10 Ways to Sabotage Your Own Career

RISMEDIA, Jan. 14, 2008–Despite differences like job title, occupation, skill level and salary, all workers have something in common: the fear of getting fired. While some self-destructive habits seem like common sense, John McKee, author of Career Wisdom, says reasonable thinking is sometimes forgotten when employees try to learn new habits, styles and techniques in his or her line of business.

To avoid your own career self-destruction, McKee suggests avoiding these 10 habits:

1. Not having a life plan-All very successful people have a clear life plan, whether memorized or actually written down.

2. Not keeping your skill set current-The business landscape is ever-changing and there is more demand for jobs than supply. Not staying on par with colleagues and those vying for your job will be a deathtrap.

3. Failing to deliver results-Winners in business know that it’s all about accountability. Those who harbor a sense of entitlement for simply having put forth effort, irrespective of the results of those efforts, are guaranteed to fall by the wayside.

4. Confusing efficiency with effectiveness-Those who think that communicating via e-mail replaces the need to actually talk with people around them fail to recognize the importance of personally connecting with others in today’s highly automated and technological environment.

5. Believing you are irreplaceable-As soon as you convince yourself that you and only you can do the job “right,” your star will surely start to fall.

6. Knowing all the answers-The old adage remains true: Knowledge is power. Professing to know it all can readily stagnate a career.

7. Surrounding yourself with “brown-nosers”-Serial “labor losers” like having people tell them how smart they are, whether or not it’s true. Successful managers and other professionals accept and encourage intelligence and creativity in others.

8. Forgetting to give credit to others-Labor losers inappropriately take full credit for positive events despite the help or input received by others. Winners give credit where credit is due.

9. Failing to self-promote-Bragging is one thing, but letting colleagues know of your success through case studies, promotion bulletins or other such tools is another.

10. Losing perspective-Intuitive business people recognize that, despite their best attempts to do everything right, sometimes they approach roadblocks and seek the advice and perspective of a respected friend, colleague or even a business coach.

–Rachel Zupek

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