Career Goal

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What is a Career Goal?
A career goal is a well-defined statement explaining the profession that an individual intends to pursue throughout his career. It is important for every employee or job seeker to define their career goals clearly. It helps them to come up with effective action plans.

 

Career Goal

 

Setting unrealistic goals can lead to disappointment. But that does not mean that one should avoid formulating career goals altogether. Creating resolutions is the easiest way to keep oneself motivated to achieve your dreams.

 

Breaking Down Career Goals
Setting career goals is an incredibly easy process. All one needs to do is to set targets.

To illustrate the concept, consider a 17-year old who wants to become the CEO of a large engineering company in the future. He must go through several stages, the first being passing his 12th-grade exams. After passing, the teenager will then enroll in a four-year engineering course before moving to work in, for example, a multinational company for at least two years. Next, he may enroll in a management course from a reputable school. Advancing his studies is a good idea to boost his chances of getting the CEO position.

 

Short-term vs. Long-term Career Goals
As shown in the illustration above, there are short-term and long-term goals. The teenager’s primary objective is to become the manager of a company. In order to get there, he needs to achieve his short-term goals, which include passing his high school and college exams, gaining experience by working for a related company, and boosting his experience and skills through further studies.

Short-term goals are those that can be achieved within six months to three years. It may take three to five years or more to achieve long-term goals.

 

How to Set Career Goals
Defining career goals is just half the battle. An individual must set their mind on accomplishing the goals he or she has set. However, if one doesn’t develop or map out their goals properly, it will be harder to achieve them. When setting career goals, an individual should ensure that they meet the following criteria:

 

1. Specific
When setting goals, an individual shouldn’t just focus on being successful. Instead, he or she should define what success means to them. The ultimate success for one person may just be a milestone to achieving bigger goals for a different person. For one individual, success may be becoming the Chief Executive Officer for a company. For another, success can be attaining financial freedom.

 

2. Measurable
As one sets his or her career goals, they should ensure that they also come up with a way to measure their outcome. This can be done by setting a timeframe, such as “complete MBA degree within three years”. Once the individual is able to attain the short-term goals within the timeframe he or she sets, then they’re on the right path to achieving their ultimate goal.

 

3. Avoid negativity
A goal must be something that an individual wants rather than a factor he or she wants to avoid. So, instead of focusing on leaving a particular job or position within the next five years, the employee should aim at where they want to be and think about what they can do to move toward getting there.

 

4. Realistic
More than anything, an individual’s career goals must be realistic. It wouldn’t make sense for an individual to set a goal of winning a Grammy award if they’ve never performed or played an instrument.

On the other hand, the individual setting goals shouldn’t keep things too simple. A career roadmap should be a challenge, not a walk in the park. If the individual’s goals don’t make them a little bit uncomfortable, then they should probably set higher limits.

 

5. Tie actions to each goal
For each set goal, a person needs to take certain measures to achieve it. Listing the different activities that are needed to achieve a goal makes the whole process easier.

 Source: https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/careers/jobs/career-goal/