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YOU want the job. You feel that this is the career path for you. You go for the interview and impress your interviewer. You get the job! You feel on top of the world.

When the “high” of getting the job is over, you begin to grapple with the routine and the challenges of the workplace. Before long, you start to think that the grass may be greener somewhere else.

Your job begins to seems mundane. You feel that there is no more challenge in what you are doing. You feel that perhaps it is time to move on.

But can you guarantee that your next job or career will be an interesting one? Or is history going to repeat itself all over again?

The truth is, there is no success formula for your career. Your career is what you make out of it. It succumbs to the natural law of selection in that, if you do not want it to become extinct, than you need to nurture it. To do that, you need to adapt to change.

As naturalist Charles Darwin puts it: “It is not the strongest nor the most intelligent of the species that survive; it is the one most adaptable to change.”

To prevent your career from going downhill, you need to create your own personal vision. Management guru Stephen Covey says that one of the habits of highly effective people is to “begin with the end in mind”. Once you settle on the career you want, you need to create a short-term, mid-term and long-term career plan.

Short-term career plan

This can be a period of six months to two years. Here is where you maximise your potential by learning as much as possible about your trade, networking and understanding the responsibilities of your job. This is also a volatile period in your career as you may face challenges that seem overwhelming.

This means that you need to be very clear about what you want to achieve and focus on getting there. Otherwise, you are going to get distracted and sidetracked by the resistance and opposition that you face in your career.

Mid-term career plan

Your mid-term career plan can cover three to five years. By now, you should be professionally competent in your job. You might be highly efficient in what you are doing, but the question is whether you are highly effective as well.

Efficiency is basically about doing things right. Being effective is doing the right things right. This means that you need to continuously analyse your original career goals to see whether they are still relevant in your industry. Staying relevant and able to respond effectively to the changing environment is crucial to your career success.

This is also the period where boredom can set in as you start enveloping yourself in a comfort zone. Just like an ageing car, you may need a complete overhaul to make sure that your performance meets high standards.

Long-term career plan

Your long-term career plan involves mapping out what you want to achieve from five years in the job and beyond. This is the time you need to “rewire” yourself. Throw out redundant ideas if you have to and embrace the new work philosophy. Accept and adopt new ways of doing things, attend relevant training courses, learn a new skill and keep identifying new business avenues to exploit.

This might all sound very daunting, but it is easier to make small changes in gradual steps than trying one giant leap. This is also the time when you can be an inspiration to others. Engage yourself in a transfer of your knowledge. When you teach, you learn. Most importantly, ensure that you remain teachable yourself.

Be receptive to trying new things, and do not be afraid of failure. As the famous quote goes: “The men who try to do something and fail are infinitely better than those who try nothing and succeed.”

Article by Dr Daniel Theyagu, a keynote speaker and seminar leader for conferences and training programmes. He runs Lateral Solutions Consultancy which designs and conducts competency-based training for organisations. Website: www.lateralsolutionsconsult.com.