Your Career = The Stock Market

I’ll be the first one to admit I don’t know a lot about investing. I know it’s a good idea to invest when the market is down, and hopefully, I’ll make some money when the market turns around. That’s about it. I’ve been doing some more research lately and hope to start investing one of these days, but I couldn’t help noticing how similar investing in the stock market is to a career.

On thing I’ve learned is that your career is a lot like the stock market, for a lot of reasons. Here are 16 basic principles on investing (in your career) from Swap Meet Dave:

1. Diversify, diversify, diversify. This doesn’t have anything to do with race or ethnicity. It means becoming a well rounded professional and taking an interdisciplinary approach to your career. Try not to limit yourself down one career path.
2. Start investing early. Your professional career can begin as early as high school. Don’t wait to get experience in the field and taking part in professional development opportunities.
3. Invest in things you know. Try not to veer too far away from what you ultimately want to do, but do learn about other things that will help you get there.
4. Avoid fads. OK, I’ll admit, I jumped right on the social media bandwagon. But I’m still learning a lot about more traditional public relations in internships and school. The point here is to not put all your emphasis on one skill.
5. Don’t let a market fall change your long-term plans. If you want to be the VP of PR for Calvin Klein, make sure you are following your strategy and not becoming deterred when road blocks fall in front of you – and they will.
6. Don’t check the price of a stock after you’ve sold it. What’s in the past is in the past. You aren’t able to change the past, but you can change the future. Keep your sight directed forward.
7. Investing consistently works. Invest in your career over a long period of time and it will pay off.
8. Don’t panic. If you’re worrying about not finding a job or not getting an offer, relax. If you’re confident you did the best you could, you should have nothing to worry about. That said, are you doing the best job you can do?
9. Pay attention to what’s going on. Always know what’s going on in the company, with the company’s clients and the industry as a whole. It makes you much more capable of holding a conversation.
10. Hold on to winners and sell the losers. If you’re doing well in your current position, keep it going. If it’s an internship, ask for an extension. There will always be the jobs and internships that aren’t as good, so evaluate the situation and if the job isn’t for you, move on.
11. Take losses quickly and profits slowly. If you don’t get a job or lose your job, move quickly to your next position. Adopt the attitude that there are bigger fish in the sea, and stay optimistic. It might be hard now, but don’t let the economy drag your spirits down.
12. Stick to your plan. If you have a research-based and well thought out plan, follow through. Learn from your mistakes and fix it for the future.
13. Be realistic about your tolerance for risk. Spontaneity is great, but be smart about the decisions you are making. Do you want to move to a city just to move when your network is back home and your have career opportunities? Make sure you are thinking things through.
14. Get good advice, but make your own decisions. Part of being a young professional is learning from your mistakes. Mentors are great, but make sure you are making your own decisions.
15. Avoid spending the principle. Budget yourself and make sure you aren’t getting yourself into dept. As young professionals, it’s easy to spend a lot, but be smart about what you are spending your money on.
16. Make money when you’re right. Seek advancement and promotions when you do good work in your company. Always be proactive and don’t wait for the opportunities to come to you.

All in all, those are the principles that I’ve held true during my college career. I’ve applied for a ton of positions. Some I’ve earned, and some I didn’t. Even so, I’m able to pick myself up and move on to the next project with ease. Things happen for a reason, and with a proactive and positive attitude, you’ll see the bigger fish in the ocean.

So what do you think? How else is a career like the stock market? How do you invest in your career?

Photo by eminiforecaster on Flickr.

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