Right now is a great time to reflect on your personal and career goals, in fact I highly recommend it.  Maybe it’s time to make a change in your career or maybe you just need a whole new perspective on where your life has you right now.  So whether you love your career or you’re in a bit of a rut, I have found the following ideas can help sharpen your perspective in the coming year.

Take a minute to reflect back at your previous year.  What was your highest moment? Your lowest? Think back to what brought you to your career in the first place.  For me, a good friend thought I would be good at my job and he recommended I post for an interview.  I was a little leary at first but I decided to take the take the plunge and give it a try.  Sure glad I listened to his suggestion.  For you, It may be that you love the challenge your career provides, or you enjoy having finished a project and seeing the fruit of your work. Caregivers may say that they can’t imagine their lives without providing support and care to their patients. Whatever it is, reconnecting with what brought you to your career in the first place can help you see it in a fresh light and maybe even help you identify new goals for the upcoming year.

Networking—it isn’t just for sales opportunities!  Wish I had spent more time doing this years ago.  No matter what profession you are in, keeping connected to others in your field can help you in profound ways.  For me, it helped open doors for promotional opportunities.  I probably would have never been considered if I had not laid the groundwork a couple of years ago through networking.  Networking with others in your similar career path can help you identify similar challenges and struggles and allows you to connect to a supportive environment.  It can also help you discover new and better ways to get things done.  Get out behind your cubicle and start meeting people—you never know what doors may open!

Never stop learning. A mind that continues to learn is a sharp mind, open to new opportunities and never dull. It’s common for people to get settled into their everyday job and not see the fresh potential that awaits.  I suggest learning a new skill—whether or not it is directly related to your career—because learning fires new connections in your brain and keeps you feeling young, energized and supports good brain health. Think for a moment: What skill could you sharpen that would benefit your career? Maybe it’s taking a public speaking course, or something around time management.  Even learning a new hobby that isn’t closely related to your career can be great because when our mind grows, we grow.  A great place to check out courses and ideas is Udemy.com.

I believe this year can be your best year yet.  Hopefully by trying the ideas above, you will identify new ways of approaching how you think about your career and even make some new goals.  Remember, you’re more than what you do.  It is so important to find ways to inspire yourself so you can reach your God-given potential and inspire those around you—because ultimately, taking the time to develop yourself gives you more to offer everyone else.

Your Virtual Life Mentor,

Doug