How to Leverage Your Career Growth
What if there was a surefire method not only to advance, but to maximize, your career?
You know how when you start a new job, youâre super excited? Your brain is a sponge, and youâre just trying to soak up everything about the company, position, and industry that you can. Itâs called the honeymoon phase, and it lasts for six to twelve months. During this period, youâre highly engaged and gaining terrific experience.
After the honeymoon phase, you continue to gain experience and remain engaged. However, after two or three years in a role, the novelty and excitement that you once felt levels off. In other words, what was once interesting and challenging becomes routine. Once you hit this phase, itâs time to push for either a promotion or a new opportunity with a new company.
The graph below provides a visual of how you can maximize both your experience and your engagement by picking the best time to leave one opportunity for another. To get the most out of this method, timing is critical. Two to three years in a position is ideal. Four to five years is too long.
You might be thinking that two or three years is too often to change positions. Isnât that the kind of âjob hoppingâ that youâve been warned against? Youâre exactly right, this is âjob hoppingâ. However, if your career trajectory continues to rise, and if youâre putting yourself in a position to maximize your experience and engagement, you wonât need to explain yourself to a hiring manager. Theyâll understand that you have made yourself into a professional of great value. âJob hoppingâ or not, they will want you on their team.
So, where does your career fall on this graph? Is your career trajectory trending in the right direction?
