4 Common career mistakes to avoid

In today's world of uncertainties,  choosing a career can weigh us down. First,because career is miscalculated as having a paid employment and therfore not much is done about nurturing it well. Many people become dissatisfied in life after spending many years on a job.

Too much mistakes are made by job seekers and indeed people on a job. The following mistakes come readily to mind. Read through and see if you can identify with this.Taking the job just because it pays higher than you had planned to earn.  This appear tempting but this may be the trap that cages your career forever. Most jobs that offer higher pay will require higher commitments.  If you are at a job that you don't find fascinating or with skills that's matching, you may become like the old horse of yesteryears that found itself on a repeatitive chore,  walking back and forth for years.  And after its release, it did nothing meaningful but to walk in the same old fashion. Commitments are indeed required from all workforce but even then,  your commitment is infectious when it is backed by tissues of thrills and passion. Work for the work that helps you to make the best impact rather than the one that offers the larger pay. Of course, it is possible to find that job that helps your career grow, which also doubles for you in comfortable and exciting remuneration!  It only takes your ability to discern that out.

Expecting the Human Resources Department to set your career growth.  This is one big mistake you will make if you are not careful as an employee. Many employees remain fixed in one academic or professional stage throughout their work life . On a visit to a certain school on inspection,  I realised a number of the teachers got their teaching certificates over 30years ago. Nothing was added to it. I imagined what would happen if they lost their jobs. How they would fit into the teaching profession outside their present domain where they added nothing to their skills. This is a less satisfying life and it was no wonder I found most of the teachers particularly unenthusiastic about their work. They haven't really contributed much to learning outcomes in children under their care. Lack of plan for their career has done its magic on them... they may never recover from this if they don't seek a way out of this frustration.

  Remaining on a job when you find that your relevance is suspect.  Many times employers make some employee redundant on a job, with intention to frustrate them out. When you see this sign, its time to move.  Never remain on the job just because you want to leave an impression in the minds of others that you have an 8 to 5 job. The earlier you begin to develop skills that you can use if your job fails, the better for you. From time to time, appraise your work. Be observant enough to know when you are being tolerated on your job. If you are, its not likely you will rise to the top in such an organization because you will be stunted beyond all imagination.

  Avoid office politics.  You may have heard about this many times. This is it. Office politics is dirty.  Everyone wants to be close to management,  providing gossips and information to bosses who will lean so low to use these as basis for appraisals.  Office politics make the less careful employee loose focus as hhe spends most of his energy trying to impress a boss who has some distorted information about him.

Whilst you cannot avoid this totally, do all you can to ensure you work at your work. That is why you are paid. Develop skills which you can use on another job. Do not be that man who looses his job and say " what else am I fit for?". Just grow your career. Grow your skills. Take on new trainings and skills. And you will be better off with this. don't spend your energy on the wrong reason,  as you haven't come to work because you want to 'fight for shirt'.

Let us know what you feel about these tips