The Importance of Keeping a Career Journal Building Your Future Now

The Importance of Keeping a Career Journal Building Your Future Now Having an updated resume is essential especially if you are always looking for career opportunities. Another tool that you must have if you are career-focused is a career journal. Just as a career portfolio as discussed in an earlier post, a career journal is a notebook where you write down thoughts, ideas and accomplishments related to your job. You dont have to write a lot. The journal can be a useful tool when compiling information for future projects or updating your resume. The importance of keeping a career journal is the fact you can keep track of an array of things related to your job(s). You can jot down referrals from your managers or a breakdown of a certain project. Maybe you can quickly write down a great interaction with a client and state some reasons you closed the sale. You might be thinking: a career journal sounds like a good idea, but wheres the time? Once again, you dont have to be overly ambitious when keeping a journal. You dont have to write an entry everydayjust write down important happenings related to work. However, if you do feel that this is something that you can get into, the journal can be a helpful tool on your way to an amazing career. Be creative, have fun and be honest. Dont sweat punctuation, grammar or word-choice, this is a journal for you. Draw sketches, add outside materials and be as descriptive as you can. The career journal can also be a reference if human resources reaches out to you for any reason or your boss needs a refresher on an old project. Career journals can quickly become a helpful resource in many facets to your long term career plans or simply a reference to key dates related to your current job. When coupled with your career portfolio, the journal can truly give you a fresh and exciting perspective to your career path and goals. Try keeping one for a few weeks and comment below about your experience! Image: Studio 32