BUSINESS ADVICE
www.travelweekly.co.uk
HOW TO...
manage and develop
your career
1. ASSESS YOUR STRENGTHS
AND WEAKNESSES,
OPPORTUNITIES AND
THREATS
Assessing yourself and your
assets is important. It allows
you to avoid your career being
shaped by accident rather than
what you really want. Take
advantage of the free selfassessments
online to review
your skills and abilities but
also to ascertain where the
opportunities may lie.
2. EVALUATE YOUR CAREER
PATH ON A REGULAR BASIS
There is a big diff erence
between going from one job to
another and planning your
career. Success depends on the
latter. Luck may sometimes
play a role, but careful
planning and the setting of
short, intermediate and longterms
objectives are the secrets
of personal and professional
advancement. Working hard is
vital but may not be suffi cient –
the willingness to accept risks
is the secret to maximising
your career potential.
3. CONSIDER NON-LINEAR
CAREER MOVES
Getting promoted is only one
way of developing your career.
You may enrich your present
position by moving sideways
to another area or even
downwards in order to acquire
new skills. A temporary
demotion may represent a
Personal development expert Gaby Marcon,
director of Shine People and Places, gives you
her top tips on how to progress at work
stepping stone for something
much more important. Ask
questions of people in jobs
you want to see how they got
there, and look for the right
opportunity.
4. INVEST IN YOURSELF
Improve your capabilities by
keeping your professional
knowledge up to date. You can
go for formal learning (courses
and qualifi cations online and
offl ine) professional learning
(conferences, attending
exhibitions, in-house staff
training) and informal learning
(reading journals and
periodicals). All these will
increase your job satisfaction
and confi dence in your
abilities. Employers will also
be more likely to recognize
your talents.
5. THINK LONG TERM
Ask yourself what you would
like to do in fi ve or 10 years.
This will give you an indication
of the areas where you may
need to improve or gain
experience.
6. KEEP ABREAST OF
DEVELOPMENTS IN THE
SECTOR
The industry is changing all
the time, aff ected by new
buying patterns, world
economy, technologies etc.
Ignore these factors at your
peril; embrace the changes and
fi nd yourself in a better
position for the future.
7. MANAGE YOUR CONTACTS
Networking will help develop
your career, so make sure you
stay up to date with your
contacts. You never know who
will have what you are looking
for. Share industry information
and ask people in your network
about others who can help you
get the knowledge you need.
8. DEVELOP A MENTORING
RELATIONSHIP
You can benefi t from the
experience, wisdom and
knowledge of people who have
been in similar situations. One
in fi ve chief executives claims
that having mentor was critical
to their success. Look for one
either within your organisation
or outside of it.
9. KEEP YOUR CV UP TO DATE
Your CV is a summary of your
professional development.
Reformat it to emphasise
special skills and experience,
and tailor-make it to fi t each
position you apply for –
diff erent jobs will require
diff erent parts of your past
career to be highlighted.
8For pratical advice
and more ‘How to’
features go to www.
travelweekly.co.uk/
howto
November 7 2008 | Travel Weekly | 41
PICTURES: ISTOCK
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