Happy New Year! Have you made any New Year resolutions yet? Make 2017 the year of your career with seven resolutions from Hays Recruitment you will actually be able to stick to.
Most of us will make New Year resolutions as a matter of course and I believe the most successful are those which touch on both our personal and professional lives.
However, they are notoriously hard to keep. How can you actually create a set of career resolutions that will stimulate actual, meaningful change that you’ll keep up beyond January?
Here are a few ideas of career resolutions that you can stick to, and will help you get rid of any bad habits, to ensure 2017 is the best year yet for your career.
Build a healthier working life
Look to build more exercise into your working day. Don’t say that you’ll run an ultramarathon or attend CrossFit five times a week (unless you want to of course!).
Instead, positively commit to walking 10,000 steps a day and doing a simple bodyweight exercise regime at home. Take the stairs. Walk to see colleagues. Use a standing desk. Make small and incremental improvements to note real changes.
Always eat breakfast, drink more water during the day and bring a healthy snack to help avoid the dreaded biscuit tin.
Stop eating at your desk and skipping lunch. Get out for an hour to see a friend, have a coffee with a colleague, go for a walk or even visit something local of interest. It will stimulate your mind and leave you feeling fresher and readier to attack the afternoon.
Help others at work
Make this the year that you praise and encourage your colleagues, vocalising your appreciation when they do something well. Gratitude is a powerful gift to share.
Take time to reflect
Each day, remember three positive things that happened to you – setting a reminder on your phone if need be. Think about when you received some praise or some positive results.
Take a moment every day to think about this and feel good about it. Why not keep a journal of success to look back over when you feel a bit demoralised or low?
Be more self-aware
Think about how you come across to others. Carefully check all emails and documents that you write, before you send them.
Stay neutral at work
Don’t get involved in office gossip, but stay neutral and on good terms with your co-workers.
Be structured and diligent with your workload
Start your day by reviewing your to-do list and setting goals for the day. Always tackle the hardest tasks first.
Focus on one job at a time so that you do it well. Set yourself personal timeframes to complete each task and take gratitude in ticking each task off your to-do list as you go.
Keep one hour a day free to catch up on admin – perhaps in the mid-afternoon rather than at the end of the day, when you’ll feel tired.
At the end of each day, create a to-do list for the next day.
Be brutal with your list – remove tasks that add no value and prioritise those that provide the most value of all.
Have the courage to change your situation
If you are not happy in your role, be honest with yourself about this and plan how you can change the situation. Don’t simply complain, do nothing and allow another year to pass.
I hope the above has provided you with some inspiration for your career resolutions for 2017. Once you have decided on your resolutions, I would strongly urge you to write them down – this will help ‘embed’ them in your mind. Try breaking bigger goals into smaller ones, which you can progress in a manageable way throughout the year.
You could even schedule a monthly review so that you can assess your progress and keep track – adjusting your activities and direction throughout the year.
A version of this article originally appeared on Hays’ Viewpoint blog.
Alex Shteingardt joined Hays Recruitment in 2008 with a sole aim of launching the operations of the leading global recruitment company on the Russian market.
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