In the professional world, there are three main choices when it comes to career paths: advancement, transition or pivot.
Advancement
Advancement is what is often described as the ‘traditional’ career path (though, it is becoming increasingly less and less common). It involves progressing to higher levels of responsibility, leadership, and influence within your current firm or company, often within the same area of specialty.
For example, as a lawyer or professional within a large firm, advancement would be getting from student to junior associate to senior associate to income partner to equity partner.
Transition
Instead of continuing on the same trajectory, transition refers to changing lanes in some way. Instead of a drastic change, it implies something related but different. This could involve moving to a different department, taking on a new type of project, or shifting to a related field. In a way, it can be seen as landing on a different runway but staying within the same airport.
For example, for a professional within a finance department, it could mean moving to a role in business development or sales within the same company. It could also mean that finance professional moving to another role in finance but in a different industry. In a legal context, it could mean moving from a firm to an in house environment.
Pivot
A career pivot involves a significant shift – where there is more that is different than the same. This might mean moving to a different industry or taking on a completely new type of role. Often, this involves re-training or adding a new area of expertise or focus.
For example, it could mean pivoting from a Human Resource Business Partner role to being legal counsel after completing training in law. It could also mean moving from a legal role to an operations or business development role, where conducting legal review or providing legal advice is no longer part of the job description.
Preparing for your next step:
While there are various ways to prepare for your next step, here are some ideas for consideration:
- Clearly define your professional aspirations
- For some people, this may initially be defined by a particular title or role (e.g., general counsel). However, not all roles with the same title are equal or even refer to the same set of key tasks.
- When defining your goals, consider honing in on your priorities. Reflect deeply on your personal and professional values and interests. What drives you? How do you want to spend your time? What impact would you like to make?
- Get granular! Assess what aspects of your current role you enjoy and what aligns with your inner drivers and values. Where are the gaps? How important are those to your professional satisfaction? Use these to help create your criteria to assess any next step.
- Take a staged approach, as there may be many potential paths to your destination. What might progress look like?
- Building your career narrative
- Develop a clear story that links your past experiences to your desired role, emphasizing how each step demonstrates your impact and value.
- So many skills are transferable to different contexts. Think about how to frame your abilities in a way that is relevant or needed, or perhaps even unique, to your desired role.
- For some, it is often hard to remember details of everything we have done. Throughout your career journey, take time to document your accomplishments, key projects, even challenges you worked through. This will help remind you of what can be added to a potential narrative.
- Relationships
- Relationships are key regardless of which career choice you are pursuing. A current colleague could be a future client, or boss. So could opposing counsel.
- Cultivate relationships with others (at, above and below your current career level) who resonate with your values.
Your career journey is unique. Whether you decide to advance, transition, or pivot, each option demands distinct preparation and introspection.
At Tuning Inward Coaching and Consulting, we believe the best path for you involves tuning inward to your personal goals and values and leveraging your unique blend of skills and experience. Reach out if we can help you navigate your next step.