Are You on the Right Track in Your Career? 

Do you have a job you don’t care about that much? Are you wondering if you are on the right track in your career or whether you are headed in the wrong direction? Then this post is for you.

I know what it’s like to have a job you don’t like. I graduated from university last June. Living in a foreign country where you hardly speak the language made finding a job really hard, especially since most jobs in my field are in German. And by German, I mean native-level German. Covid-19 certainly didn’t make things easier either.

That is why I was so glad to be offered a job in mid-June. I was a bit nervous to start there because I had heard rumors of it being a very mentally challenging job. That’s why I told myself to just try, at the very least I could make some money for a couple of months and keep looking for another job.

Now it’s been over 6 months and I am quite content with my job. But it’s not in my field and it doesn’t provide me with many skills. I still try to look at the bright side and work on my side hustle to one day be able to move on.

While it’s good to have at least some kind of a job, if you are not happy in the current situation, you should absolutely look for a new job. But what to take into account when you are wondering what step to take next? Job searching can feel scary and frustrating.  What you need to do, is to be clear about your current situation and your goals. Here are my tips on what to take into consideration as you start applying for jobs.

What is your ultimate goal?

This is the biggest question if you want to know whether you are on the right career track or not. What is the main goal you want to go towards? Be ambitious and confident, because you can’t reach your goals without believing in them. If you want to become a Supreme Court Justice one day, then that is your ultimate goal. Or if you want to be able to afford a good lifestyle while only working a few hours a week, then that is your goal.

Be as clear about your ultimate goal as you can and then try to figure out what steps you need to take to get there. What can you do right now to go in that direction, even if the ultimate goal seems far away? Would it help you to take certain extra courses, learn to use certain software, or save up 200 000 euros?

The clearer you are about your desired future, the easier it is for you to figure out the necessary steps to take.

What is good about your current job?

While planning your future, it’s also good to think about what is good about your current job and what you can get out of it or learn from it. While my job isn’t my dream job and I do want to find another job sometime soon, there are many things about the current situation that I really enjoy.

For example, we work in shifts, which means that sometimes I can sleep later and work on my blog in the morning, and other days I get to go home early. Sometimes I don’t have much to do at work and I can use my time to study French. Additionally, I now have a better idea of what kind of work I like and how I want to structure my life.

There are probably quite a few things that are good about your current job, even if it’s not your dream job. Try to focus on the positive things. It’s also important that you try to get as much out of your job as possible. Can you take on more responsibility? Learn to use a new program? Make friends with your colleagues?

What kind of job do you want next?

It’s easy to say that you want to get a better job, but it’s another thing to know exactly what kind of job you’re looking for. Even if you are in a situation where any job at all would suffice, it’s good to think about this, so that you stay on track with your actual goals.

Think about what skills you want to learn, what kind of experience you want to get, what kind of working hours you want to have, and how does the job affect the rest of your week.

It’s good to keep in mind that the job doesn’t necessarily have to be in your desired field to be useful to you. Especially at the beginning of your career you can benefit from a lot of different kinds of experience. If you want to become an ambassador one day, you might still learn useful skills and gain good connections by working for a small newspaper or a tiny NGO that helps homeless people.

What kind of job you can realistically get now?

While you should strive high, it’s equally important for you to understand what is your current potential to any employer. It doesn’t make sense to randomly send out applications to any job you can find.

Do you have the necessary skills and experience for the next level? Is there something you should improve to have a better chance? Are employers often looking for the kind of experience you lack? When you have an understanding of your current situation and your potential in the job market, you are better off.

Possibly your chances of getting a job you would really like are low right now because you have too little experience or are severely lacking certain skills that are often required. If that is the case, you might want to look into gaining those skills in a different field, volunteer work, your own project, or a course.

Be realistic about your opportunities, so that you can take the right action to increase your chances.

What skills do you need to advance your career?

The skills you need in work life aren’t just those that are directly related to your actual work. You also need to understand your field, be able to write good applications, have good interview skills, and be able to sell your expertise.

These are not skills you simply have, which is why you should strive to improve them. It is of course especially important to focus on these questions if you are trying to find a job, but it never hurts to try to become better, even if you’re not looking for a job right now.

You might also be able to start learning something completely new. Maybe you only know one language and have always wanted to learn a new one? Maybe you are very shy, but want to learn to be a confident speaker? Or do you think that you might benefit from photo editing skills one day? If you start learning today, there will be a day, when you can confidentially say that you are good at it.

What can you do every week to find the next job?

I know most of us are busy with work, studies, children, and other responsibilities, which take a huge chunk of our week. But that doesn’t change the fact that if we want to get forward in life, we have to make some sacrifices and find the time we need to get things done.

Maybe you have to cut down on your social media time or prioritize your side hustle over your friends. Maybe you have to study on your commute, even though you feel like just scrolling through Instagram or looking out the window.

You should figure out what are your short-term goals for the coming months. Then break them down, so that you know what you should get done each week. Maybe you can squeeze in two job applications each week.

You can do this by scrolling through job ads on the bus on Monday, getting to know the potential employers during your lunch break on Tuesday, drafting one application on Wednesday and another one on Thursday instead of watching TV after work. And then finish and send them by the end of the week. You can get a lot done over a few months’ time if you commit even just a couple of hours a week to your goal.

Keep working for your goals

Whatever actions you decide to take, it is always beneficial to make sure that you keep your LinkedIn page updated, that you try to acquire new skills on the side, and that you don’t settle for the current situation just because it’s fairly comfortable.

Subscribe to email lists that post job ads, follow the news of your field, and seek to make new connections. Even if the current situation is good, it might change or you might be forced to look for another job, at which point having your act together can save you from a lot of anxiousness and frustration.

What are your career goals? Do you feel like you’re on the right track in your career? Are you looking for a new job this year? Let me know in the comments, it’s always interesting to hear what other people are doing!

Next, read about why it’s crucial that you don’t procrastinate!