Work/Life balance matters.

I remember 'Graeme Edwards' quote “It’s not the plan that is important, it’s the planning.”

I have been thinking a lot about career growth lately, and as a Team Lead or better called as a Team player, have been generally concerned with making sure there are growth opportunities, regardless of the level or the point in the career.

This often put me in the place of silence. Because, I knew from where I started my career (my close buddies know about this and me) and how I travelled, the pain, the fire, the lonely roads(though many ppl to recall but only a few like me walked jobless) but how I am now and where I am now everything gives me the chance to ask me a lot of "????'s'".

As a matter of fact, for most of my career, I never had anyone watching out for me of guide me. For the first part of my career, I don’t even think much about my long-term career because of the darkness (which I was travelling). It just happen into new opportunities that taught me new skills and kept me growing everyday. But there was no plan, no goal other than 'To be asked to work diligently'.

The point in the bigger picture, no one is going to look after your career for you, but you.

I heard that I am not scoring but I knew my direction is right on track. I dream a lot that dream gave me the courage to face the world. When I stop, turn left and right 'NO' there was no one walking with me but my mumma standing there to watch me with tears filled eyes to see her baby taste the 'Success'.

After I was done, I realized that most of what I put down for a five-year plan could be done in a year. But it took me write down the notes and see to make it happen. This was also a good tool for working with my boss/manager/godfather (a couple of my motivators Mr.Krishna Prasath.P, Mr.Balaji (VCann), Mr.Ramesh (Shiva Steels)and Mr.Herald J George) to recall to craft training and work opportunities for me to meet my goals. I also made sure that these goals included in life are personal goals as well as career goals. The older I get the more I realize that these are intertwined and success in one space brings success to others. Work/Life balance matters.

In an effort to make this anecdote meaningful to you, I’d like to share the steps and some resources I used to help me prepare my five-year goals.

The Template:

1. Your Name
2. Today’s Date
This is important as you reflect back on this document. This will become a touchstone for your growth and a reminder of who you were as you look back at what was important to you in this point in time.
3. 3–6 Months
* Start small.
* Think about short-term goals that are easily achieved but will also help move you towards the longer-term goals.
* Include some tangible goals.
4. 6–12 Months
* Start thinking bigger here—this is planning for a year out.
* What new skills do you want to learn?
* What new ideas do you want to share with others?
* What changes do you want to make? Put them down here along with the steps needed to take to make them happen.
5. Beyond 12 Months
* Capture specific plans that you know may take more than a year to get to or accomplish. For me, it was to work on Multiple platform.
* Be realistic but not afraid to reach. Visualize success in areas you may have little control over. Don’t be afraid to write down a desired goal that may be a stretch.
6. Longer-term Goals
* This is the area to think out for the next 3–5 years, including life beyond the company or situation you are currently in. For me, I listed “My Business Dreams” as a goal. This reminds me that I want to do this and I need to make certain decisions and changes in order to make it happen.

If I decide at a later time, that I don’t really want to do this, I should remove it off the plan.
7. Opportunities to Explore at Your Company
* List all the training and coaching opportunities relevant and currently available at your company.
* Note relationships that need to be cultivated at your company in order to meet success.

Note: This obviously may not apply if you are an independent consultant. Think about other opportunities that might be available through professional associations and networking instead.
8. Skills to Develop
* Project what skills you need to develop to reach the goals you listed in the first part of this exercise.
* What other skills do you need, besides the ones you have now, to attain your goal?

Since I am a Team Lead or better called as a Team player and this is the area in which I have been growing, I listed things such as Confidence and Effectiveness—along with ideas on how to master these more intangible skills.

Over the last couple of years, I have purposely put myself into situations to gain confidence—especially when giving presentations. Think about starting slow and building on your successes.
In addition, I also listed skills of associated/allied roles that I would like to learn in order to make myself a more well-rounded and effective manager in my company.
9. What I Care About in a Work Environment
* This may seem frivolous or not important to the task at hand, but it serves to remind you of the values you need to share with the company you work for. As you grow or the company changes this can help guide you when you need to make a change.
10. Personal Goals
* Don’t forget the personal goals that you need to weave into your life. It never hurts to write these down as a reminder of work/life balance and of the things that are really important to you as a person.