Online Courses
- Podcasts
- Webinars
- Continuing Education Courses (through AC or elsewhere)
- Professional Groups/Associations
- Books
- Coaching Networks
- Facebook or LinkedIn Groups
Use any or all of these (or a combination of a few) and combine them with your strategies to help you set goals and timelines for your growth plan. Choose and engage in the resources that will give you the best chance to enhance your growth. Don’t be afraid to step outside your comfort zone and use a resource that you’re not as familiar with - you might end up really enjoying the experience or making a new connection that could be the catalyst for a new role or project.
T - Take time to celebrate
Celebrating wins big and small is important. It will keep you motivated to keep pressing on and is also a good psychological and emotional boost (especially if you have some mid- and long-term goals you want to complete.)
Make sure you also have a list of things you’ll do to celebrate when the wins come; otherwise, it’s easy to let those pass by without acknowledging your successes. It could be something smaller like a new planner or app to assist in your goal-achieving, or it might be something a bit bigger like a celebratory dinner or a new tech gadget. Either way, just be sure to set aside some time to celebrate when you hit a goal.
Whatever you decide you want to do or how you want to grow, continue to check in from time to time and make sure that your final destination (and the points along the way) aligns with the things you value most. There’s no sense in getting to the end of the road only to find out you’ve been going down a path that was not meant for you. As long as you know your "why", and keep that at the forefront of your mind and your plan, you’re bound to accomplish great things.
