As a former head of people, almost all of them were curious about two questions: Is this what I should be doing with my time and talents? And if so, what’s next? Whether you’re eyeing a career pivot at the company you’re at, or a fresh start at a new company, this tool can help you prepare for your best next.
Your best career planning tool: 3 x 5 = 3
While it’s valuable to audit your experiences in your current role, we should go all the way back. I can tell you what I learned from jobs at 15 and 45 years old because I worked through an exercise I created called the 3 x 5 = 3. The exercise has you write down 3 answers to 5 prompts, then summarize it all in 3 major takeaways.
First, write down every job you’ve ever had.
For each job, write down:
3️⃣ things you learned or experienced
3️⃣ projects you worked on or led
3️⃣ skills you gained
3️⃣ things you did well based on your learnings, projects, and skills
3️⃣ things you could have done better or differently based on the same
Once you’ve put together the whole picture of your experiences, review your work and consider the total value you brought to the role. Summarize each job into 3️⃣ key contributions you made.
For more tips on preparing for your pivot, check out Career pivot? You’re more prepared than you think.