#CareerCounsel: Career happiness in 2016

2016 is a mere two weeks away…crazy, right? As you start to ties up all of those loose ends, it might be easy to ignore what is on the horizon for the year to come.

#CareerCounsel has spent the last few months dealing with the slight hiccups you might face throughout your career. We want to teach you that every career mountain can be turned into a molehill if you apply your mind and think about what you really want. With that in mind, here is a quick round up of our series so far, and how you can apply it to your 2016 plans now!

Are you comfortable with your work life balance?

How has 2015 panned out in terms of a balance between your professional and social life? If you’re happy that you’re getting fulfilment galore from both sides, then great! Keep it up!

If you do want to make a change, it’s simple. Your social life does not interfere with your career and getting things done. With that mindset, you will slowly begin to forget that it’s actually your work life that is affecting your home life. You don’t want to ignore the stress that deadlines and work might bring…you want to fix it. Of course, there are busy periods no matter what industry you work in, so sometimes extra workload is just a part of the job. However, with a little time management you can set yourself realistic expectations, and schedule in some ‘me time’ accordingly.

There is no better cure than unwinding in a way that suits you. Remember that for 2016!

Are you comfortable with what you’re doing?

There comes a point in your career where you might want to learn new things, so that you can progress further. Is 2016 the time to do this? If you feel ready, approach it in a way that is both professional and thankful. You are full of gratitude for what you have been able to achieve, but feel you can offer more.

Review what you have done in 2015, and why you feel you have gone above and beyond. Did you receive great feedback for it, or would you like some feedback? Organising a quick sit down with your manager to discuss performance isn’t something to be frowned upon, so don’t be shy! It shows initiative and drive to do even better, and is a great way to see if there are extra responsibilities you can take on. If there aren’t, what skills can you improve upon from your 2015 feedback that will allow you to find extra responsibilities throughout 2016? Remember, all feedback is good feedback…we all make mistakes once in a while which are easily resolved, so don’t feel uncomfortable with that.

Quick tips

• Stress is not good for you, even if you absolutely love what you do. Always give yourself a break, be it lunch in a new place or one day without emails.
• Being well rested will actually make your work even better!
• Never discuss your desire for extra responsibility with anyone other than your manager (in the workplace of course.) It doesn’t make a good impression, and you’ll appear to be moaning rather than genuinely wanting to go further.
• Know what skills you need to improve on before you have any discussions. It will show awareness to what you need to do without being told. Of course, extra feedback won’t hurt.

We’ll take a short break from our #CareerCounsel 2015 roundup, but stay tuned for part 2! Don’t forget to keep a track on all our #CareerCounsel posts…