It seems that 2020 is the year that is all about personal growth and development. From trying to live a more impactful life, to being more productive to simply living more in the moment, people are taking advantage of these uncertain times to work on themselves.
Your professional growth should also be something to focus on during this time. It is an ideal time to position yourself for success once things get back to normal. Even if you are already working and enjoy your career, there is no better time to solidify your position and remain an integral part of your company’s future.
In this article, I will go over several of the ways that you can grow as a professional and become a leader in your field.
1 – Continue your education
Getting another degree or certification can help you be much better at whatever your profession is. First of all, there are probably new ideas that you’ll learn about that were not the norm when you got your degree earlier.
There is always more to learn and being a lifelong learner is essential to personal and professional growth. When you can continue your education, you will become much better at your job as a result.
Take an accountant for instance. If you want to be a better accountant and grow in your career, then it makes sense to go back to school. If you are already busy with work you can get your Masters in accounting online from any number of online universities.
This is the case no matter what your profession is. The higher your learning, generally your salary will follow suit and promotions along with it.
2 – Be ready to adapt
People often think that Darwin’s theory of evolution was about how the strong survive. But, survival of the fittest actually means the ones most able to adapt to new circumstances are the ones who survive.
Be the type of person that can overcome any obstacle by adapting to your environment. Always be looking for opportunities as they appear before you so you are never at the mercy of somebody else.
For instance, layoffs are happening very frequently right now. You may feel secure in your job, but it is never a bad idea to have a solid online presence and reputation along with it to lean on in case you do find yourself out of a job.
You may want to be active in searching for a better job that offers more growth or be ready to take advantage of a new position opening within your company. Don’t get comfortable in your position and be ready to make a move that can advance your career.
3 – Be like a consultant
If you want to be the one that is always getting the promotion or raise, then you have to continuously add value to your company. Instead of just doing the job you’re told to do, act like a consultant for your position.
Always be looking for ways to improve the job. An example would be to look for ways to streamline some of the processes in your department. Even if that isn’t part of your job description, if you find ways to make you or your team work more efficiently then you’re going to stand out as somebody who gets results.
4 – Learn different skills
The bigger your toolbox, the better you can do your job. Taking the accountant example even further, you should be looking to learn skills that may not seem obvious for an accountant to use, but can prove valuable.
If you have an analytical mind, you can learn skills to develop this part of your brain and become even better at accounting than ever. You may even find yourself in a new position due to your ability to think outside the box. Instead of being content to be a nromal accountant, these new skills could put you in a different career path as a forensic accountant or something similar.
5 – Have a network
Nobody gets ahead on their own. Without the right network of people around you there is little chance you will be able to advance in your career.
Surround yourself with people who are ahead of you in their porfessiona as they can give you the roadmap on how to get where they are. Plus, when things change, you may be the one tapped to fill a new position or go work in a better company.