How to reach your careers goals in 2021

People who go to the gym several days each week typically dread the start of a new year. The wait times for exercise machines increase dramatically and the locker rooms are suddenly packed with people. Fortunately, for the regular gym-goers, the crowds tend to disappear by late-February.

The surge is thanks to the flood of people making resolutions to finally get in shape or get healthy. Most of those people likely make the promise to themselves that they’ll go to the gym each day. Yet, the novelty wears off after a couple of weeks and life somehow gets in the way.

What’s unfortunate is that getting healthy and getting in shape are perfectly good goals. The issue tends to be the benchmarks people set and how they try to achieve those goals. The phenomenon is not exclusive to health and fitness resolutions, however.

Millions of people set goals related to their careers at the start of the year only to give up on them after a few months.

We’ve talked a bit about goals in this newsletter over the past couple of years, but I think it’s important to talk about some best practices for setting and achieving goals as 2021 gets underway.

Set some big goals

Angela Duckworth, who is the author of Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, told me several months ago that job seekers shouldn’t be afraid to set ambitious goals for themselves. These long-term goals give you something to work toward and also give meaning to your everyday tasks.

For example, a person who wants to dig into finances as a forensic accountant may not like traditional bookkeeping. Yet, learning the basics is an important step in becoming a specialist, meaning that it’s a stepping stone toward your ultimate goal.

“When you have a purpose, it does somehow give meaning to the mundane,” said Duckworth, who is also a psychology professor at the University of Pennsylvania and the founder and CEO of Character Lab. You can read that edition of #GetHired by clicking here.

The idea of setting long-term goals resonates with me because this is something I’ve done since high school. Yet, I learned that I need to work on smaller goals if I want to achieve those long-term objectives.

Work on smaller goals

Once you have those long-term and “big picture” goals in mind, you can start looking at the steps you’ll need to take to get there. Those smaller goals will be what propels you along the path.

The key is to be smart about setting those smaller goals. Doing so will increase the likelihood of success.

You need to pick goals that are within your control. 

A person who sets a long-term goal of getting a new job may want to create a smaller goal of getting one job interview each week. Unfortunately, job interviews aren’t within your control. Recruiters, hiring managers and a number of other factors affect the scheduling of interviews.

Instead, a person who sets a long-term goal of getting a new job should look at other steps they can take toward that objective that doesn’t depend on other people. Since skills and networking are key to a successful job search, you may want to set a goal of spending a certain amount of time each week taking online courses or expanding your professional network. Those goals are within your control and sets you up for success.

Reevaluate your goals

You should take time to periodically evaluate your short- and long-term goals. Your needs will change as you work toward these goals. Also, you will learn more about yourself along the way.

A person who wants to work in sales may find out that they don’t like a particular industry, for example. They may need to recalibrate or create new goals along the way.

The key is to know that your goals will change and be kind to yourself when they do. Sometimes those changes are beyond your control — something we learned during the pandemic.

Apply your goals to your personal style

One of the reasons people often fail to reach their goals is that they try to override their ingrained habits. It’s important to learn how to harness your everyday behaviors to increase your odds of success.

For example, a person who considers themselves a night owl may not want to work on their applications or online courses early in the morning. Instead, it may be best to save that work for the end of the day.

Similarly, some people may find it necessary to keep a journal about their goals while others may prefer a more informal system.

Regardless of how you prefer to work on your goals, adapting them to your personal style and rhythm is one way to make your journey a bit easier.

What are your career goals for 2021? Join the conversation. 

▶ Want even more #GetHired?

I spoke with Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., who is the president and CEO of SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management), on the most recent episode of #GetHired Live. You can watch it by clicking here.

▶ The follow-up

Millions of people found themselves unexpectedly looking for work as the coronavirus pandemic caused a staggering number of staff reductions. Those job seekers were tasked with navigating a search under unprecedented circumstances. While the end of the pandemic may be in sight thanks to COVID-19 vaccines, the last edition of #GetHired looked at five job seeking trends and occurrences from 2020 that will likely endure into the next year and beyond. Those include video interviews, online networking, job market uncertainty, need for routines, and online professional development. Here’s what people are saying about the trends.

▶ Other news to help you #GetHired:

How can you bounce back from rejection? Getting rejected after a long series of interviews can be crushing, but Monica Fike, my colleague, writes about some ways you can bounce back from those blows. She highlights tips from Joseph Liu, a career consultant. Specifically, he suggests being kind to yourself, retooling your strategy, being realistic with goals and focus on what he calls the “four Ps.” Find out what those Ps are and what people are saying about his advice by clicking here.

The office wants to woo people back. People have found comfort and security while being at home during the pandemic. Susy Jackson, my colleague, recently wrote about the ways companies will try to bring people back to offices after more than a year at home. Those strategies include collaborative spaces and a chance to get away in a more leisure setting. Here’s what people are saying about the ideas.

Here’s who’s hiring right now. As I’ve said before, we’re doing our best to connect you with companies that are still hiring during these troubled economic times. Part of that effort is a regularly updated list of companies we know to be hiring. Some of those include Amazon, Walmart and CVS Health. Click here to see more.

▶ Up next:

The next edition of #GetHired will be delayed a day, but good things come to those who wait. I’ll be unveiling a detailed list of the jobs that are most in-demand right now based on LinkedIn data in the next issue. Be sure to watch your notifications and inbox for the next edition of #GetHired. If you’re not subscribed, you can do so by clicking the button here.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to reach out to me if you have ideas on topics or questions I should address in future editions of #GetHired. You can also email me at GetHired[at]LinkedIn.com.