Happy New Year! Resolutions that will help boost your career.
Have you ever considered making a New Year’s resolution related to enhancing your career? If you haven’t, why not? We invest a significant amount of time and energy into our work, so it’s important to identify ways to generate happiness and fulfilment related to our professional lives. We’re not talking about huge shifts such as changing jobs or entering a new career field, but rather more subtle things that you can identify and adjust as soon as you get back to work in the new year.
Self-care is critical, especially in a world where everyday stresses can become overwhelming if they aren’t tended to. Determine what you can do to engage in self-care related to your professional life. You can resolve to leave work each day on-time (if you have a habit of working late), take a break during the day to clear your mind (maybe go for a quick walk), or create a meal plan to help you eat more nutritious lunches during the work week (a little prep goes a long way). Do you have vacation time building up? Then take a vacation! Vacations can refresh and relax you. When you return, you’ll be even more motivated to tackle those work tasks. And if you’re not feeling well, use your sick time. That will help you feel better quicker and keep those around you safe and healthy. Prioritize your self-care, even if it means changing things up a bit at work. It will help to support both your physical and mental health, which can enhance your work performance.
Do you regularly fall behind in required work tasks because you find them boring or tedious? Unfortunately, the majority of jobs out there have parts of them that may not be exciting or fulfilling, but have to be completed, regardless. For many people, tasks like these are administrative in nature and can involve reporting or inventory. Rather than putting these tasks off, resolve to tackle them before they start to hover as a cloud of negativity. Set a schedule to complete them once a week or once a month. The less they pile up, the quicker they will be to complete so then you can move on to more enjoyable tasks.
What does your workspace look like? Is it engaging and stimulating, drab and boring, or somewhere in-between? Heading into the new year, why don’t you spruce it up? Most people spend a lot of time at their workspaces and by investing in your environment it can give you a boost to enhance your creativity or motivation. Consider the color scheme, décor, and anything else that speaks to you. Décor can involve items such as artwork, furniture, photos, inspirational quotes, and plants.
Try to learn something new every week or every month. Create goals that fit your needs and interests, but will also push you a little bit to build your skills, experience, and sense of accomplishment. It can involve small endeavors such as learning a more efficient way to perform a task or engaging in formal professional development opportunities. Connect with your supervisor, colleagues, and others in your professional network to identify ways to learn and grow within your current role or industry. Ask for ideas and feedback. You can also build your learning and development targets into your formal professional development goals and annual performance review.
Now is the time to evaluate the work you do, how you to it, and where you do it. Once you’ve done that, consider how you can benefit from a professional boost. Resolutions related to engaging in self-care, creating a plan to complete uninspired work tasks, enhancing your workspace, and learning new things can all help you find more career fulfillment in the year ahead!
