Some grow up in a family where setting goals is a natural part of kids’ lives from their early age, while other parents let their kids discover the way of planning their life and tasks on their own. One method may work as good as the other.

We bring many habits and beliefs from our childhood, but it would be a mistake to believe that only those beliefs influence us, even at later stages in our lives. There are good practices we can learn from women who already made it.
Let’s see a couple of examples:

Plan your life as you would plan a project in your work.

When you are working on a project in your job, you need to plan resources, assess risks, consider limitations and make sure the project is going to deliver the benefits you or your stakeholders expect.

• Why would you accept anything less?
• Why would you care any less when it comes to your life?

If you think about your career as a journey from the “Where have you been” through the “Where you are at the moment” on your way to the “Where you should be”, you are going to focus on what positions, tasks, experiences and skills take you there. And that is precisely the focus you need.

Fear not to say no

Over your lifetime many opportunities will come your way. Some will look particularly great, while others you need to let go.

You heard the word “no” many times in your life but when it comes to saying it to someone else, especially to a person who may be able to influence how your career develops, saying no might not be the most natural thing to do. We are all inclined to say yes now and then; when we should say no.

Think about it that way, every time you say yes when you should say no, you take time and opportunity away from yourself. Every time you say no you create space for something that works for you better.

Work with mentors

Setting goals is easy when you have a clear idea of what you want and a sense of purpose, but it becomes slightly fuzzy when you are not sure what direction to take. If you are in this situation right now, just know that you are not alone. Many people, at some point in their lives, will reach a turning point when they realise they have to change their ways.

Our parents or grandparents had probably worked for the same company for decades, while changes these days are constant in the majority of business sectors; and professionals need to adopt new practices more often than not. Whenever a change, affecting your career progress happens, it also creates an opportunity to think about your life overall.

In the middle of changes and the daily grind, your ability to see the bigger picture is different, and it is advised that you find a mentor who either had a similar situation in her or his life or has already achieved what you want to accomplish.