Your career is not something that happens to you.

It should be something you carefully manage.

Today, I want to give some high-level concepts about managing your career.

Here are my top six tips, which come directly from my coach, Brooke Castillo:

1.  Set an impossible professional goal for 2018 – one that makes your brain go “yikes!” If your brain doesn’t completely freak out at this goal, it’s not impossible.

It has to be measurable – you have to know, clearly, whether or not you achieve this goal. You also want to set a date and time to achieve this goal.

2. Here’s the reason for an impossible goal: when your primitive brain freaks out at this goal (because it is convinced it will kill us), you can AGREE WITH YOUR BRAIN. Yep brain, I know it’s impossible! You’re right! Puts you and your brain on the same side.

3.   Use two full sheets of paper to write down all the thoughts that come up about that impossible goal. Write, write, write. How am I going to do it? Where will I find the time? I don’t know how! Get it out.

4. For each of those thoughts, write out a strategy to solve. If, for example, your thought is “I don’t have any management experience,” then how can you get management experience in the next year? Come up with a plan – this will take you from a feeling of overwhelm and confusion to a plan to move forward.

5.  Plan 25 epic failures each quarter for your goal. These should be worthy attempts that are probably going to fail…as opposed to failures that happen because you didn’t make the attempt.

It’s what you make that failure mean that makes all the difference. If you make the failure mean “this is the currency by which I eventually succeed,” you’ll have very different results than if you make that failure mean something negative about you.

6. Finally, calendar everything. No to-do lists here! Schedule time for everything, and honor those commitments to yourself.

Plan 25 epic failures each quarter for your goal. These should be worthy attempts that are probably going to fail…as opposed to failures that happen because you didn’t make the attempt.

To visit my website: www.exclusivecareercoaching.com

Follow My YouTube channel (Lesa Edwards); it’s chocked full of value career management content is easily digestible bites.

Want to speak with an expert about your career/job search goals? Need help figuring out what’s holding you back from achieving your dream career? Let’s talk. Here’s the link to schedule a 30-minute consult call with me: www.timetrade.com/book/D6KLN. Hope to see you soon!