7 Examples of Professional Goals 2021

This article is about examples of Professional Goals. Professional goals are goals set with the aim of improving your career and increasing your skills, competencies, and capabilities in the workplace. Setting professional development goals is a very essential part of advancing your career.  Your aims at your workplace could be to be more productive at work or become the CEO of a corporation or get a promotion, the only way to get there is by setting actionable goals you can work on every day.  

 Setting professional goals means taking steps towards improving any aspect of work that’s relevant and specific to you as well as building on professional knowledge, skills and effective working practices. They are the actionable steps you need to take to grow in your career of choice.

There are various development goals you can set to achieve success in your workplace, and the exact goals you set should be tailored based on your needs, skills and unique aspirations in terms of career. Professional goals could be learning new skills, obtaining new degrees or certifications, getting more experience in a certain area, moving up in your workplace, and aiming for any other aspirations related to advancing your career.

Setting professional goals is very important as it allows you to identify your long-term aspirations and begin to take action in reaching those aspirations, provides a steady stream of motivation and boost your productivity in the workplace and help you hone existing workplace skills which can ultimately make you a better employee and even more successful in your career.

However, when setting these goals it is important to take a look at your most recent performance evaluation and see what your manager or employer recommended you improve upon, decide what your end goal is, use the SMART goal method (that is, make sure your goals are specific, measureable, attainable, relevant, and time bound), take each larger goal you set and break it down into tasks you can complete each day or week to work towards that goal and regularly review your progress.

While goals are meant to be set based on your personal aims and needs, here are examples of professional goals to help you create yours.

Obtain a new Professional Certification or Degree

A very good professional goal that would help in the progression of your career is earning a professional certificate or degree. Some employers offer professional development programs to invest in the growth of their employees and also allow them an opportunity to continue to learn industry-related skills.

Advancement in your level of education improves your current skills and can help you in the future if/when you want to apply for a promotion or a change in careers. There are a variety of programs available in different industries, and many institutions offer evening courses to accommodate work schedules.

Obtaining a new professional certificate or degree can be both a short-term goal and a long-term goal, depending on the level of education you are looking to acquire. For instance, You could set a short-term goal of completing a four-hour online class or set a longer-term goal of obtaining a master’s degree.

Build and Improve Professional Relationships

Working efficiently on a team shows your supervisor that they can depend on you. This can only happen when you have a good relationship with your colleagues, after all, team cohesion relies on mature working relationships, as people typically work better together if there is a personal element to their relationship.

Since you spend a lot of time with your colleagues, having a positive professional relationships with them is very important as it can lay the foundation for your ultimate success. This is because each person’s role in your organization can either directly or indirectly affect your performance. Hence, it is important for you to nourish these working relationships so you can work in harmony with others.

You could improve your professional relationships by helping other members of the team whenever you can, and engaging  in open and honest communication with your colleagues.  Doing these will help you build trust and strengthen your relationship with the people at work, which will make your professional life much more enjoyable.

Learn about Other Departments

Learning and making research on other departments is a short term professional goal which will help you contribute more meaningfully to the company. How so?  Well, when you learn about how your role affects other different departments, you can alter work habits to make another division function smoother. So, you could make one of your career development goals to schedule a few hours observing each department that works with your team.

Grow your professional network

People do business with other people they know and trust. And the truth is, companies or organizations don’t make business decisions, people do. Improving networking skills increases your chances of improving your business-related knowledge and building a stronger professional network.  Having a strong professional network can help you advance in your career in ways that you would not be able to do alone.

Not only can networking lead to connections with people who can help you enhance your expertise and knowledge, it can also help you stay on top of potential opportunities for advancement in your career.

You can begin networking by talking to new coworkers or speaking with colleagues in other departments. Another way to network is by attending professional networking events where you meet new people with similar interests. 

Apply for a promotion within your organization.

Applying for a promotion can either be a short-term or long-term goal and can also be a good way to challenge yourself. You can Start by first identifying what the next role in your career progression is and as well as assess your qualifications. Applying for a promotion can be a short term professional goal If you closely meet the requirements and only need to demonstrate additional skills like leadership. However, it can also be a long term goal If you find that you need to gain additional skills, education or experience.

Seeking a position that comes with more responsibility could help you gain new skills and continue to enhance your career. When you are ready for a promotion, make a list of projects you have completed to discuss with your manager and their impact on the business. You could also mention any skills you are excited to learn, such as leading a team.

Improve Performance Metrics

Performance Metrics is the process of collecting, analyzing and/or reporting information regarding the performance of an individual, group, organization, system or component. Performance metrics are data collected to measure behavior and activities in relation to overall performance. Increasing your performance metrics at work can prove how efficient you are.

Examples of metrics to track include how you help to decrease the company’s overall costs and how frequently your delivery meets up with or does not exceed deadlines. You can set both short- and long-term goals to work toward. Consider keeping track of your performance metrics to see how you improve over the year.

You can also include positive metrics on your resume, as supportive material to supplement a request for a raise or promotion or highlight them in a job interview.

Improving Time Management Skills

One can easily lose track of time when working on projects. Managing time effectively is a very important skill needed to stand out in one’s work which is why it is important to improve one’s time management skills. 

Time is everything,hence, you have to make everything count. If you don’t make time to accomplish your goals, then there will be no goal accomplishment. But it’s not only about making time for more strategic goals; it’s about the ability to be more productive at your work.

Throughout your professional career, you will constantly be faced with deadlines and competing tasks that will need your attention every day. 

It may however seem impossible to be able to get everything accomplished as your workload increases. It is in these instances that your ability to manage your time will be tested. 

Having effective time management skills will help increase your productivity and efficiency, decrease your stress, and  allow you to have more time to dedicate to other endeavors. Basically, effective time management helps to be more productive at your work. 

If you feel like time management is an issue for you, make sure that you’re keeping track of how you spend your time. For instance, you could schedule a specific amount of time for every item on your to-do list and avoid any form of interruptions during these times. This will help you to be more efficient, and once you get the hang of working this way, it will become a second nature.

There is still time enough to come up with professional goals, hopefully this list inspires you to make a positive change in your life. Even if you don’t really know what you want for your future, making goals will help you feel like you’re making progress in some way. However, if you know what you want to go for, you don’t need to wait for the start of a new year before you start working towards your goals. Start today on just one thing that you feel like you can really focus on.

It is also important to remember that your goals may change over time, and re-evaluating and adjusting them is a big part of ultimately being successful. Personal growth doesn’t happen in one big surge of effort.