Estimated Runtime: ~7 minutes
If you don't plan your career, someone else will plan it for you — and their
plan probably doesn't align with yours. Most people drift through their careers
reactively. A promotion opens up, they apply. A friend mentions a job, they
interview. That's not a career plan. That's career roulette.
Start with the destination. Where do you want to be in five years? Not just a
job title — a lifestyle. What responsibilities energize you? What kind of team
do you want to lead? What impact do you want to make? Now assess your current
location honestly. What skills do you have? What experience? What's your
network? Then do the gap analysis. Between your current state and your five-year
vision, what's missing? Maybe it's management experience. Maybe it's technical
depth. Maybe it's industry credibility. Finally, build the route — specific
actions to close each gap. Not "get better at leadership" but "volunteer to lead
the Q2 project, enroll in the management training program, and find a mentor
who's a VP.
Research shows seventy percent of development happens through on-the-job
experiences — stretch assignments, cross-functional projects, and challenging
problems. Twenty percent comes from relationships — mentors, coaches, and
sponsors. Only ten percent comes from formal training. So your development plan
should be seventy percent experiential.
Write your career plan this week. Share it with your manager and your mentor.
Revisit it every quarter. The most successful professionals I know all have one
thing in common — they're intentional about their growth. Next lesson —
developing leadership skills regardless of your title.