Career Mistakes to Avoid

If you’ve been in the game long enough, you’ve probably racked up some career mistakes along the way.

Like everyone else, I’ve had my fair share, and I’m sharing a few of them here which you can avoid.

I would have taken better care of myself

We all do it. Work relentlessly to build our careers. Foolishly believe that without us leading the charge, no project would ever finish on time…much less be brilliantly executed….as only we can do. Sound familiar?

Trust me. If you ignore the early warning signs, your body will find a way of stopping you in your tracks. In my case, I would quite literally ‘hit the wall’ once or twice a year. A relatively minor bug would knock me over like a feather and force me into several days of unavoidable bed rest. I’m grateful that it didn’t get any worse than that.

I would have looked up more often for inspiration outside of work

There wasn’t a shortage of invitations to attend conferences or talks. Whenever I considered going however, I saw it as taking time away from work that had to be done. 

Sure, I did go to some, and there was plenty of inspiration from within the company. But I often wonder what new ideas would have sparked if I had stepped outside my usual environment more often. 

I would have asked for help sooner

When we step into a bigger role; it’s natural to feel a little out of our depths. But it’s hard to admit. After all, we don’t want to look as if we don’t know what we’re doing. 

So we do the best we can, as our stress and anxiety skyrockets. I would have done myself a huge favour by swallowing my pride and asking for some extra coaching to accelerate my learning curve.

I would not let my identity be so wrapped up with my job title

This is a big one. And something I didn’t fully realise until I left my corporate career. You are not your job. And you are certainly not your job title. 

Figuring out what you truly love doing and how you want to make a difference  …. regardless of your job title ..… will increase your resilience and leadership agility as roles change rapidly in today’s business environment.

I can’t turn back the clock, but I hope that my learning can help you avoid making some career mistakes of your own.