APU Careers Careers & Learning

Career Development: Find Your Specialty

By J. Stasiw
Online Career Tips Editor

At some point or another, you probably put “guru” or “expert” in your job description. It’s really hard to qualify a claim like this. Just because you know the basics for operating something, it doesn’t ensure your status as an expert. In order to get to “Zeus” status among your peers, you need to stay on top of trends and current news. Also, it’s good to be specialized in one or two areas, not several.

Multitasking works for a minority of people. Being able to perform a multitude of tasks is nice because it creates job security, but it isn’t screaming for a promotion or a specified path of growth. Instead of being the catch-all for the department, narrow your focus down into what speaks to you and where you really shine.

Grow these specialties by performing both routine and out-of-the-box tasks for your stakeholders every day. With time, you will have created successful habits that can make you more marketable. Once you’ve established these habits, don’t get complacent. You could potentially start to develop the bad habit of leaning on your current skill set instead of trying to push it to the next level. What you need to keep in mind is to go outside your work sphere and out into the marketplace. Take your skills virtually abroad.

Keep yourself alerted to things happening in your specialty “neck of the woods” by reading industry blogs and RSS feeds, and by subscribing to influencers on social media. When products and services are introduced or retired, you’ll want to know about them. To really up your game, you can use that insight to create innovative game plans that integrate these new developments or find ways to phase them out if they’re potentially harmful.

Don’t get left behind. Stay on top of your game by staying in the know in your field.  The best way to become an industry expert is by living and breathing it in. Try to make it a bigger part of your life than the typical 9-5 schedule.

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