Job Search: Say Yes to the Best by Keeping Your Career Goals Clear and Close
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Knowing your career goals and staying focused on those goals during your job search is vital to achieving long-term career success and that you say yes to the best job for you.



A client I have been working with (we’ll call him Greg) was excited to start a recent coaching call. He had been approached by a recruiter interested in him for a VP Sales and Marketing job for an international retail organization. The company is taking steps to enter the North American retail market and is looking for someone head up the U.S. Region.



Greg was very excited and had many things to talk about. He quickly jumped into concerns for the interview and addressing questions he thought might come up. He also commented that the position really didn’t fit the profile we had developed for an ideal position.



In response to that comment, I reminded him of earlier work we had done on creating a Career Goals Profile for the type of transition Greg was looking to make. One of the many points that came out of the assessments and discussion early on was that he wanted to once again make his family an intentional priority in his life.



The last few years had been extremely busy and Greg knew he had put much on his wife to manage without him, and more importantly that he missed being involved in the lives of his wife and kids. After revisiting his priorities for the transition he grew suddenly quiet.



Greg remembered his Career Goals Profile and what he wanted from this transition. This new opportunity didn’t really fit the criteria. It would mean even longer hours and more travel for at least the first couple of years, it wasn’t in his top 3 pick of industries, and there were other initial differences. The excitement knowing someone was interested in him, a company wanted him, and the initial salary range was very enticing, and all the bells and whistle almost swept Greg away.



He sounded relieved as he said the accountability of our conversation would keep him from jumping into an opportunity that although was great, wasn’t great for him




Has this ever happened to you? An exciting career opportunity comes along that gets you excited because of the interest, but deep down you know it isn’t the right job for you? One way to avoid it happening again is to have a clear understanding of what you want from and in a position, before you initiate your next career transition.



Create and stay accountable to your own Transition Goals Profile, your Top 3 Industry picks, and your defining criteria. Include criteria such as the specific experience, skills, and strengths you want to use in your next position or the location, company size, and company culture that you want for the next company you work for. Keep it close at hand and compare opportunities to your Profile to be sure you are staying true to what you want most from the transition.



Career transitions are time consuming, costly and cause much pressure for both the employer and the candidate, be diligent in securing the right job the first time.

Shine on Job Seekers!