Aim high. Say yes. Fake it ‘til you make it. Seize the opportunity. Dream big. Go big. Live big. Lean In.
Today’s working women show more promise, enjoy more support, and live in a more culturally aware society than any previous generation. We were raised by feminists who burned bras, fought for our entry into boardrooms, and demanded our right to become lawyers, doctors, and leaders in business.
They taught us to believe we weren’t defined by our backgrounds, outside expectations, or—above all else—our gender.
With their help and guidance, we grew up. We held prestigious summer internships, and graduated college with honors. And then we descended on the professional world ready to seize opportunities and lead fearlessly.
More than any previous generation, we had the highest expectations for our own success and career paths. So high, it turns out, we’re now failing ourselves.
With our extensive education and seemingly inexhaustible stores of passion and drive, you’d think we’d be well-equipped to reach our end goals of a fulfilled career and richer life.
The truth is, today’s career women don’t lack ambition, they lack direction.
And now we’ve gone through a global pandemic that has shifted our world, especially related to work, leaving many of us lacking the tools to see flexibility and adaptability as our best professional assets.
Whether you’re happily still employed, recently laid off, or just looking to pivot your professional journey, I’ve got 10 Power Moves to help you reboot and build your career with purpose, no matter your age or employment status. (P.S.— I also wrote an entire book about how to make Power Moves!)
What Are Power Moves, Anyway?
Before we discuss what Power Moves are, let's talk about what they are not. They are not:
- repetitive behavior, expecting different results
- behavior guided by other people's expectations
- shortcuts to performing the necessary steps to success
Doing any of the above doesn't necessarily mean you won't succeed, but your likelihood of success and personal satisfaction is greatly diminished. The challenge of defining a Power Move is that it is never just one thing—but there is a clear theme. Power Moves are the decisions, actions, and/or behaviors that make it possible for you to have a fulfilling career on your terms.
Quitting your toxic job is definitely a Power Move, just like the decision to put your name in the hat for a promotion is. Starting a network with friends to openly talk about your salary and share new opportunities is a Power Move.
I know this sounds like anything could be a Power Move, but not exactly. Doing things that lead to burnout or criticizing yourself when you mess up a job interview are definitely not Power Moves.
What defines a Power Move is unique to each of us—but each unique career move you make is helping to reinforce the direction you want to take your career. Remember that old adage "it's not a diet, it's a lifestyle change?" Power Moves are a way to approach your career, and making them a regular part of your career toolkit is really akin to a lifestyle change.
How to Make Career Moves That Matter
Your career is a process, with lots of unknowns, so your approach needs to serve as a guide, not an exact playbook. One of the best places to gather insights about what career moves to make is taking a look a your current job. Ask yourself:
- What do I like about my current job?
- What do I dislike about my current job?
- What essential skills to I possess?
- What social capital (the people in your network) do I have?
- Where do I have networking gaps?
- Where do I want to be in my career in the next 1-3-5 years?
The goal with these questions is to gather some career clarity about what you currently have and what you want in the future. Knowing what your vision or North Star is for your career will help you more easily pivot, adapt, build resilience, and cultivate a growth mindset as you make new career moves!
10 Power Career Moves That Can Lead to Massive Results
To help you get started, we're going to share 10 Power Moves that can lead to massive results. Remember, even the small actions are helping you make progress. To stay motivated, track your progress in a work journal, share them with a friend, etc. That ongoing progress will build momentum to stick with these new career moves!
1. Take Control: Prioritize Your Mental, Emotional, and Physical Health
I know you’ve heard this advice before—but have you taken it seriously? The biggest Power Move you can make to rev up all areas of your life is to prioritize your mental, emotional, and physical health. This all comes down to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.
According to this social principle, the most important thing you can do for your success is to first establish your basic needs, like different types of health. After getting your house in order, you can climb up the ladder of fulfillment until you’ve reached self-actualization or your totally full potential.
Make Power Moves by creating simple routines, restorative rituals, and habits into your day that ensure you are taken care of first. According to research, up to 40% of our daily actions are powered by habits—the unconscious actions and routines we’ve developed over time.
Yet our routines aren’t the only thing we need for a balanced life. Most of us spend our days bouncing between tasks. But it’s your rituals—those symbolic actions performed at key moments—that help us move through the day smoothly and can help you cope with extreme emotions and stress.
Maria Popova, founder of Brain Pickings writes, “While routine aims to make the chaos of everyday life more containable and controllable, ritual aims to imbue the mundane with an element of the magical. The structure of routine comforts us, and the specialness of ritual vitalizes us.”
As you prioritize your mental, physical, and emotional health, don’t forget to consider adding or creating some rituals, especially if you’ve experienced unexpected changes. Professor Mike Norton from Harvard Business School adds that rituals can positively affect your wellbeing because “...idiosyncratic rituals can restore our sense of control over our lives. We feel out of control when we experience loss—we didn’t want it to happen, but we couldn’t control it. That is, in and of itself, a very unpleasant feeling, that sense that you’re not in charge of your life. Rituals restore some of that control.”
Power Moves to Try:
- Create (and stick to) a morning routine
- Create a ritual to celebrate a milestone—like revamping your resume finally!
- Take a 20-minute power walk at lunch each day
2. Manage Your Inner Critic and Negative Self-Talk
Following the technique of setting yourself up for future success, an important Power Move to master early on is managing your inner critic and negative self-talk. By learning to recognize, address, and prevent this type of language, you can avoid common stumbling blocks that are sure to crop up in times of anxiety and most especially, success.
Negative self-talk is especially prevalent among high-achievers because many of us use that to motivate ourselves. However, having an inner critic as your main motivator is a short-term strategy and usually leaves you spiraling downward with shame and self-doubt.
Self-doubt then affects your confidence, which affects your performance. Basically, you become a self-fulfilling prophecy of failure. The key? Learning how to silence (or at least work with and not against) your inner critic by observing your patterns and re-positioning your inner critic as a coach or therapist instead.
Management of your personal narrative is essential when you are making Power Moves and shaking things up in your day-to-day work routine. Make sure the story you tell yourself (about yourself) is kind, thoughtful, and most of all, as reflective of your success as you would like the outside world to see you. Taking the reins on your personal critic and imposter is a Power Move of its own!
Power Moves to Try:
- Create a self-love mantra that you repeat it 3x a day
- Journal and write out the conversation with your inner critic
- Give your inner critic a name
- See if you can just be a bit kinder with the words you use to describe yourself
3. Know Your Wants, Needs, and Strengths
Plenty of professionals out there wander from job to job, hoping to gain skills and enough experience that will “put them ahead.” A key Power Move that very few people invest their limited attention to is clearly defining their wants, needs, and strengths. I experienced this all the time when I was a recruiter and would ask candidates why they were interested in a specific role. Knowing what you want and how your skills align with an organization or add value to a team can trump years of experience that another candidate might have.
If you’re still working for a company and want to make sure you’re providing value, go to your boss and ask, “How can I be involved in the initiatives that save or help the company right now?” Run toward the challenges.
If you were laid off and you’re on a job search with some time for self-reflection, take it! Some questions to ask yourself include, “Why did you enjoy working with this type of client or company?” “What do you really need to be happy and fulfilled at work?” “What projects leave you feeling energized vs. drained?” “How was I invaluable to my team?” “What are my must-haves and deal-breakers in my next role?” “What do I need most today?”
Spending valuable time to answer these questions about yourself will not only help you better understand what you’re working toward, but it will also help others help you.
And if your answer is that you need a job ASAP, you can still do the self-reflection exercises and work toward a job that aligns with your career ideals—AFTER you first go where there is job demand. By going where there is demand right now, you can land a new job and use that to take care of yourself financially (and mentally) first while you work toward your bigger job search goals and wants in the future.
Power Moves to Try
- Take time to answer self-reflection questions
- Identify evidence that supports a strength (e.g., an example of the impact your strengths made at work or in your life)
4. Go on a Listening Tour (If You Need)
Did I make it sound too easy to figure out all of the answers to your life’s questions in one go? Many successful women (including myself!) don’t come up with their wants, needs, and strengths all on their own.
If you need a little inspiration, go on a listening tour, and put all of your preconceived ideas about success at the door. A listening tour allows you to enlist the help of other people who know you/have worked with you before and ask them what they think your strengths are. You can also use that time to share the skills you enjoy most and ask them what roles or individuals it makes them think of. The goal is to generate ideas and...LISTEN.
Another route is using informational interviews. Seek out successful women and professionals that have worked in industries you find interesting, projects you admire, or seem to know all of those cool people you follow on the ‘gram.
Make a Power Move by reaching out and asking for a bit of their time to listen and learn about how and why they do the work they do. I used informational interviews to learn the ins and outs of recruiting when I was an administrative assistant and leveraged those learnings into a new job and industry. While it can take time to develop new relationships or reach out with cold emails, it’s necessary to grow. Plus, you never know what type of wisdom, introductions, or opportunities you will gain!
Power Moves to Try
- Create a list of 5 people you admire and reach out for informational interviews
- Create a list of 5 companies you want to learn more about and talk to people who work there
- Make a list of your career must-haves (needs), nice-to-haves (wants), and deal-breakers
5. Abandon the Myth of the Dream Job
There. I said it. There is no such thing as a Dream Job. In a study from 2017, researchers from Stanford University found the myth of the dream job is closely aligned with the myth that human beings have “fixed” passions and that once we “find our passion” and apply it to work, we will be fulfilled.
This philosophy suggests that, at a certain point, we stop developing areas of interest and that we won’t need to expand and grow. According to the Stanford study: “Urging people to find their passion may lead them to put all their eggs in one basket and then drop that basket when it becomes difficult to carry.”
You know what is dreamy? Going to work each day feeling excited, motivated, and fulfilled. You can create this environment for yourself by setting your own clear expectations, boundaries and personal goals—not by relying on a job to fulfill your dreams and affirm your desires. Make a Power Move and create a list today of all of the ways you can define success for yourself. What does your dream job look like now?
Power Moves to Try:
- Shift your thinking from what you think work “should look like” to defining how work should best work for you
- Develop a growth mindset
- Determine and write down your career beliefs
6. Get Social With It
Just like asking questions and going on your own listening tour, one of the most rewarding Power Moves you can make is creating a meaningful social network to rely on to inspire and inform you.
In addition to creating personal and professional connections, regularly networking and investing energy in building relationships is an important part of creating a positive reputation and rapport for work referrals, professional questions, and leadership opportunities. In addition to intentionally building your social network, have a little fun with it, too!
Power Moves to Try:
- Set up a virtual or in-person networking event
- Attend virtual networking events, fitness classes, or other types of socializing
- Find (or become) a professional mentor
- If you’re job searching, find a job search accountability partner
7. Become a Goal-Getter
This Power Move feels a bit more straightforward, but it’s still important to be strategic! Become a goal-getter by not only setting goals for yourself but by also setting them with values-based intention. See how that repetitive theme of getting clear with yourself first builds into continued growth?
If you have a boss, align your personal and professional goals with your manager so that they tie into company goals and amplify the overall outcome. Another thing you’ll want to know is when and how you’ll be evaluated. What are relevant KPIs? It’s critical to have clear expectations about what comprises success in your role. Instead of adding an assignment to your boss’s already full plate, go to them with a general outline—including stretch goals—and work with your boss to come up with a concrete yet flexible plan.
If you’re your own boss or looking for your next opportunity, break your goals into achievable, tangible actions around your job search, financial outcomes, and things that are relevant and valuable to your work. I’m a big fan of creating SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely) goals, checking in with them each week, and reflecting on why you are or are not accomplishing that goal. It’s okay for your goals to be flexible but not too easy.
Power Moves to Try:
- Dedicate one hour a week to specific career development activities
- Set SMART goals and share them with a friend you trust
- Recognize and label any triggers that bring on impostor syndrome, comparison, or your inner critic that stop you from pursuing your goal
8. Get Curious, Start Learning
One thing that no person can teach you is how to get curious about your life. And one constant we know about the workplace? It will change. Shake things up in your day-to-day by learning something new. Want to learn how to design that social media graphic you’re always waiting on from the design team? Interested in getting into the brew-your-own-beer scene?
No matter what it is, getting active by learning something new is a Power Move all of its own. Not only does it stimulate your brain and creativity, but it also helps you build confidence, grow more efficient in a hobby, and definitely gives you something to talk about while you’re out there listening and networking with others!
A commitment to career improvement is one of the best ways to open the door of opportunity because it can help enhance existing strengths and/or develop new ones. However, it never happens on its own. Even though it takes effort and time you probably don’t think you have, there are more career improvement options than ever to fit your budget, learning style, and career stage.
Power Moves to Try:
- Enroll in online classes, listen to an educational podcast, or read a book
- Enroll in MOCs and free university classes
- Watch YouTube videos, webinars, and tutorials offered by software companies
9. Gain Influence
A Power Move that I practice again and again is advocating for myself and for my team at Career Contessa. By becoming a better listener (and asking those questions we mentioned above), you can build meaningful moments that help you set boundaries while simultaneously gaining influence. You can also gain influence by being the go-to subject matter expert on a specific item at work. Don’t be shy about sharing your ideas, raising your hand, and following-up with the people who have the ability to make decisions about your future career moves.
Gaining influence at work relies on developing incredible communication and interpersonal skills. Err on the side of over-communicating with your boss so every Monday she knows what you’re working on for the week and every Friday she gets a recap of what you’ve accomplished.
This move involves a mindset shift—think of how to earn respect and admiration from others by avoiding weak language, supporting the work of other leaders and essentially, treating others how you would like to be treated. The golden Power Move is learning graciousness as you grow and build your career to the next level.
Power Moves to Try:
- Support your colleagues when they share ideas by listening and asking questions
- Become an expert on something that matters to your boss—and then share it often
- Send weekly work updates to your boss
10. Embrace the Power of Progress Over Perfection
At the end of the day, no success takes place overnight. If you’re the kind of mover and shaker that wants to pivot and reboot on the regular, remember to be patient as you’re building your career of purpose, and also to just get going.
Perfection can be the enemy of success when you spend too much time deliberating, adjusting, contemplating and really, doing everything you can to avoid moving forward. Don’t mistake motion for action, and make your Power Move today by keeping a work journal. A work journal allows you to reflect and celebrate your progress and small wins at work.
In the book The Progress Principle, the authors explain that tracking your small wins can help create forward momentum. This momentum is what ignites your own engagement with your work and career. Keeping a daily journal on office life and your own personal career progress is imperative to keeping track of your growth, your wins and losses, to understanding yourself and how your skills and point of view shift, contort and expand over time. By creating a new habit to track your progress, you’ll also be able to identify patterns and bring more clarity around how you’re building your own career of purpose.
Power Moves to Try:
- Start a work journal
- Say “no” to things that don’t align with your goals
- Examine if you’re doing any busy work—then nix it
- Celebrate your progress
These are just 10 Power Moves you can start with as you learn how to pivot and reboot your career on your own terms. Consider what other healthy daily habits you can build. What other tools can help you overcome career slumps and find value in the process of career development?
I’ve got more to talk about in my book, Power Moves. Order it today and download our free book discussion guide. You can start your own career development book club!
*We want to let you know that some of these links are affiliate links. That means when you purchase some of the items we listed, Career Contessa could earn a small commission at no cost to you. We only recommend items we know and love. Thank you for supporting the brands that help support Career Contessa.
