One of the best tips to keep in mind for personal career development is passion. While job demand, hours, salary and other issues should definitely be considered, a career planner who doesn't have a strong interest, or passion, in a certain vocation isn't going to be successful in the long term. For this reason, keeping one's options open by first exploring different careers can be a great career development tip. Once a passionate career path is found, managers or mentors can often be excellent help in developing direction and quality.
People who are leaders within in an industry, either by having many years of experience or an official managerial role, or both, can provide helpful input to others pursuing similar career goals. In an employment capacity, managers who give performance reviews, especially ones that can determine promotions, can affect employees' personal career development. Employees learn the necessary skills and performance level required to move ahead from entry-level to intermediate to higher positions within a career field.
Yet, a good personal career development tip to remember is to not only learn from on-the-job experience, but through meetings, lectures and research given by other leaders. Networking at industry events and workshops can lead to new opportunities which may be helpful if a current job is lost. Reading and reflecting on the latest books within one's career can greatly aid development by being aware of different issues as well as viewpoints within an industry. Being well read in one's industry is also likely to make a good impression when networking with possible future employers or mentors. All of the extra participation outside of the job that is often necessary for strong career development relates to passion, because otherwise spending off work hours in these pursuits can seem unpleasant.
Career exploration is an important part of personal goal development, considering how much time and energy many people spend on work-related projects. Taking a class that covers career exploration in depth, including which types of jobs tend to suit what skills and strengths best, can be helpful in personal development. In such classes, many people learn about their job-related strengths and weaknesses for the first time as well as discover exciting career options that they may have never considered. Besides often finding a workable job goal that suits their skills and passion, this type of class can aid in personal career development by teaching students how to strategize to pick the best path to achieving the position they want.
