A step in the dark or a well-planned career move?

Guest blog by Adrian Evans Is there a way to reduce the risk of a career move in today’s uncertain world?It is natural human response to be apprehensive of the unknown – we all prefer stability and certainty. The key is not to mistake these fears as our only guide. If we do we can become boxed in and see no other options beyond our current environment.This was a recent reflection by a client on how we had achieved a successful career move for him. He described the response of colleagues to his resignation and new career position. “Since I resigned the most common thing that people tell me is that I was very brave. I had taken that ‘step in the dark’. I feel that people tend to stay in their current position, even if they hate their job because they are somehow scared and don't have a strategy to change.“He is now in a thriving company, with the autonomy to succeed, whilst enjoying greater earnings.Reasons not to be afraid about looking for your next move: Each and every month many professionals successfully make career transitions.Post Brexit job hunting skills are learnable – like the skills you have acquired to date.Using a step-by-step approach reduces a large task into manageable chunks.Following a proven methodology de-risks the process.In a rapidly changing economy, the biggest risk you can take is standing still.Take these 9 steps to ensure a smooth career move:Gain clarity on what your ‘next’ and ‘next next’ career roles will be.Commit to the process of exploring and taking the necessary actions.Confidently believing in yourself and valuing your current ability.Learn to use your network’s network and gain access to the ‘hidden’ job market.Connect with those people who have the results you desire.Smash the myth that you can’t have your ideal careerAccurately assess career options based on your most important priorities.Gain power by meeting people with whom you share a business vision.Be a smart negotiator who is able to be rewarded for the value added.An example of a de-risked and smooth career move: The goal – to achieve a number of job offers over a 4 month period in an extremely uncertain job market (2009 during the financial crisis.)The candidate – a commercial director.The strategy – to achieve this stretch goal he would have to take an innovative approach to job opportunity creation. He also realized that his interview preparation and execution would have to stand out positively compared to other candidates.Over the next few weeks the plan evolved and he started to add filters that would refine the job search. He documented his plan and set himself targets. How many calls per week? How many face to face meetings? His mindset was positive as he had a clear goal with a deadline.He started to explore opportunities, updated his LinkedIn profile, and produced a compelling and achievement led CV. He quickly contacted all the relevant people he knew – this started with short 10 minute conversations, which resulted in 2 or 3 further contacts being created.After the initial conversations the interesting opportunities became more in depth and a winning loop was established. All the conversations were followed up with emails or by face to face meetings. He started to view himself as a brand to take to market. He took a step by step approach, breaking the process down into which organizations he was going to contact directly, who he was going to network with and which recruitment companies could assist his search.Using this collaborative win/win approach he secured interviews with a number of companies. He achieved this by taking the approach “what can I do to solve your most pressing business problems?” He developed his ideas into 90 day plans to solve these challenges. He presented these plans to influence the key stakeholders in each business. He was able to stand out at interview and demonstrate value to three organizations, which were keen to employ him. In some of these cases there wasn’t a current job opportunity, but the organization created one for him.One of the companies did stand out. They had a dynamic culture where he felt his career could grow and thrive. He knew the worth of his future contribution to the organization and was able to negotiate an appropriately rewarding salary and package. He accepted their offer – his actions demonstrate that even in a very challenging job market with boldness, methodology and strategy backed up by appropriate action can lead you to achieve your next career move.Do you need help to define your post Brexit strategy to make your career even more successful?​Contributed by Adrian Evans – www.acceleratedresults.org