Your career starts now: How to set goals and grow after graduation

By: Toni Frana, Career Expert with Zety.com 

Graduating college is the major milestone that officially marks the beginning of your professional life. Unlike college, however, there is no course plan or syllabus that shows what steps to take as you embark on your career journey. While this can be stressful, it also can be very exciting! Successfully moving from coursework and structured education to being self-directed toward your career growth can be a very fulfilling journey. To navigate it though, it takes careful planning and goal setting. 

Zety, a source for resume templates, analyzed user behavior to uncover some potential ideas for setting career goals that will help you navigate early career opportunities. 

Why Career Goals Matter

Setting goals will give you direction, will help reduce career anxiety, and will help you make decisions. Long-term goals are important, but at this stage, also having short-and mid-term goals will keep you motivated. Knowing where you want to go career wise in the first few years of your career will help you establish the right action steps to get there. For example, having clear goals will help you when you apply for jobs, as it will give you focus. Goals will help you formulate the questions you’d like to ask when seeking feedback, and also, clear goals will help you decide what you should learn next. 

You may have heard of SMART goals. These goals are designed to be very specific and focused and include a time frame to keep you on track. In fact, SMART is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Results, and Timeframe. With this framework attached to each of your goals, you’ll be better able to realize them because not only are they aligned with your career desires, but also because they are specific, measurable, result oriented, and time-stamped. For example, you may decide you want to earn a certification within 1 year (specific, measurable, and timeframe). You’ll need to take a course (action) and finish with a passing score on an assessment (result). 

Unlocking the Power of Upskilling 

Earning a certification, building your skills, or upskilling, is always a good area to put some emphasis. Continuously learning new and relevant skills in your field, and/or in leadership shows employers that you have a growth mindset, you take initiative, and you are willing to go above and beyond to succeed. As an early-career professional, upskilling also improves your confidence, gives you more to include on your resume, and makes you adaptable in this ever changing job market. 

There are many different low-cost and free resources available for upskilling. LinkedIn Learning, Coursera, and company training are just a few examples to explore. With the number of resources and opportunities available, the old mindset of waiting for a promotion to learn new skills is outdated. Instead, you should work up-\skilling goals into your plan to help you get to a promotion! 

Some ideas for upskilling include: Public Speaking, Data Analysis, Project Management, AI skill building, and any industry-specific tools that are highly desired and relevant. 

Why Mentorship Matters 

Navigating early career challenges and successes can be overwhelming, but you don’t have to figure it out on your own. Mentors are a valuable resource as you work to gain footing early in your career, and they can be helpful through the duration of your professional life. As someone you build a relationship with over time, they can offer you advice on your career goals, give you feedback, and even share about their path and the challenges and successes they had along the way. 

Mentors can also introduce you to other people to provide you with additional resources to help you grow your own professional network. You can find mentors in a variety of different ways, starting with your immediate network. For example, a former professor, teacher or coach, an internship manager, or even a family friend who works in a similar role or industry could become your mentor. 

Attending specific industry events as you start in your first job can also be a good way to find someone who could be your mentor. Also, completing a bit of research about mentorship programs is helpful as some companies, schools, or local organizations offer formal mentorship matching programs. 

Developing a Growth Mindset 

Having a growth mindset is a critical skill employers are looking for. A growth mindset is a mindset where you believe you can improve your intelligence through learning new things. In other words, with a growth mindset, you would view challenges and mistakes as opportunities to learn, not as a sign that you failed. Being curious and taking feedback seriously are two ways you can exercise your growth mindset. 

This type of mindset also helps make you more resilient when you face challenges. Job searching, performance reviews, and even career changes present their own challenges independently, but overall can be trying to navigate. Viewing these challenges as opportunities instead of problems you can’t solve will ensure you make gains toward your goals, and ultimately reach your career goals. 

Putting It All Together: Building Your Career Game Plan

To put this all together and set yourself up for success, I recommend setting one or two short-term and one long-term goal. One short-term goal could be starting to build your personal brand by fine-tuning your LinkedIn and other digital profiles. Another idea is to set a short-term goal around networking or joining relevant professional organizations. Think about potential mentorship opportunities as well. 

Your long-term goal might be centered around building skills and growing into a bigger role at the company where you land your first job. To get there, identify at least one skill to upskill, and set a target for when you’d complete that learning process. Evaluate what is working every three months or so, and tweak your actions accordingly. 

Careers now aren’t typically linear like they used to be, and that’s ok. Being flexible and adapting to the changing environment and adjusting your plans accordingly will help you navigate any changes or uncertainties that are inevitable over time. In addition, having both short-term and long-term goals is helpful for interviews, as most employers will ask about career goals. 

Be Confident but Realistic 

As a new career professional, taking some time to plan ahead is critical to your success. While career growth is a process that takes time, starting now, at the beginning of your career, will put you in the best position possible. 

Remind yourself it’s ok to take it one step at a time. The great thing about a plan you create is that you can adjust it as needed based on new information. Focusing on just one thing a day, especially when getting the hang of being a working professional, is better than nothing. It may be you set one new goal, or you begin your upskilling course. It could even be messaging a potential mentor. Just one action will establish forward momentum, and that is all you need. 

With a positive mindset, tools and a plan, landing your first job is only just the beginning of what’s possible.