Like in any trade or business, there are tools of the trade, tools of the industry. Your career is no different. You must have / should have tools that equip you to get the job done, please your listeners or viewers, whether they be tangible or intangible tools. Some of the tools will be large, some will be small, but all will have there own intended purpose to get done what you want done in an as efficient and effective time as possible. Let me share with you what I feel to be the most important intangible career tools.
Career tools to a young person facing into final examinations and / or seeking the ideal job / career afterwards are numerous, but let me fine-tune the intangible career tools down to five for now i.e. the ones that are internal, are difficult to see, but are critical to you as you perform and execute the tangible career tools.
As a reminder, the tangible career tools discussed recently were:
- A Qualification
- A Career Field / Title
- Cover Letter & CV
- Interview Attire
- Smartphone
The top five intangible career tools in no particular order are:
- Belief
- Confidence
- Discipline
- Commitment
- Desire
Belief:
You should and must believe that you will pass that exam, secure that place, find that job, get that interview, deliver that speech well. If you do not or cannot believe that you will succeed, then it is almost impossible to carry out the activities necessary and to do them to the best of your ability and indeed to the best that they need to be done. A vital career tool.
Confidence:
‘Actasif’ is a term I commonly use and practice in my life, until it becomes natural. Act as if you are confident, with your head held high, a pep in your step, a briskness in your pace. Being confident is about being optimistic, being positive, believing in yourself as a person, believing in your talents, skills and competencies, being sure of yourself and having complete trust in your abilities. A foundational career tool.
Discipline:
When it comes to a need or a want that you have, you will not achieve it on time, within schedule without discipline. Being disciplined is about sticking to the timetable and sticking to the schedule. It is fighting to avoid procrastinating, and starting on time and finishing on time Such a necessary career tool.
Commitment:
Being committed to something is about working towards a need and seeing it right through to the end, no matter what barriers, interruptions, distractions are put in front of you. Being committed to the cause is a common term; regardless of time and how long it takes, we see it through, we get the job done. A very important career tool.
Desire:
What do you desire? What do you really want? What is the most important ‘need’ in your life right now? You must know what you want, where you are going to, what you desire. If you don’t, then others don’t and they cannot help you on your journey. Write down your desire in the form of a goal and look at it every day. The more you think about and desire it, events will happen to bring it closer to you and make it a reality. A last, but not least career tool.
