Professional growth can help increase your influence, productivity, and finances.
This page includes professional growth...
Professional growth is to gain knowledge that helps you become more effective in the workplace. Professional growth is most effective when based on a good foundation of personal development.
The Opportunity System for Professional Growth (based on my book Opportunity Truth)
Foundation of strength: This starts with personal growth and includes applying the professional growth forces (knowledge, skills, resources, and relationships) to the professional growth areas of focus (your role, organization, industry, and market).
Art of purpose: This includes your professional relationships, and your professional career strategy.
Science of momentum: Professional growth science of momentum brings the same personal growth science of momentum to the workplace, including goal setting, productivity, commitment, and investments.
An industry can be thought of as the career field, while the market can also be thought of as the customer segment. Consider the legal industry, most lawyers specialize in a specific customer or market segment, like tax law, small business, family law, or real estate. The real estate industry has two basic markets, commercial and residential, which can be subdivided further. Consider the medical industry, most independent doctors specialize in a specific area (customer or market).
You can keep up to date on many industry trends at IBISWorld’s website, including the fastest growing and declining, most profitable, highest profit margins, highest labor costs, and the most and least risky industries. They also have specific industry reports for different countries.
Business in general has two main approaches, business to business and business to consumer. However, I submit that some business to consumer markets could sell their products or services to businesses (for their employees). Such B2B for B2C businesses could include gyms, personal trainers, life coaching, family counseling, restaurant rewards clubs, or food truck services.
The most important professional growth area of focus is the organization. When an organization deliberately develops a healthy culture it brings out the best in everyone, otherwise it causes people to be disengaged.
The common assumption is that most new employees (new to the industry or young) are not expected to have much knowledge or experience in these areas of focus. This provides a natural opportunity to set yourself apart from other new employees, by choosing to self-study the organization, industry, and market.
You could increase your knowledge and understanding of your industry or market by reading some books, reading blogs, listening to podcasts, watching videos, or set a free Google Alert specific keywords for your industry or market and they will email you links to online articles each week.
You could join an association or publication that covers the industry you are in. These often provide helpful updates on what is going on in the industry. You could also attend a trade show or annual industry event where they usually provide helpful training and networking.
You could volunteer part-time to gain relevant skills and increase relationships. However, this might not be a good idea in some industries or markets, just be careful you are not going against any policies in your organization, consider getting it approved by your supervisor.
You could explore relationships in the industry or market through social media while also increasing your knowledge and understanding. You could also explore the technologies that could be helpful for your role in the organization, or for the organization itself.
Having a professional growth plan helps create self-accountability and implementation intention, which helps with follow-through.
You can download and use the one-page pdf below or create your one-page plan by recording your long-term professional growth goal, personality, top strengths, weaknesses, and the top company values.
Then record your primary, or top three responsibilities, and the one most important activity related to them.
Then record the 3-5 people you interact with the most and their personality, appreciation language, strengths, and weaknesses.
Then record your top three work related goals and their lead measures or most important activity to achieve the goal.
Then record your desired learning for the year or quarter and the resources you will use for your learning (books, websites, or podcasts).
Then record the top things you are grateful for in your company or work. Consider reading it daily, every morning to help with affirmations and visualization.
This is a free (no email necessary) downloadable, and computer fillable, template, to help you plan your professional growth.
Professional-Growth-Plan (pdf)
DownloadReading, or listening (Audible.com), and applying the best professional growth books can give you a competitive advantage.
Professional growth is supported by personal growth and supports leadership growth.
Executive Minds, Happen to Your Career, Career Tools, Career Cloud Radio, People Behind the Science, Repurpose Your Career, Invest Talk, Center for Investment Excellence, Mind of a Millionaire, Technology Revolution, Trailblazers, Unprofessional Engineering, The Engineering Career Coach, The Civil Engineering Podcast, Healthcare Executive, Restaurant Unstoppable, Eaters Digest, A Deeper Dive, Running Restaurants, Gym Secrets, Bigger Pockets Real Estate, Real Estate Uncensored, Best Real Estate Investing Advice Ever, Aviation Week, Airline Pilot Guy, MotorWeek, Under the Hood, Automotive News Daily Drive, Lodging Leaders, Suite Spot, Hospitality Design, Insurance Law, The Communicators (IT & Telecom), The Construction Leading Edge, The Art of Construction, Advanced Manufacturing Now, The Manufacturing Show, The Logistics of Logistics, and Leaders in Supply Chain and Logistics.
TED talks, Talks at Google, iBiology Career and Professional Development, Association for Talent Development, Learning Technologies, eLearner Engaged, and Leadership with Mike.
There are many great online courses for professional growth, consider first checking the free online college classes at edx.org, coursera.org, and OpenCulture.com. If you are interested in programming consider codecademy.com.
Consider Jordan Harbinger's free 6-Minute Networking course
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