Career goals are very important in your career track and without having a proper plan, you will not likely progress beyond a few promotions in your lifetime.

Career goals guide on the steps to take to improve your marketability as a professional and also set you on a path for better pay and negotiation power.

Professionals who set career goals and work towards them are more likely to land better opportunities and attract better pay.

Without career goals, your career is always in limbo and you will likely suffer from boredom and feeling stuck in your career more often than those with proper career goals.

Below we explain how to set career goals and achieve them within the timeframe you’ve set for each goal.

What are Career Goals?

Career goals are targets to help you with your progression and upskill. In this article, I am going to outline how to set career goals, examples of career goals, and how to write a plan for your career goals.

6 Steps on how to set career goals and achieve them within the set timeframe

It is often said that failing to plan is planning to fail. Therefore, you must know how to set your career goals, especially now that we are almost coming to the end of the year 2021. You should step into 2022 with a clear mindset and a precise plan and strategy and tactics of how to execute them with a proper timeline.

Self-Assessment.

You should assess yourself first and look at how far you have come and where you would like to be in 2022. This will help you know what you are yet to accomplish and you will be better positioned in setting your career goals for the coming year.

Explore possibilities.

While setting new goals for your career, explore your possibilities. Make your goals achievable, measurable and include a timeline. Remember to set them realistically. Consider all the factors included in the formulation.

Separate short-term and long-term goals.

Think in terms of learning, experience, upskilling, and your next ideal job or your current job. This will help in setting your goals so that you know what you need to develop over time and what you need to achieve asap. Otherwise, you will get overwhelmed thinking about how to achieve all the goals at once.

Tie actions to each goal.

You can set your goals in a way that they link with each other. Each goal needs a certain execution of action so that it can be achieved. Determine what you need to do to get there so that it is easier for you to work your way up to it.

Think about your value.

If you are thinking about setting goals to increase your selling value or get a promotion or even a raise, you need to assess what needs to be done so that you can set specific and attainable goals.

Write down your goals.

Writing down your career goals after you set them helps you to prepare psychologically and it starts to seem real. This way you will not forget any of them and you can refer back to cross one or two that you have beat. It builds motivation and encourages you to work towards the rest.

Examples of career goals to set:

• Gain a new skill.
• Boost your networking.
• Intern with a new organization.
• Start your own business.
• Improve your productivity.
• Earn a certification.
• Increase badges.
• Make a career switch.
• Get a pay raise.
• Get a promotion.
• Become a partner at your organization.
• Gain mastery.

The aforementioned career goals to set might be either short-term or long-term depending on you as an individual and the timeline in which you can attain them. Nonetheless, every individual has different sets of goals to achieve subject to your area of specialization among other various factors.

How To Achieve Career Your Goals

Achieving your career goals or any goals in life requires dedication and strict adherence to you the plan of action for each goal. Below are some of the ways to achieve your goals.

Write your goals down.

To achieve your set goals for the coming year, you need to write them down as a reminder of what you need to accomplish to set yourself up for better future opportunities in your career path.

Share the plan.

When you share your goals with a friend(s), coworkers, or even your superior, you could get guidance and feel even more challenged to achieve them. Some criticism would be great so that you know how to improve them.

Envision your success.

Visualizing where you want to be and the person you want to be, assuming that you have already gotten there will assist you to get into character and steer your ship right into the shore. This is what high achievers do and I can bet that it is going to be very helpful in your journey.

Importance of setting your career goals

Of course, if you are looking to progress in your career, you need to understand the importance of setting career goals.

Helps you stay motivated.

Setting career goals make you stay connected and motivated. They make you want to be better at what you do and stay in focus of your activities and operations so that you can shape up your career. Without motivation, you will not have the energy or the drive to execute any of your goals. Remember, the sky is the limit. There is always space and time to achieve more.

Increases your balance.

By setting career goals, you will be able to stay afloat and ahead of what you do since you will strike a balance between your current status and your aspired status. This way, you will be aware of your progress and you can even feel great by rewarding yourself whenever you beat an important and major goal on your list.

Gives you a sense of direction.

With clear set goals, you will be able to see the track on which you should be in and the direction to take to reach your goals. You can even use a step-by-step method to get there since nothing is achieved without effort or planning.

To increase self-esteem.

Having your career goals set increases your self-esteem along with your confidence as you have a plan and know what you are getting at. Your mind will be at peace knowing that you have a plan unlike when you have so much to do and you have not pondered about it carefully and critically.

Increases job satisfaction.

Setting career goals help you become satisfied with your occupation due to a sense of direction and a feeling of wellbeing since you are aware of what you are doing to work towards being more satisfied. It is never enough.