No question about it, it’s easy for habits to form over a period of time where you automatically react without much thought. With the new year right around the corner, it’s the perfect time to think about habits that could be delaying a promotion or interfering with developing a better relationship with your boss.
Habits definitely can affect your career path at work even though you may have had good performance reviews and worked steadily for years.
What habits could be sabotaging your career? Employees often engage in career-damaging habits such as poor time management, holding grudges against coworkers and not taking the time to ask questions.
Here’s an example of how a habit can affect your relationship with your boss. Do you leave every meeting with your boss with a clear understanding of what’s being asked of you? The habit of assuming you know — instead of clarifying what is expected of you — can set you up for failure.
In order to break a habit, you must recognize those behaviors that could be holding you back, and this requires some self-reflection. Pay attention to cues around you. If you have expressed a desire to take on more responsibility and you keep getting passed over for projects, it could be a sign that a habit is blocking your growth. Habits such as rigid thinking or the tendency to be an independent contributor instead of a team participant, also can hold you back.
This is a great time to start thinking about your career goals for 2014 and the habits that could be preventing you from reaching them.
Here’s the good news: You can change your habits, and when you start changing habits that are holding you back, your career opportunities are likely to change as well.
Do you have workplace habits you could stand to work on?
