How to change attitudes to make your career faster

If you want to become a valuable professional, advancement within a company shouldn’t be an end in itself. This article tells you how to have the right attitude about your career, your bosses, and your future version of yourself to get your skills pumped up faster and secure a brilliant career.

What’s the point of a career

At 22, people don’t usually think about careers. At this age, people are ambitious, dreaming of financial independence, and afraid of upsetting their parents. They also hope to find a job where they don’t look at the clock waiting for the day to end.

At 22, it’s even awkward to think about a career seriously. No one wants to turn into a selfish toady who flatters her bosses to get ahead in her career. Read What to do if you always present yourself awkwardly.

At this age, many people take exciting jobs. There’s no time to think about the skills and experience you need. Who cares about careers when you’re changing the world?

But you’re letting things slide if you’re not thinking about a career. Maybe it will get you where you’ve always wanted to go. Or maybe it won’t. So why rely on chance when you can control the process?

Here’s the truth, you’re better off finding out now than regretting later in life. But first, subscribe to our Telegram channel. We often publish such valuable articles!

Your career is defined by your skills and how you use them, not by outward signs of progress.

Society judges a career by salary, position, bonuses, or participation in prestigious events.

What should I do? It hides this pattern: career advancement = rewards.

It’s like saying you’re a good friend because you were invited to a wedding. Of course, friends are usually invited to weddings. But if you want to be a real friend, you won’t be asking for it. You’ll do everything you can to be a good friend, and then you’ll probably get an envelope with an invitation, even if you never dreamed of it.

It’s the same with a career. If you pump up your skills first and bring more value to your company or the community, you automatically move up the career ladder, and your income increases.

What to do about unfavorable circumstances

It may be different. You have a horrible boss who thinks that to advance your career. You must be quiet, bring coffee every morning, and do all the minor work he discounts. So you check his inbox and get a promotion.

But how will those skills help you in the long run? Will it improve your professional skills? Maybe you’ll move up the career ladder and get kicked out.

And then it turns out that you don’t have any skills other than the ability to fetch coffee and sort other people’s mail, and it will be tough for you to find a job with the same high salary.

So don’t ask yourself: “What can I do to get promoted?” Ask the question another way, “What skills do I need to develop to be more useful to the company or the community?”

Even if you never get promoted, your business is falling apart, and all the external indicators of success — position and salary — leave much to be desired; your skills aren’t going anywhere.

Your skills and experience will go with you no matter where you go. You shouldn’t worry if your career isn’t going fast. A pay cut and a demotion may open you up to new knowledge and opportunities.

Your boss is a coach, not a judge

Many think of their boss as the person who evaluates their work, like a teacher in a school or university. Who determines whether an employee has done an excellent job and what grade they deserve?

Such people try to appear better and more confident than they are. When the boss offers them help, they say that everything is under control. If the boss has to interfere in matters for which these people are responsible, such employees consider it a disaster.

But this is the wrong point of view. The boss’s job is to make the team work better and bring more value to the company. If you look at management from this perspective, it seems logical that you will be invested in your career.

Your supervisor’s performance automatically improves if you perform better. So the boss is on your side; he wants you to succeed and spends his time and energy helping you.

Imagine if you hire a coach, but instead of telling him about your weaknesses, you tell him that you are in great shape and don’t need his help. Silly, right? Think of your boss as a coach and get helpful feedback on your work, advice, and other help.

Don’t hide your feelings from your boss: what inspires you, motivates you, and hinders your work. The more honest you are with your supervisor, the better he can help you. Remember: he is interested in your success almost more than you are.

Create your ideal image and believe in it

You need to believe that it will happen to achieve something in life. The phrase sounds trite, but it’s not just words. One study confirmed that if a person sees themself in the future with specific skills, they automatically start doing everything to acquire them. Read Don't know what profession is right for you? Start your search with four easy steps.

Write a list of what you should be able to do in the future. Supplement it with new desires and cross out what you have achieved. It is both comforting and motivating.

Here’s an example of such a list:

stop being nervous a few days before public speaking engagements;
feel comfortable in meetings with more than five people;
a blog without worrying about what other people think;
explain briefly and clearly what you want to do;
tell stories well;
organize large-scale events where people have fun and you don’t suffer from stress.

Only you decide what your career will be

No matter who helps you ignores you, or even gets in your way, your career, like your life, is entirely in your hands (read Ten tips to become a careerist).

If you have to force yourself to go to work, ask yourself why that is. If you can’t remember a challenging moment in the last six months, maybe you’re no longer developing. If you’re constantly looking back at other people and expecting to be praised, maybe you don’t want to take responsibility. If the job doesn’t align with your long-term prospects, maybe it’s time to change it. Read What is the best profession to study if you decide to change jobs: career guidance for the future.

If you’ve never thought about what you’d like to do in the future, think about it now.

Take the Menteora career guidance test; artificial intelligence will name your most suitable professions. The accuracy of the test is 70-80% because we use a mathematical-statistical algorithm (read about Menteora's unique career guidance methodology).