A written career goal statement can serve as a path for achieving your career objectives, regardless of what they are. Setting objectives for your profession helps you stay motivated and accountable. In this article, we’ll go over what a professional goal statement is, why it’s vital to have one, and how to construct your own, with examples.
What is a career goal statement?
A career goal statement, often known as a “personal statement” or “statement of purpose,” is a written declaration that outlines your long-term professional goals. They usually include particular achievements, work titles, education, experience, and skills you’d like to get, as well as a timetable for achieving them. Goal statements are used in resumes and cover letters, as well as applications to undergraduate and graduate programmes.
A goal statement is an excellent approach to express your motivations to hiring managers and admissions officers. They can also assist you in remaining motivated and focused.
Tips to write your own career goals statement
A career goals statement has many advantages. You may check some online professional writing services. But, in order to write one for yourself, what do you need to know? Let’s go through 7 tips to consider.
1.Be specific
A goal must be specific in order to have an impact and provide the essential sense of direction. Something generic like “work using laptop” or “get more money” is too imprecise to motivate anyone.
Use the SMART goals framework while writing your career goals statement. This is what that means:
Specific: State your goals clearly (for example, “start my own marketing agency focused on software clients”).
Measurable: Similarly, define your success criteria so that you know when you’ve met your objective.
Achievable: You don’t want to set yourself up for failure, so make sure your goal isn’t too lofty to achieve.
Relevant: Make sure that what you want to achieve is actually relevant to you (this is where self-reflection comes in handy!).
Time-bound: A goal is meaningless unless it has a deadline for completion. Your career objectives statement should be somewhat long-term in nature (and not something you want to accomplish by next week). However, “long-term” can mean different things to different people. Determine when you want to accomplish this goal.
2.Invest the time in reflection
Remember how we mentioned the opportunity for self-reflection earlier? Before you start scribbling down your career goals statement, make sure you take the time to do so.
This will assist you in avoiding setting a goal that you believe you should have and instead focusing on one that you desire.
The most important aspect of a goal is that it be something you actually want to achieve. Setting one solely because you believe it is expected of you will not serve you well in the long run.
3.Use confident language
Wishy-washy and noncommittal phrases have no place in your career goals statement. There is no “I really want to…” or “I really hope I can…”
Begin your career objectives statement with a firm and confident “I will.” That phrase not only removes any ambiguity, but it also provides a nice nugget of encouragement whenever you refer back to it.
4.Be flexible
Another important point to remember is that goals change. Of course, the purpose of your career goals statement is to give you something to work toward in the long run, but that doesn’t mean it will always be set in stone.
What if, after speaking with some other agency owners, you decide that owning a business isn’t for you? What if personal circumstances force you to remain in traditional employment for an extended period of time, rendering the 2025 deadline unrealistic? What if you achieve your goal and then need to create a new one?
These things happen, for better or worse, and you must be adaptable and willing to roll with the punches.
If your goal changes, don’t completely discard or delete your previous goal. Instead, keep it and create a completely new one. It’s fascinating to see how your goals change over time, and that progression can be both illuminating and motivating.
5.Align It with Professional Growth
Your career goal statement should be in line with your professional development and career growth. What good are your career goals if they do not lead to your progress? The entire point of writing them is to move forward. After dedicating years to a profession, you do not want to be stuck in one place.
6.Develop an action plan
Setting a goal is a good start, but setting a finish line for yourself is meaningless unless you know what you’ll do to cross it.
This section of your career goals statement should detail the steps you’ll take to achieve that goal. Instead of being saddled with an objective and feeling unsure how to get started, this provides you with a road map that you can follow.
7. Accept it as a process
Revisit your goal on a regular basis to see how far you’ve come. You may need to rethink your steps or determine if you are overlooking an important aspect or failing to see an obstacle. Perhaps journaling before bed is unreasonable because you are exhausted. You can change your approach and journal in the morning. Be willing to adapt and change your process as needed.
Short-term Career Goals Example
Gain a New Skill
Regardless of your current industry, there are hundreds of companies all over the world looking for people with a wide range of skills and abilities. The more diverse your skill set, the better your chances of impressing current or potential employers.
Keep in mind that learning kickboxing will not help you advance in the insurance industry, for example. Make certain that the new skills fall under professional development goals related to the field of interest. Determine what will put you ahead of the competition and make it easier for you to advance.
Long-term Career Goals Example
Earn a Degree or Certification
While the education system is under constant scrutiny, people with a college diploma will almost always have an advantage over those without, as long as they have the work ethic to back it up. The deciding factor will usually be the industry you want to work in and how far up the ladder you want to go.
While the education system is being scrutinised, people with a college diploma will almost always have an advantage over those without, as long as they have the work ethic to back it up. The industry you want to work in and how far up the ladder you want to go are usually the deciding factors.
What should you do with your career goals statement?
You did it—you used the advice and followed the examples, and now you have your own career goals statement. So, what now? What are you going to do with it?
Keep it in a secure location. Even better, keep it somewhere easily accessible so you can refer to it whenever you need a gentle reminder of what you’ve been working so hard for.
Whether you’ve had a bad day or simply need to be reminded that your career is about much more than completing your daily to-do list, your career goals statement will help you step back and gain the perspective that’s so easy to lose sight of in your daily life.
