8 Mistakes

that may
destroy your
career

by
Miliind Harrdas
Hi, I am Miliind Harrdas
I help my corporate clients build big brands by using
Strategic Creativity.
I see countless corporate professionals feeling stagnated
in their careers, struggling to reach I see countless
professionals daily going for the job they hate. Climbing
up a career ladder that doesn't bring fulfillment is a huge
struggle. Every promotion or higher responsibility
multiplies their work pressure and stress. They feel stuck.
Does this resonate with you?
If yes, then you need creativity.

Creativity can help you work out a 'Strategic Creative

Framework' to identify the right career niche, rewire your
brain, get unstuck, create career opportunities through
personal branding and fast-track your career growth
doing what you love.

Click the link below and

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1. Not knowing
your niche
Every person has something unique to offer to the world. It’s a sweet
spot that lies at the intersection of your value, passion, strength and
the problem that the people are struggling to solve. It’s your calling.
Finding the right career niche requires time, patience and dedication.
Taking the help of a career mentor in finding a niche that is right for
you can be of enormous help.
But most people don’t take that trouble. They are too busy climbing
their career ladder. It’s pretty tragic that after many years they realize
they have chosen the wrong ladder. Meanwhile, they end up paying a
heavy price because of stress, stagnation and job dissatisfaction.

When you find a career niche

that is a good fit for you, you
are more likely to be engaged,
motivated and fulfilled
in your work.
1. Not knowing
your niche
You can arrive at your niche
by applying the
5P MODEL Passion
by answering the
question for each What are the
of the ‘P.’ areas I am
passionate
Problem about?

Can my passion
solve a big problem
the organization is Persona
grappling with?

Whose problem
will I be able
Potential to solve?

Is the market
hungry enough
to find the
solution to its
problem? Payment
Will the potential
employer be
willing to
pay me?
2. Not having clear
career goals
I often hear people say, “If I continue to perform
sincerely, my organization is bound to take care of
my career growth.”
If you don’t take charge of your career, others will.
And when others do it, it may not be in your best
interest.
Setting career goals is the first and most crucial step
in taking charge of your career.
Career goals are the aspirations that you have set for
your professional life. They give you a sense of
purpose besides a constant source of motivation.
2. Not having clear
career goals

Have your goals clearly written down. Having written goals

is like placing an order with the universe.
As per the research findings, people are 42% more likely to achieve their
goals if they write them down. Only 3% of the adults have written goals.
This 3% is literally ruling the world.
Attach specific timelines to your goals. Having clear timelines pushes
you to take decisive steps toward your goals and helps you prioritize
your work.
Break down your long-term goals into short-term goals and a series of
activities. Achieving short-term goals will make you feel good, boost
your self-esteem and encourage you to work towards long-term goals.
Have an unwavering belief that whatever goals you write down will
certainly happen. So, don’t aim small. Aim for something big.
What stops people from aiming for audacious goals is not knowing their
self-worth. So, continue reading about the next career mistake.
3. Not knowing
your self-worth
How do you determine your self-worth?
Is it based on your current job title, your level in the organization, the
salary you are drawing, your educational credential, your years of
experience and others’ opinion about you?
If you determine your self-worth based on the above external
factors, you are most likely undervaluing yourself.
You end up not negotiating for better pay and benefits when you
undervalue yourself. Instead, you will settle for less pay and a less
desirable job offer than you truly deserve. Besides, it can negatively
impact your confidence.
3. Not knowing
your self-worth

Not having a good sense of self-worth can severely affect your

career progress.
Undervaluing ourselves is the major root cause of why people are
unable to utilize their fullest potential and are not able to achieve
their biggest dreams.
To know the real worth, you need to shift your focus to internal
factors. Here are a couple of exercises that will dramatically change
the way you value yourself

1 2
Start focusing on your
strengths. Do self-reflection Reflect on the past
and start making a list. and make a list of
Take feedback from accomplishments,
colleagues, superiors, big and small.
vendors, customers,
subordinates, friends
and relatives.

Keep revisiting them. It will make you feel

worthy, valuable, respectable and proud of
yourself at subconscious level.
4. Not managing
perception
about you
Right or wrong, people have a perception about everything. And that
everything includes you. In most cases, the perception that people form
about you by default may not be in your best interest. It can hurt your
career prospect.
Your best chance lies in creating perception by design. It starts with
deciding the perception you want others to form about you and working
towards it.
This is the reason personal branding is so critical to your career success.
4. Not managing
perception about you

Personal branding helps to differentiate you from your peers and

position yourself as an expert in your field. Creating a clear and
consistent image of yourself can make yourself more attractive to
potential employers or clients. Personal branding can also help you
advance more quickly in your career by making you more visible to
decision-makers and opening up new opportunities for
advancement.
Personal branding can also help you to manage your reputation and
to communicate what you have to offer. By building a positive and
professional image, you can increase your chances of getting hired
or promoted, and you can also increase your chances of getting a
raise or a better salary.
Lastly, personal branding can help you to communicate your unique
value proposition to potential employers, clients, and partners. By
highlighting your unique skills and experiences, you can make
yourself stand out in the job market and increase your chances of
success.
5. Not constantly
learning and
upgrading
What the market is willing to pay you is directly proportional to the value
you bring to the table. So the obvious way to jump your earnings is to
become valuable to the organization.
The only way to become valuable to the organization is to keep adding
value to yourself through constant learning and skills upgrading.
I have seen so many hardworking people wondering why their career is
stagnant. The answer is that they had completely ignored adding value to
themselves.
5. Not constantly
learning and upgrading

One reason people don’t take continuous skill building as their top
priority is a common belief
“My learning and development is my organization’s
responsibility.”
When you leave the responsibility of your skill building to others, you
are effectively giving away the control of career growth to others
because your skill set directly impacts your career growth.

“ Learn to work hard on yourself than

you do on your job. If you work hard
on your job, you can make a living,
but if you work hard on yourself,
you’ll make a fortune.
-Jim Rohn
“
Seek out learning opportunities that are critical not
just for your current role but also for your future roles.
Lastly, embrace creativity and create a huge
competitive advantage for yourself
6. Prioritizing
Money Over
Opportunity
I have seen people jumping from one job to other solely based on money.
It is pretty common with those who haven’t taken the trouble of
If money is your sole criteria for making repeated career shifts, it may
appear to be paying you a dividend in the short run. But in the long run,
it may take you to roles where your skillsets don’t match. In addition, it
takes a heavy toll on happiness, commitment and enthusiasm. So you
will agree that getting stuck in the job you hate is the last thing you
would want in your career journey.
6. Prioritizing Money
over opportunity

The better approach is to focus on opportunities. Taking

opportunity-based decisions, in the long run, can be extremely
rewarding. It will fetch you money, career growth and fulfillment. But
to consistently make opportunity-based decisions, one needs to do
strategic career planning.
Strategic career planning requires time, commitment and a touch of
creativity. However, once you have a strategic roadmap, you are
clear about the direction you want to move and all the other
directions you would want to AVOID.
Always remember, your career is a marathon, not a sprint.
7. Not focusing on
networking
Networking offers an excellent opportunity for career advancement.
A strong network is like a support system within and outside your
organization that will help you to stay updated with the information,
get advice from experienced professionals, learn about job
opportunities and help to increase visibility and credibility.
7. Not focusing on
Networking

Here are a few tips that will help you to get the most out of networking:

Make it a top priority

I have seen many people begin networking when they start looking
for a new job. Such a reactive networking approach never works.
When you make it your top priority, you will consciously begin to
putting consistent efforts every day and, over a period of time build a
massive network

Do it strategically
Being strategic in your approach will avoid ad hoc, sporadic and
reactive approaches and help you get the most out of your
networking efforts. A strategic approach will help you to connect
with the right people, do your homework and make a concrete plan
to strengthen your relationship.

Give.Give.Give
Your contacts or connections are not your networks. It is built on
relationships and mutual benefits. To leverage your network, you first
need to invest in it. So, before you ask, “What can I get from my
network?”, ask, “What can I give to my network?”. This applies to
online as well as physical networking
8. Not moving
out of
comfort zone
We, human beings, are wired to stay within our comfort zone. Its purpose
is to keep us safe from danger.
But the problem with the comfort zone is that it can hamper your career
growth.
Do you feel stagnated in your career? Do you believe you can move to a
higher level but are reluctant to take up new roles and responsibilities? If
so, there is a chance that you are stuck in your comfort zone.
8. Not moving out of
comfort zone

Over the past few decades, the business world has changed
dramatically, where change is constant, fast-paced and
unpredictable. This ever-changing business canvas is often
described as VUCA, which stands for Volatile, Uncertain, Complex
and Ambiguous.
In such a fast-paced VUCA world, moving out of the comfort zone is
no longer a matter of choice. Instead, it has become a necessity.
So, your reluctance to move out of your comfort zone may seriously
hamper your career growth prospects. Worst still, you stand a high
risk of getting labeled as ‘dead-wood.’
Discomfort with uncertainty and fear of failure are two reasons
people cannot move out of their comfort zone.
Here is a little-known secret to developing comfort with ambiguity –
Master the creativity.
The brain of creative people is wired differently. In my international
bestseller book, Ideas on Demand, I make readers aware of ‘blocks
of creativity’ and offer them techniques and exercises to remove
them. As you start removing your creativity blocks, your brain will
begin to rewire. It will not only make you creative but build 10x
Mindset that can do wonders to your career.
In addition, in the final section of my book, “Comfort Zone to 10x
Zone”, you will learn step-by-step plan of moving out of your
comfort zone.