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’tis the season for resolving to better ourselves. For some this means saving a few pennies or logging more miles on the treadmill. But others see the New Year as an opportunity to dust off their résumés and make a plan to get ahead in their careers. If you’re looking for a promotion, or hoping to find a new job entirely, here are a few helpful resolutions from career experts in the New York City area:
1. Learn from 2012
“I always tell people to start with a quick year in review,” says Mark Strong, executive career coach and author of “The Strong Principles: Career Success.” Make a list of what worked last year, and from there, make a personal business plan for 2013 with specific goals rooted not just in what you want, but with the needs of your company in mind. “What does the company want you to accomplish?” Articulate these goals to your managers at the outset, and again when you’ve accomplished them.
2. Take a class in your field
“Going back to education doesn’t have to be going back to a degree program,” says Pejman Azarmina, executive career coach at Thinkocrats Inc., a group offering career coaching, training and mentorship. Whether it’s to fill a gap in your skill set or a way to stay on top of your game, taking a class in your spare time is a great investment.
3. Network. And then follow up
“The key to developing a career or finding a job opportunity is to follow through after networking happens,” Azarmina says. Don’t just make efforts to meet helpful people, strive to keep in touch with them.
Doing so “could be the difference between getting yourself noticed or not,” says Trudy Steinfeld, the assistant vice president at NYU’s Center for Career Development. If you’re not using LinkedIn, join now, she advises. Use the holidays to clean up your social presence, and make sure your online profiles speak to who you are as a professional.
4. Use existing contacts
Schedule informational interviews with friends in your field, and pick their brains about their jobs, suggests Kate White, former editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan magazine, now a career expert and author. Ask colleagues who understand the hiring process to review your résumé.
Steinberg also recommends getting some honest feedback about how you interview. Ask a peer who has experience hiring and interviewing people to grill you, then have them assess your strengths and weaknesses.
5. Don’t rely solely on the Internet
“The biggest mistake people make is to apply and wait,” says Strong. “People get jobs today the same way they got jobs 20 years ago, through personal connections.” Get off the computer, and get out there and connect with people in person.
Yes, the Internet is a great research tool, but “you can’t just stay on your computer all day,” says Judith Gerberg, the president of Gerberg & Co., a career development organization in Midtown. Instead, identify the leaders in your field, reach out to them directly. Don’t just send résumés out into the great unknown.
6. List your accomplishments
“People tend to wait until their performance review, but I always encourage them to keep a running list of their accomplishments,” says Strong. This makes a midyear review easier, and “when a promotion pops up or somebody quits, you’re ready with a list of things you’ve done and why you’re ready to fill that spot. Be ready to go.”
7. Dress the part
If you want a new job, start dressing for it. White even suggests buying a new pair of “promotion shoes”— or as she puts it, a pair of nice shoes your boss would wear — to help get yourself in the mind-set of a new role. “There’s something so great about getting those promotion shoes that makes you realize you can have the job because you look the part.”
8. Stop complaining
“We love to blame others for our situation,” says Dorothy Doppstadt, a certified career coach with Five O’Clock Club, a national career counseling network. “Take the energy you’ve used to blame, and start doing work.” To take control, decide where you want go, and pinpoint the people who can help you get there. Every few weeks, remind yourself of any recent small accomplishments. “It is hard out there, but that doesn’t mean you can’t manifest what you want.”
9. Get creative
If you’ve lost momentum in your current role or in the search for a new one, do something that puts you in touch with your creative self, Gerberg suggests. It doesn’t have to be career-focused. It can be anything from writing to playing an instrument, so long as it’s something you have command of. “When people are feeling discouraged, the way to get out of that stage is to do something that’s under your control and that’s self-expressive,” Gerberg says.
10. TAKE VACATION TIME
“People are more creative and better at their jobs when they actually use their vacation time,” Strong says. “But it doesn’t get used if you don’t plan it.” Plot your vacation weeks at the beginning of the year, and then use them.
11. Be enthusiastic
Job hunters should make it a goal to “show the love” during interviews, says White. “Sometimes we think we’re going to seem a little goofy, or not professional enough to show how passionate we are,” she says. This is the cardinal sin of interviews. “It’s about asking questions, really good questions that show how interested you are. Never say, ‘No, you’ve answered everything.’ ”
12. Organize an event
Demonstrate leadership by taking on a project within your career circle. “Organize a panel . . . or create a committee,” Gerberg suggests.
If the event is a success, people will recognize how organized you are, Azarmina says. “It can have a very positive impression.”
13. Do more than the bare minimum
“One of the biggest mistakes people make is doing just what they’ve been told to do,” White says. But people separate themselves from the pack by making their bosses say “wow!” to their initiative. If you aren’t doing that, “You need to really figure out a way to go big or go home.”