“If you don’t know where you are going, any road will take you there!”—Anonymous

A recent global survey of 16,000 professionals by a well-known consulting firm revealed that only about 14% of those employed are “in” their jobs; a vast majority, 86%, are “on” their jobs!

What does this mean? In simple terms this implies that a vast majority of those employed are merely working to earn a living, nothing more! This is a sad commentary on how we apply ourselves to a purposeful cause. Those who are truly passionate about what they are engaged in display a different attitude towards how they do their jobs. People around them can see their inner fire!

Why are so many professionals merely “on” their jobs?

It is perhaps because most lack a plan for their career. A vast majority of working people get to where they are by being more like a jellyfish! A jellyfish is one of the few creatures in the animal kingdom that does not have its own motive power. It merely floats in a body of water and lets the currents take it where they may. In the process the food that comes across its path is what it eats and survives!

Unconsciously or unwittingly many of those working appear happy being a jellyfish when it comes to their own careers. It is these people who go to bed thinking that their manager is lying awake wondering about how to advance their careers to help them grow!

Wrong!

Each person must take charge of their own career. The best way to do that is by taking stock of where you are now and what do you want to do with it. The next step is to seek some guidance from a career coach or a mentor and get going on a plan that can reignite your purpose in life!

Here are the steps that may help you get on track with your career plan:

1. Do an honest audit of how happy you are about what you do. This will tell you if you are on a right path to seeking your purpose. If you come to the conclusion that the current job (not just where you are but anywhere you might do it) is merely a means of earning a paycheck with no means of energizing your being it is time to take some action. Soulful work energizes you even though you may be weary of it because of how much it demands of you! Do not confuse hard work with rewarding work.
2. Draw a graph of where you are today (at the origin of X-Y lines intersecting). To the right on the time (X axis) draw key birthdays five years from today and so on, and on the Achievement axis (Y axis) write down the positions or goals that you want to achieve.
3. Now take a significant birthday (say 40) and label that with a goal (or title) you want to achieve. Draw a straight line from the origin to this point.
4. Now draw a series of steps from the origin to this goal and label each horizontal step with a sub-goal that will take you to the final goal you just identified (at 40). This will now tell you how you can achieve that goal in a finite number of steps.
5. Write down an action plan for each horizontal step (sub-goal) and the actions you must undertake to realize that sub-goal. Also write down what must you undertake to overcome any obstacles to achieving the sub-goal (for example, to get a Project Manager job, I must get PMP Certification).
6. Collaborate with a buddy on a similar plan and share theirs with yours. Help each other with their goals and actions to keep each person accountable.
7. Seek the career coach’s help again in finalizing your plan and see that they (or some mentor at work) will guide you through your plans. This is yet another touch point for your plan to become real
8. Check progress as you navigate through this plan of action and make corrections as needed.
9. Proactively seek opportunities to get to the sub-goals on your map and approach higher-ups in your company on how to make that a reality. You can always find avenues to propose new initiatives that will give you the opportunities that you are looking for.
10. Make adjustments to your plan as things change, but never abandon your plans for moving forward.

The word “career’ is also a verb and it means speed in a course. See if you can use this metaphor to put your career in high gear and get moving to attain your “full speed!”

Good luck!