Are you able to move quickly and easily? That’s career agility.
Connie out-ran several layoffs. She started her career in HR as a compensation specialist. She says, “At that point, I joined Toastmasters and ASTD. The professional association helped me learn about training.” That was her next move. Seeing a layoff coming, she specialized in sales training and was asked to apply for the job of sales manager.
She explains, “I was constantly on the look out for opportunities. I developed relationships with key people in the areas that looked like possibilities for me. They knew what I could do.”
A merger was a wake-up call. She could see that she had less experience than her counterpart in the other company. Through networking she heard about a director of marketing slot for a start-up business unit. When that business was sold, she moved again to product marketing manager for a product sold worldwide.
Several lessons here:
- Use a professional association to learn about your next job.
- Don’t wait to be trained; get it on your own. Join Toastmasters, for example.
- Network strategically.
- Assess the impact of a merger, acquisition, or sale of a business unit on your job. Benchmark yourself against your competition. If you have fewer qualifications, get busy finding a new job before you are laid off.
You’re not born with career agility. You can develop it.
See additional ideas in the FireProof Your Career Guide.
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