Habits, Roadmaps, and the Value of Career Momentum

When we think of our professional lives, the result is a marathon, not a sprint.  Thus, there is a need to develop a form of career momentum that can get us through those long years.  There are a variety of ways to accomplish this goal.  That means we can look at several approaches to keeping our career on a forward path even in light of all that life throws at us.

Career Momentum Is Key

I have found that momentum is the most significant contributor to keeping my career on track.  This has been the case even when things appear to go off the rails.  There have been periods where all of my goals came to a complete stop.  Nevertheless, once life got out of the way, the momentum reappeared as old habits kicked into gear.  Our tasks are easier to make progress with once they have started.  That momentum can give us the energy to move ahead rather than see things stall out at every little setback.

In a similar sense, we can build professional development habits to help us stay on track.  This can come from as little as fifteen minutes a day or an hour a week.  These habits are also easy to work into our daily lives.  Instead of playing a little candy crush in the grocery line, listen to a podcast or read a blog post.  These small tweaks to your life create big pay-offs.

Reward Yourself

The old carrot and stick approach works for our personal development as well.  Set goals and then give yourself a reward for completing them. A prize may be a night at the movies, a special dessert, or more substantial things like a car, vacation, or home.  The rewards of positive momentum can be sizable when you consider the value of a higher salary and monetary bonuses.  Why not spend some of those earnings on yourself?

Ignore Bad Days

We all have bad days, weeks, and months.  Sometimes everything clicks, and we see success after success.  However, those days and periods where we get the sense of running in quicksand pop up as well.  The key to consistent career momentum is returning to our work on goals when we get a chance.  That does mean we need to keep those goals in mind.  Write down what you are working on and track progress.  These simple organizational habits are time savers when we do have good days and time to work on our long-term objectives.

Career momentum will ebb and flow.  Sometimes it will carry you forward at an incredible speed, and other times it will be an overwhelming headwind.  Try to stay on an even keel through these times and keep focusing on one step at a time.  This simple habit will lead you to times where you can look back and see that you have come a long way.

Learn more in the book written for Develpreneurs at any stage in their progress:  https://www.amazon.com/Source-Code-Happiness-Finding-Success-ebook/dp/B07MKZBF6R