🗺️ Career Playbooks
How to Develop a Career Playbook (and why you need to do this today)
By S.K. Lee, Ed.M., CPCC
TODAY is the best day to take control of your career destiny. Instead of making fleeting goals and half-hearted “maybe…” or “someday…”, let's dive into creating a powerful “career vision” that fuels your success and keeps you motivated for years to come.
Why is a Career Playbook Important?
Strategy Leads to Vision Having a clear career playbook leads you to clarify your long-term Career Vision! This exercise arms you with the map for navigating the maze of interpersonal dynamics at work. Research shows that women in male-dominated fields like tech, engineering, banking, venture capital etc. who have taken the time to draft a CAREER PLAYBOOK are more committed and find greater purpose in their roles, despite the challenges of bias and barriers. When your work strategy aligns with your values and goals, it energizes you.
Only You Can Lead Your Career In my Career Odyssey coaching programs, I help clients craft a career playbook and career vision that includes how we will identify your: Strength Spikes, limiting belief systems, and the potential career pathways you want to explore. It is not easy to articulate where they want to be in 3-5 years, there are many moving parts in a life! This is why we use 3-4 paths and explore each of them in an interative, design-thinking methodology. A trained and experienced coach can challenge assumptions as you develop your Career Playbook, aritculate your Career Vision, and define potential Career Pathways. Having the your own Career Playbook is a secret weapon— this puts the power of your career trajectory in your own hands. You do not leave your success to chance or hoping that someone else will bestow promotions on you— you go get yours.
How to Create Your Career Vision
1. Reflect on the Past Year
Start by acknowledging your achievements over the past year. Reflecting on the entire year (not just recent months) helps you see your growth and understand what you want moving forward. Ideally you ave been keeping track of your WINS on a monthly basis so everything is up to date and accurate. Click here to download a free CAREER PLAYBOOK WINS Template.
Guiding Questions:
What were you most proud of overall? What skill did you grow as a result?
How did you challenge yourself? How did you overcome these challenges?
What activities energized or drained you?
What lessons do you want to carry forward into the next year/project, and what do you want to leave behind?
If you could give the overall year a one-word theme, what would it be? Do this for every qyarter as well.
2. Visualize Your Future (as if it is today!)
Choose a horizon line into the future anywhere between 2-5 years out from today. Imagine the ideal state of your career in vivid detail as if you are watching it on a big screen in a state-of-the-art theater. There is a lot of research about the power of visualization. My professional athlete and former Olympian clients use this as a crucial part of their training regime! Visualization trains your brain and shows it what success looks like, letting you and your body/mind/spirit know exactly what to look for, boosting your confidence to make this vision a reality.
Visualization Exercise:
Sit comfortably, close your eyes, and take 8 deep breaths for a count of 4 inhald and a count of 6 exhale.
Picture yourself waking up and see the bedroom, home you live in. Feel energized and excited to wake up. Describe the ideal morning rituals and routines that get you in the optimal morning mindset.
Now, imagine you enter your work space energized because you love your job. What does your perfect workday look like? Who do you interact with, and how are you regarded? Describe the space in detail.
What does a typical week look like? What kinds of conferences and professional events do you attend or create?
How are you recognized for your contributions in your industry? Imagine yourself speaking or authoring…
Now, imagine that you are at the end of your career, what legacy do you leave behind?
After visualizing, journal about your insights from the home to the work environments. Journal about the legacy you see yourself leaving behind.
3. Set Goals and Forward the Action
Transform your vision into actionable goals using the S.M.A.R.T. method (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound). Break goals into manageable steps, identify necessary resources, training, relationships and skills you may need, and what you might need to let go of to move forward.
Goal-Setting Questions:
Which of these goals do you want to achieve within 30 days, 60 days, 90 days?
What stretch goals could push you closer to your vision? What would these goals look like if you were not scared?
How can you measure success and ensure your goals are realistic and aligned with your vision?
4. Speak Your Vision and Get Accountability
Share your career playbook and visions with others. This makes it feel more real. Get support from people you respect, boosting your commitment to these plans.
Accountability Questions:
What support do you need to stay on track? An accountability partner, friend or coach can be incredibly effective way to ensure you execute.
What obstacles might you face, and how can you overcome them?
How often will you check in with yourself to ensure alignment with your vision?
What can you do to ensure this is scheduled into your busy life?
Throughout the year, regularly reflect on and celebrate your progress, making adjustments with new learnings and insights as you go. Your career playbook is not a fixed books of rules— it is a guidepost for making decisions, helping to remind you of your bigger ambitions, to say “yes” more often, and to know when to close doors to things that do not serve your playbook.
Ready to Take Charge?
Creating a Career Playbook is a powerful way to take charge of your Career (and Life). This exercise will give you a sense of comfort and guidance in your busy schedules.
You’ve got this, badass! 🌟💪
