5 Secrets for Making your Career THRIVE in 2025

For graduates and professionals, here's my top tips for career success.

YOU are the only person who can make your career dreams come true!

It's a message I consistently try to get across to my clients - young adults, graduates and professionals looking to start, advance or change their career trajectory.

These are easy actions to take, so keep them in mind as you think about where you want to be in your career at the end of 2025!

Tip #1 - Take responsibility for YOUR career

It's not up to your parents to find a career for you.

It's not up to your employer to build a path to promotion for you.

It's not up to the job market to make your ideal job available to you.

So, take charge of your career:

- do your research to find out what roles are available (in your company and outside)

- ask for opportunities to build your skills at work

- maintain a network of supporters who will keep you confident and motivated

- look for projects, committees, events etc that you can contribute to, to support your learning

- find a mentor in the workplace, and seek feedback and professional development opportunities

Tip #2 - Remain curious

There is NEVER a point in your career at which you can say that you know it all and there's nothing more to know - there is ALWAYS something new to learn, and it's this curiousity that ensures you stay up to date and in touch with your career field.

Employers want employees that are keen to learn, able to adapt to new challenges and willing to challenge the way things are done - by remaining curious, you avoid stagnating.

And it's not just learning new technical skills or emerging trends in your career field - think about your soft skills too. Could you improve your negotiating skills? How to ask for a pay rise? Ways to handle difficult clients or colleagues?

Tip #3 - Aim for consistency

"Consistency" might sound boring, but it's key in sustaining a continual progression and evolution of your career.

What I mean by consistency is that it's important to always set goals for yourself in your career, not just work hard out to get a particular role and then sit back and cruise for a few years - even within this new role, you can be consistent in seeking feedback, recording your achievements in your CV, looking for new skills/knowledge to acquire, continuously improving your work processes and finding ways to grow your responsibilities over time, so that you are positioned for the NEXT role/promotion.

"Small disciplines repeated with consistency every day lead to great achievements gained slowly over time." – John C. Maxwell

Tip #4 - Make sure you're not a 'work martyr'

A work martyr is someone who thinks they are indispensable - they truly believe that if they aren't in the role, the company will fall to pieces. So they take on unrealistic workloads, don't ask for help and adopt the attitude that everyone else is incompetent so they have to be there to fix ALL the issues.

It's a recipe for resentment and burnout - you will make yourself a sucker for anyone who wants to pass work onto you, and the moment you leave, you will be replaced in a heartbeat.

Instead, be clear about your role responsibilities and if you're asked to take on more, be clear on the reasons for this and ensure you have the skills to do them. Get the changes to your responsibility list in writing and then use this list (along with your achievements) to negotiate your next pay rise!

Be humble enough to know you can be replaced, but wise enough to know that there is nobody else like you.

Tip #5 - Embrace the 80/20 rule

Also known as the Pareto Principle, it's the idea that 80% of results come from just 20% of the effort. It can help you decide how to direct your efforts, and plan your time, at work.

But here's another way I use the 80/20 rule in career:

You might be at University and finding a couple of your papers this year aren't exciting, and you have to push yourself to attend the lectures, and you invariably submit your assignments at the last minute. Should you give up Uni? Well if the vast majority of your papers (about 80%) are engaging you and you want to do the learning, then keep going. It might mean taking more care with your paper selection next year, but it doesn't mean you should quit.

The same goes for work - you might find there are some responsibilities in your role that are tedious, boring or seem pointless, but if it's only 20% of your job, then don't look for another role - is there a way to streamline or automate these tasks, or get them done first thing in the morning when you are energetic and caffeinated? It's an continuous improvement opportunity, not a reason to throw your toys out of the cot.

Remember - You are CEO of YOUR career

"The only person you are destined to become is to the person YOU decide to be." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

If you need help exploring your career options, getting ready for your next move, or rethinking your career pathway, that's where I can help you - Look at my packages here.

I'm Tracey Beard, the Chief Encouragement Officer (CEO) at Career Matters. I'm passionate about helping students, young adults, graduates and professionals to build a fulfilling career path. I work with clients across NZ.

To get in touch, call/text/WhatsApp me on 021-843537, or email me at tracey@careermatters.co.nz