How flexible are you when it comes to your career? Do you feel like an old rubber band or Gumby? Resiliency is the name of the game in today’s work.
Resiliency, I realize, is more than flexibility. Webster defines it as:
tending to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change.
When we don’t stretch the muscles in our bodies they tend to lose their range of motion.
I am pretty sure the same can be said for our minds. If we are not stretching/exercising our thinking what happens?
Think about stretching your career muscles. Expand your range of motion.
Here are three ways to increase your career flexibility:
Don’t wait for a layoff
My neighbor is training for a triathlon in the Fall (it isn’t even June yet). She will begin swimming in the cold waters of Canandaigua lake within the next couple of weeks.
Even if you don’t think a layoff is coming, begin testing the waters of the job market. Identify your next career goal. It could be a new role or maybe it’s working for a new company. Set a goal and figure out how you will reach it. Start early.
Get in the pond and build relationships
If you are serious about your career, you’ll want to be the big fish in a little pond. In order to do that, you’ll want to know who the other fish are.
Identify the companies or industry you want to be in next and find ways to build relationships with people there.
Sometimes we call this networking. But what it really is is having conversations with people to learn more about what they are working on and what trends they are seeing. It’s information gathering. And you can use this information for your professional development and to differentiate yourself.
Do something that scares you every day
It can be as simple as driving another route work, reading a different type of book, listening to a new radio station, or trying new eyeglasses.
When you are in crisis, your resiliency is lower. It is helpful to have some existing level of resiliency prior. However, it is never too late to begin starting on your next journey. Whatever you do, do not become comfortable.
“One doesn’t discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time” Andre Gide
Hannah Morgan speaks and writes about job search and career strategies. She founded CareerSherpa.net to educate professionals on how to maneuver through today’s job search process. Hannah was nominated as a LinkedIn Top Voice in Job Search and Careers and is a regular contributor to US News & World Report. She has been quoted by media outlets, including Forbes, USA Today, Money Magazine, Huffington Post, as well as many other publications. She is also author of The Infographic Resume and co-author of Social Networking for Business Success.
