Three smart steps to plan your next career move

If you’ve ever wondered about what’s next for your career, this article is for you. And chances are, you have. With global employee engagement at an all-time low of 21%* (leaving almost 80% of the global workforce disengaged), many workers are left thinking about what’s next for them. 

Burnout, lack of career trajectory, long hours, fear of layoffs and culture are among the list of many reasons the workforce is burnt out and shifting. While there are many contributing factors to deciding what to do next, here are three simple and proactive steps you can take to figure out what your next chapter looks like, from a purposeful and sustainable standpoint - not just relying on what jobs are available on the market. 

Step 1: Clarify what drives you

Why is this so important? Because research shows that our intrinsic motivators will eventually lead us to greater success - defined by motivation, satisfaction and greater well-being. 

Self-Determination Theory, first introduced  In the 1970s and 1980s by Richard Ryan, PhD, and Edward Deci, PhD, began fleshing out a humanist theory of motivation that differed from the behaviorist theories that dominated at the time. At the core of Ryan and Deci’s theory was the concept that self-directed motivation and personal growth rely on three psychological needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness. SDT suggests that when those needs are met people tend to be more self- motivated, feel more satisfied, and experience greater well-being. By contrast, when people are motivated to act because of external pressures—or internal pressure to live up to external expectations—they have more trouble staying engaged and feel less fulfilled. 

The lesson here is to stop thinking about what others want for you or what success looks like from the outside, and really start thinking about what your intrinsic motivations are. What moves you, what impact do you want to make?

Step 2: Understand your skills and experience x the market  

So now that you know what you really care about - what are you good at? What life experience do you have that is valuable? That people will pay for? Probably a lot! 

In this step, you want to understand not only your skills and experience from a professional standpoint but also, a life standpoint. Not just what you are good at….also - what challenges have you faced? What have you learned from them? Could this help someone else? People will pay a lot of money to have you help them solve a problem, if it’s important enough to them. 

So now we can start to see - we are building our next chapters not only based on what we care about, but we’re adding on what we are good at and how we can uniquely position ourselves to help people.  

From here, you can develop common themes from these various inputs to align our intrinsic motivators with the market using tools like Google Trends, ChatGPT, LinkedIn as well as social media research. 

Take note of what you find during your research. What needs exist in the market that you could fill? What is the most unique way to position your magic blend of impact, skills, experience and what the world needs most? 

Step 3: Make your move with support

Excited yet? You should be! No one has your secret sauce. The most important thing you can do is decide. Decide that you want to show up for yourself in a way that takes advantage of all that you have to offer and receive from the world. 

At The Full Cup Co. , we believe in the power of coaching and community especially for those in transition stages such as career change. Taking the leap to enter a new chapter can be scary, no matter what it is, and research shows that those who have support will activate with more confidence and consistency than those who do not.

The key takeaway here? Find yourself someone or something that will help hold you accountable, inspire you and help you grow. It will ensure your success and that you have the necessary support in this new chapter. 

Curious about designing your own Strategic Executive Exit Plan? 

Watch the free masterclass here.

*Gallup 2024