Makeovers on television shows and in magazines are enticing for women theworld over. Of course the reason they are so popular, is because the idea ofgetting a fresh start in life is a golden key we have all dreamt about at onetime or another. No matter what their lives are like, everyone has somethingthey wish could be different – their home, their body, their friends, and eventheir career.

Career makeovers are not a new concept and if you think about it, makingover your career will automatically set a chain reaction in motion that willaffect all aspects of your life, particularly those that are unsatisfactory. Ifyou’ve ever changed jobs or industries, worked with a recruiter, drafted a newresume or pursued additional education to increase your job prospects oropportunities, you’ve already taken steps to improve or “make over” yourcareer.

Here are some ideas which can take your career makeover to a wholenew level!

1. Look inside yourself. How do you perceive yourself? Areyou confident? Do you like yourself? Are you proud of your accomplishments?What is your attitude to life, on working, on the value that you bring to yourjob? How do you feel about your career? Do you feel in control of your future?Working on your “inner self” is of critical importance when it comes tocreating a career makeover. If your internal thoughts are not consistent withthe actions that you need to take, you’ll continually feel a sense ofdisconnect. Others will feel it too. All change starts on the inside. If youneed support in this area, consider counseling or coaching, whichever is mostappropriate for your situation. Until the inner issues are resolved or healed,it can be very challenging to take the necessary steps that lead to afulfilling career.

2. Get balanced. A key component of effectively managingyour career starts with managing your time efficiently. Do you keep your worklife separate from your home life? Do you take work home in the evenings orweekends? Do you talk about work ALL THE TIME? Do you take time to rechargeyour batteries so that you feel refreshed? This is probably one of the mostdifficult areas when it comes to career makeovers. It takes a lot of courage to“draw the line” when it comes to balancing your life. Many women feel that ifthey don’t give everything to their job, then they won’t have a job, yet, theopposite is actually true. If you’re working for a company which does not allowyou to set boundaries around your time, you WILL burn out. Before this happensit is probably best that you start looking for a new position. It’s a difficultchoice to make, but ultimately it’s up to you to set boundaries around whattypes of treatment you will accept from others – including your employer. Ifyou can’t achieve work/life balance in your current job, you will never be ableto give it your best, simply because you will not be at your best which in turnwill affect your future career prospects.

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3. Get your relationships in check. They say birds of afeather flock together. Are your friends dragging you down? ( I was told myfriends were holding me back by a naturopath when I was in my early 20’s I wasVERY angry with him and protective of my friends – but a year later when I hadtaken a grip of my life and moved on, I realized he had been completely right!)Is your network of friends and associates supportive of you and your goals, orare they constantly telling you that your dreams are too lofty? Do they dragyou into their gossip or do they inspire you with thoughtful conversation? Inessence your ambition can be affected by the people around you and because ofthis your personal and professional relationships will have a tremendousinfluence on your career success. Therefore, to get your relationships incheck, evaluate your friendships and acquaintances. It might be time to startgently letting go of some of the relationships that aren’t serving you, whichwill allow you to fill the empty spaces with new friends who will support you.Make sure you’re forging relationships with the people who see your value, andsurround yourself with mentors who are helpful in assisting you to moveforward.

4. Begin with a vision. Having an idea of where you want togo is one of the most important steps in your career makeover. Until you knowwhere you want to be or what you want to have, it’s impossible to decide on thecorrect steps to get you there. How do you envision your ideal life? What typeof job would make you happy? What brings you the most joy? What type ofposition would you like to see yourself working in 5 years time? Give yourselfpermission to think about what you really want, dare to dream a little.Remember what seems impossible today is only so because you haven’t had theopportunity to break the journey from here to there down into manageable chunks– now you are ready to start working on your career makeover.

5. Be the change. Once you have a vision of what you thinkyou might want. It’s now time to assess where you are now. What are yourstrengths and your weaknesses? What skills do you have? Which ones will youneed in order to achieve your career vision? You need to know where you are nowversus where you want to be in the future. The rest is about managing the “gap”in between. Here is where the career makeover really takes place and this isthe secret to making it possible…

6. Start at the end and work backwards. Imagine you haveyour dream job and are living your dream life. What was the final step you hadto take to make this all possible, now what was the step before that? Work thisprocess through until you arrive back at where you are today. Now you are awareof these steps, you know what you have to do to achieve your goals inmanageable chunks. Your next course of action is to develop a plan forachieving these goals thereby giving each part of the process a timeline.

7. Now hone your skills. One of the most obvious ways tocreate a career makeover is to work on your skills. Whether you go back toschool to earn an advanced degree or take training classes here and there,anything that you can do to improve yourself can benefit your career. Learnmore about your industry; attend conferences where you can keep abreast of thelatest trends. Network with possible mentors. Buy books written by leaders inyour field. Read industry periodicals and other materials that deep yourknowledge. Check with your human resources department to find out what types ofinternal training opportunities are available. Take advantage of your company’stuition reimbursement programs. Continuing your education is essential nomatter how you do it. Studying will not be a chore. If you are doing work youlove you will be passionate about absorbing as much information about yourfield as you can!

And finally plan for the future. No matter who you are or whom you know, youcareer will have its ups and downs. These days it’s unrealistic to think you’llhave a job for life. You might be transferred, demoted, or get a new boss thatyou don’t enjoy. You could even lose your job because of a downturn in yourindustry. These are realities of work life today. To lessen the possibility ofyour becoming an economic statistic it’s always a good idea to have options.This means you need to think about your exit plan. What would you do if youwanted to leave, or lost your job for whatever reason? Even the people who arehappy in their jobs today should have an exit strategy, so take my advice andstart working on it now. Don’t wait until it’s too late and you’re in panicmode.

In conclusion, always remember, no matter what career or life choices youmake, ALL women need a strategic career plan. Your career makeover isultimately your responsibility. You are the master of your life and it’s up toyou to make a plan. Once you have a clear plan, take the steps that lead you tofulfilling your ultimate vision. One powerful way of helping you stay on trackis by working with a coach who can help you make the transition more quickly. Agood coach gives you support you need, helps you to stay focused and on track.With proper guidance, you will quickly find yourself achieving your careergoals.

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