It’s finally summer and the living is easier, perhaps with a lightened workload and a more casual schedule. Yet, before the first day at the beach or barbeque on the deck, imagine the workplace again and the opportunity to focus on your career. If you plan well, you can accelerate your progress when there’s less pressure to produce and more free time for you to develop your success blueprint.
1. Learn a new skill: How curious are you? If you live near any body of water, you may have noticed that people tend to congregate nearby for leisure activities like boating, paddle boarding, and more. You don’t even have to don a bathing suit or get wet to participate. Sailing lessons are often over-subscribed and if you’re not interested in being the person at the helm, a crew is frequently needed to take out a boat on the water.
2. Enroll in a course: Check out university course offerings. Have you been thinking about a certificate or advanced degree, but unsure of where to begin? Summer classes are typically either more concentrated or simply a “taste” vs. a commitment to a program, for credit or not. Your organization might even partially defray the cost.
Not only will you learn a new skill and likely expand your networks, but you will have something interesting to discuss when asked if you did anything interesting over the summer.
3. Get organized: Whether it’s your closet or your work area, your car or your kitchen, clutter raises anxiety levels and decreases productivity. Choose one area that you would like to focus on. Take your time and ask for help as needed in creating smarter systems or simply purging outdated materials. Dedicating your less deadline driven summer months to a project that will streamline future activities will serve you well when you need to operate under tighter timelines.
Embrace the summer, plan for the fall and you will be well ahead of your peers!
And, however comfortable you assumed you were with change, you may experience unexpected pushback, making this the ideal time to engage the support of a career coach with experience in helping professionals achieve better, faster, results. At KICKSTART Your Transition we offer a broad range of services customized to fit your needs.
©MWeisner2018