10 mistakes that can hurt your career

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

If you think that money is the most important thing in work, and you need to start your career from the very bottom, then you are mistaken.

It's good when a person learns from his mistakes. But it's better to learn from other people's mistakes.

Warren Buffet American entrepreneur

Life rarely works out the way we want it. Because we are ordinary people who make mistakes. Try to avoid those career mistakes that we will list below.

1. Linear career is the key to success

Who Said Careers Must Be Linear? Where did this statement come from and why do we believe it so implicitly?

A linear career is a type of career in which a person goes from the lowest position to the highest.

We usually think of career growth like this:

• getting education;
• internship;
• getting the lowest position and a couple of years of work before getting a promotion;
• getting a higher position;
• looking for a position in another company with better conditions, if the promotion is no longer offered at the previous place.

Or like this:

• you are a freelancer;
• you start doing work for next to nothing to build a reputation;
• you continue to work for pennies for several more years;
• you cannot make ends meet;
• you get a job;
• you quit your job because you hate it;
• you start asking for more for your services;
• every year you raise your rates a little.

Or even like this:

• you are an entrepreneur;
• you start your own business;
• everything is going well, you start to think that you are a genius;
• you spend more than you can afford;
• you are trying to attract investors;
• investors take your business;
• Congratulations, you no longer have a business.

Why are we so sure that a career needs to be built this way? Life is too short to follow a pattern. Instead, you can speed up the process. You can try to get more knowledge, try to earn more, try to make a leap forward.

Today's economic development presupposes rapid growth. For the first time in history, many companies (not all, of course) look not at age, gender, diploma, degree, or something else, but at your real skills. On what you really know how to do and are ready to offer the employer.

Use this advantage wisely. How? Learn faster. You have 24/7 unlimited access to almost any information. Go for it, everything depends only on you.

2. Priority is money

Realize that money is not the most important thing in your work. Here's the situation you might be expected to find yourself in:

• you will quit your low-paid but beloved job;
• you agree to work in a highly paid but hateful job;
• congratulations, you just sold your soul to the devil;
• you have money, but for some reason they are not encouraging.

There is nothing unnatural in this whole situation, but it also does not guarantee a sense of stability and confidence in the future. What are you ready for for the money? Is it really about feeling unhappy all the time? We are not trying to stop you from earning, but think about the possible consequences.

Instead of dwelling on money, why not focus on other, much more important things? For example, training, improving professional skills, caring for loved ones.

Most people won't follow this advice, not because they can't say no to money. There are many good reasons to work just for them. But now is not about that.

There is only one rule that will help you save both money and freedom. It sounds like this: live within your means. And yes, limiting yourself in something is not easy.

3. Ineffective management of your own time

Think how many evenings and weekends you lost lying on the couch watching useless programs, doing some nonsense, or flipping through the news feed on social networks. Or you were just killing time, wandering around pointlessly somewhere idle. There is nothing wrong with having fun from time to time, but you shouldn't relax every free minute you have.

What can you do? What is so special about you that would distinguish you from everyone else? Answer these questions for yourself.

If there are no answers, then it's time to think and change something in your life. Start learning, practicing, doing something. Make an effort to change.

4. Striving to become an expert in everything

You worked in finance, but nothing came of it. Then you decided to take up jurisprudence, then for some reason you were drawn to art, and then suddenly you became interested in robotics. There is nothing wrong with being so versatile. But only when it comes to ordinary interests, and not work.

To become a true professional in your field, you must know how the industry works, constantly study the market, understand people and their unwritten rules. If you rush from profession to profession, it will not end well.

Instead, pick one or two related industries that you like and try to understand them to become an expert and achieve impressive results.

5. Reluctance to leave your comfort zone

“I worked hard and hard, and now I'm doing well,” you think. Seriously? Think again and carefully. You can never be completely sure of such things.

Life is a competition. A lot of people are waiting for you to make a mistake, so that then they suddenly appear out of nowhere and take your place.

Does this sound more like paranoia to you? Honestly, it will not be superfluous to play it safe. In some cases, remembering the existence of healthy competition is helpful, because it spurs you on and does not allow you to relax.

6. Inability to speak about your desires

Yes, you can be a good person. But don't be too good. We have already said that many people are just waiting for the right moment to annoy you with something, and then take your place. Don't be naive. Just learn the rule: business is business.

If you want to get something, you have to ask for it. Want a promotion? Ask. Nobody will give it to you just like that. Do you want a raise to your salary? You seem to already know what to do.

You were expecting something like, “Hey dude, you're so cool! Do you want to take this little bag of money for yourself? There will be no such thing.

7. Disregard for self-interest

Here people are traditionally divided into two camps. Some believe that you need to follow your dreams and passion, others are sure that you should not do this.

Funny thing: people who think they don't need to follow their dreams don't do it themselves. Why should they encourage others?

This discussion moves endlessly in a circle. Remember this: life is not endless. Do you really want to live your life doing what you hate?

8. Ignoring the opinions of colleagues

You get the job of your dreams and are in the clouds. You enjoy yourself and your position, thinking that you are impossibly good. Of course, you don't even think about starting to follow someone else's advice. After all, if you listened to everyone in a row, then the position would hardly have gotten to you. This is a big mistake.

You need to be more modest and listen to the people around you. Not only to those who are more experienced than you and understand some issues better, but also to those who are less experienced. They very often have good ideas. So don't make yourself an arrogant snob, get off your pedestal and start listening.

9. Striving to get everything at once

Let's say you agree that a career doesn't have to be linear. Then you may begin to think that you definitely need to move forward to success with leaps and bounds.

Every day to acquire one useful skill that will help in work, every day to realize some vital truth, every day to invent ingenious techniques that no one has thought of before. If none of this happens or something does not work out, then the day is wasted. You are in too much of a hurry.

Let's say you want to write a book. Before you even have a rough draft, you will need to write and rewrite hundreds, if not thousands, of notes. Or, for example, you would like to start conducting educational trainings and seminars for people. To share your experience, you first need to acquire it, otherwise what are you going to tell them about?

You need to learn to be more patient. It takes time to hone your skills to perfection. Nothing happens right away, and that's okay because you are learning.

10. Refusal to help

Perhaps you are too proud. Perhaps you are afraid to seem weak and stupid to others. Maybe you're just raised like that.

But here's a simple truth for you: if you don't ask for help, you will never get it.

Almost everything in life is the result of well-coordinated teamwork. Even if you work for yourself, you still need people. And they need you.

Success stories of people who claim that they owe everything they own only to themselves are real fakes.

Whenever you feel like you can't handle it on your own, seek help from others. Try to reach out to colleagues, partners, friends, or loved ones. They will definitely help you. And if they do not help, then they are simply not your team.

Outcome

This is your career! Why not finally start taking her seriously? Don't be so indifferent. If you are unhappy with your position or the way your career progresses, then find the strength to change that.

Change everything that doesn't suit you - this is the only universal advice.

And start doing it today. Do you know why? Because if not today, then when else?

The answer seems to be obvious. (If not obvious, then we suggest - never).