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Smart Moves: Savvy Career Tactics for the Obsessively Success-Minded
 
We've all been there before: Dreaming of achieving true success, yearning to get to the "next level," digesting everything written about getting ahead - only to find ourselves right where we started. Well, stop fretting and take action. Here are five strategies to get you moving forward.

1. Take a sophisticated approach to your career. Remember that you are in control of your professional destiny - not your company, your boss, your family, or the economy. Determine what you really want to achieve during the course of your career and what the pinnacle of success looks like. Fame? Wealth? Owning a business? If that picture isn't completely clear, get with a reputable (and licensed) career counselor to help you.

2. Become an expert in several areas and advance your education. Obtain an advanced degree, additional certifications or licensures. Join professional associations and offer to present at annual conferences, serve on national committees, attend seminars and write articles for publication in journals and industry publications. Brand yourself as a knowledge and business leader.

3. Create a panel of advisors or a mastermind group. No one achieves success alone. Identify and recruit smart, polished and successful people to guide you along your way. Create a meaningful experience for everyone involved by encouraging networking and barn-raising among your panel.

4. Don't focus all of your networking efforts in your own backyard. Being a big fish in a little pond can be great, but don't stop there. Developing contacts around the country and internationally will heighten your intellectual and professional development and enhance your professional image. Global connections are extremely attractive to employers and, if you're thinking of going solo, can be a boost to a budding entrepreneurial venture.

5. Hire an image consultant. Image is everything. And it's not just about wardrobe and hairstyle. It's about the way you present yourself - from your demeanor to the tiniest detail of your individual style. Hire urbane professionals, well versed not only in appearance, but also in communication, style, corporate business etiquette and protocol. Possessing a refined visual image and perfectly honed communication skills will likely do more to enhance your career than a decade of professional experience.

Debra Davenport, PhD, is a Master Professional Mentor and the president of DavenportFolio, a licensed firm with offices in Los Angeles and Phoenix that mentors entrepreneurs and professionals. She is the creator of the Certified Professional Mentor® designation and certification program and the author of The Ten Commitments of Highly Successful People. debra@davenportfolio.com or (866) 232-6492.

 

 
 
     
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