As the corporate world continues to evolve, there are many changes that we’re witnessing among modern companies and employees. Diverse organizational and technological advancements continue to sweep across industries and sectors. These changes are currently igniting some individuals to upskill, change careers, or opt for professional education to stay relevant in the employment realm.
However, one of the most crucial factors that people ignore when cultivating paths for career success is self-awareness. That’s why many professionals continue to shift from one career to another, at times without any genuine reason. Career advancement has always been essential for any professional. But what if I told you that self-awareness can help you make quality career choices?
What is Self Awareness & Why Does It Matter?
Self-awareness is a popular concept in the field of psychology, however, it’s applicable in several areas of life. Self-awareness is when an individual understands and has a complete bn perception of their abilities and traits and those of their surroundings.
When it comes to the facet of career development, self-awareness is taking time to understand your abilities, interests, talents, values, and preferences. Practices like mindfulness, meditation, and self-introspection using different reflection models can bring about self-awareness.
It allows one to attain insights about themselves, which is termed self-knowledge. Anyone can utilize self-knowledge to make career decisions or change careers. Individuals can also examine themselves and evaluate their capabilities before setting career goals or making a career transition. So, which are some of the ways self-awareness can help in career advancement?
5 Ways Self-Awareness Can Help You Advance in Your Career
- Taps Into the Power of Your Passion
The US Department of Labour shows that the average working professional will change careers up to 7 times in a lifetime. Today, working professionals change careers due to several reasons such as the need for flexibility, a positive work environment, and the desire for work-life balance. However, other concerns like job satisfaction also trigger individuals to alter their career goals. But, did you know that being aware of your interests and ambitions can help you set realistic career goals or advance career-wise?
Many people founded their careers on their talents or passions and they attained incredible career success even without higher education. Nevertheless, opting for professional education having understood your career goals can help you attain sizeable success. You can follow your passion to build a career and live a more meaningful life. Doing what you love will not prove burdensome as doing a job simply because you studied for it or offers higher pay.
In addition to that, many findings assert that people who do the jobs they love are happier at work, more optimistic, and perform better. Utilize a guide to pursue your passion or change your career and attain the success you want.
- Improves Leadership Skills
Self-awareness is everything and in fact, a core determinant for those in leadership positions or those who would love to become leaders. Being self-aware means knowing yourself, your inner standards, behaviors, and their impact on those around you. When individuals are aware of themselves and desire to grow their careers or change them, they evaluate their abilities, strengths, and weaknesses.
They are then able to set realistic career goals based on accurate self-assessment and evaluation. Besides that, they acquire career development strategies to better themselves at their jobs. Whether one is in leadership or not, self-awareness can also improve leadership skills at any level. It allows one to evaluate their feelings, emotions, and ideas and tame themselves. Employees who are self-aware for example, know their weak points and are empathetic, make excellent teams.
Precisely, they are emotionally intelligent and in the case of team leaders, they are more likely to perform exceptionally than their counterparts. With that, self-awareness can become a catalyst for better performance at any job which can lead to career advancement.
- Boosts Relationship Management
Self-awareness can help professionals cultivate strong relationships and manage them better. Although career development largely depends on personal ambitions and choices, career success can’t occur without reliable relationships. People need influential partnerships to become successful. For example; Steve Jobs’s partnership with Steve Wozniak. It shows that relationships are crucial to career success. The more one is aware of their individual traits, the more one can manage their relationships better.
Moving further, self-awareness can be dissected into two forms of awareness – personal and public self-awareness. Personal or private awareness is the ability to reflect on personal traits and gain insights into who you are, your potential, and your emotions. On the other hand, public self-awareness is knowing how others perceive or see you.
Knowing how others “perceive you” can help you to alter personal behaviors as per social expectations and norms. It also makes you sensitive to others and there are higher chances that you learn to value relationships.
- Leads to Greater Job Satisfaction
Everyone would love to wake up with high expectations about themselves and give their best at work. However, self-awareness can influence outcomes in many ways. People who are self-aware can easily cultivate paths to personal growth after understanding their weaknesses and potential.
By focusing on what you love and your desires, you can choose jobs that can offer you greater job satisfaction. In addition, it can help you perceive opportunities or see challenges as opportunities. Precisely, it can help you determine what works for you and what doesn’t. Generally, employees who are self-aware can also transform the workplace environment into a positive workspace.
On the other hand, working with people who have low self-awareness can develop frustration and stress. It can hamper team performance and productivity. Yet, employees who focus on becoming better can cultivate paths for self-improvement, for example, signing up for an online course, mentorship, or leveraging educational learning apps. In the long run, this leads to personal development and a satisfying career.
- Leads to a Happier Life
A successful career contributes to a happy life, however, that is largely influenced by self-awareness. Being aware of your ambitions and goals in life can help you choose your career wisely. It’s best to wake up every morning looking forward to what your job has for you than being reluctant to even wake up because your job is a source of depression.
Self-awareness can help you prioritize your interests, goals, and desires over the pay. Besides that, it can help you understand the way you perceive challenges and criticism. You can then choose a career after self-assessment and the challenges that come with a given career.
Note: A negative attitude toward challenges can limit career development and this can hamper career progress. However, understanding the power of self-awareness and frequently practicing it can lead to a happier and more fulfilling life. You ought to know that self-exploration is a process and it is commonly through experience that you really get to know yourself.
Bottom Line
Self-awareness can influence career experiences dimensionally. Having a thorough understanding of your abilities, interests, values, strengths, and weaknesses can help you set realistic goals that can lead to effective career advancement. Generally, self-awareness can help you choose a career path that revolves around your goals. Or, it can help you choose a career with a thorough understanding of the challenges that you will face. It can lead to career advancement and a more fulfilled life.
