First, you have to figure out what you want. It sounds self-evident, but it isn’t, because we are continuously influenced by the success of others (and want to copy-paste) and by opportunities and vacancies that present themselves.
You have to get rid of this clutter!
These are the 3 steps that will help you achieve this:
Step 1 Your identity is more than a name tag.
Define who you are – your identity: what you stand for, what you can do, enjoy doing, and what you would like to do
Step 2 Make this Identity visible
Make this identity visible to others in your communication and behavior. You do this ongoing – on and offline
Step 3 Manage your Brand:
“Your brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room“
Also, people in your current company will notice the difference once you are on a mission from and for yourself. Your boss and company HR might want to re-assess if there is something more that you could do for them with your new mindset.
What to do with your branded persona?
When the time comes for you when you are ready to move faster than your current company can accommodate, you might want to look elsewhere. Hey, this is NOT an act of disloyalty to people who have given you opportunities to grow in the first place, but rather a duty to give yourself all possible chances.
Most Valuable career advice for everybody: Read till you drop
With the amount of and the ease of access to multimedia material, we have to make a conscious “pull” effort to read books – not just an article or a blog, but books with content that has been researched over years and challenged by peers and critics.
Spend time to make a criteria-based selection of fiction and non-fiction books and prepare to be a social outcast. Not many will understand the logic of your behavior – but be assured it pays off!
