rAnyone who’s trying to climb the career ladder thinks how can they possibly climb it higher and faster. However, as they focus on improvement and advancement and search for ways to improve their careers, they fail to see the mistakes they might have been committing and hinder their progress.
If you want to be better at your chosen profession or career path and get ahead of your peers, here are the five career mistakes you should avoid.
1. Not taking risks
If you’ve been in your position for quite some time, it’s possible you may have grown too comfortable with it to the point that you’re never ready for change even when it’s for the better. True enough, it’s not always easy to step out of your comfort zone. The fear of failing can easily take you back. However, when you don’t take risks, you will never know what’s on the other side of your comfort zone. Sooner or later, you’ll feel as if you’re stuck in a rut.
Taking risks is not necessarily about leaving your current position. You can take a risk by changing up the way you do things. You might be surprised to find that you can do your work more efficiently.
2. Refusing to learn and grow
When you’ve been doing something long enough, it’s easy to think that you know everything there is to learn about it. When you get praised for your performance, you run the risk of settling and refusing to accept new methods and knowledge.
Industries and technologies continue to evolve. What you know now can be outdated tomorrow. If you don’t strive to keep on learning and growing, you might miss out on opportunities.
When you have the time, sign up for courses, training, seminars, webinars and the like. You don’t even have to spend a penny as there are a lot of free ones out there.
3. Allowing yourself to be easily stressed
When there are a lot of tasks at hand and there’s deadline after deadline to worry about, it can be a challenge to keep your cool. However, if you’re unable to figure out how to cope with stress at work, it may take a toll on your well-being and productivity. As a result, you may not be at your best and this can affect your promotion goals.
Before stress gets the better of you, sit back and think what’s stressing you out in the first place? Is your workload too much? Maybe you need to talk to your boss about it if that’s the case. On the other hand, if your workload is just right but you’re still chasing time often, then you might need to re-evaluate how you spend and manage your time.
If other things stress you out at work, such as a nosy or obnoxious officemate, it might help to seek the assistance of your manager or HR personnel.
Ultimately, if you can no longer find a reason to be happy with your work, it’s probably time to quit and seek the change you need.
4. Neglecting business relationships and networking
As you build your career, the people you know are often as important as the things you know. Even if you think you’re already in a good company and position, you should still consider your network as one of your best assets.
Aside from people in your company, outside acquaintances such as previous clients, prospects, and partners should have a place on your list of valuable network. Make time to touch base every once in a while—a simple email would do, particularly when there’s a holiday or occasion when you think a greeting would be appropriate.
Furthermore, you should also welcome opportunities to know new people in and out of your industry. You never know when your network could prove helpful.
5. Failing to balance work and life
So, you love your work. However, this shouldn’t be a reason for you to never stop working. When you work too much, you get stressed more even if you don’t notice it yet. Sooner or later, you might get burned out.
Take a rest when it’s time to rest. Be with your family. Pursue a hobby. You won’t be as effective at work if you don’t take care of yourself.
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