Sidestep to move up in your career

Climbing the career ladder does not necessarily entail only vertical movement. Lateral movement can also get you where you eventually want to be – sometimes faster than usual. Sidestepping at any stage of your career is the new mantra for career success. However, ironically though, if you are unable to further your skills and poise in lateral moves, your career advancement may take a beating.

How can you transform a side-step into a step-up? Here is what you should be doing:

· Make your move sensible: Sans a strategic career path, a lateral move is meaningless. You need to chart out your course and to start with, you should visualise and be clear about the next higher position that you aspire for. It is necessary to take stock of your current qualifications and experience; and what you need to acquire additionally. Such an evaluation will facilitate seeing gaps that a lateral move will bridge.

· Do everything that is necessary: Self-evaluation as above will also help you to identify your skills that are stronger than required to take you to the next higher position. You must deliberate over explicit tactical moves that will help you to attain your objectives quicker. Networking will come to your advantage to boost your image in this context. Taking on assignments that entail public dealings or client interactions will also help enhance your impressions.

· Undertake assignments purposefully: The career journey being a rat race of sorts, you may not find time to take up projects of your own accord or take on unpaid ones to gain experience. However, undertaking assignments purposefully can prove to be a very potent means to widen your contact base and fill up voids in your expertise. Honorary assignments can offer you immense prospects for growth. Your eventual aim is to get into a work that improves your skill set, contingent on the believability that you have been able to generate. You will thus be able to apply yourself better to your actual job.

· Be an eternal learner: An odd step sideways or even backwards may take you forward no doubt, but not all career detours can be a recipe for success. A lateral move will not serve any purpose, unless you keep learning. It is essential that you analyse any such move vis-à-vis the prospects of expansion of your skill set and comprehension of work imperatives. The important point is to determine the manner in which you will utilise your newly acquired skills and experience to advantage for discharging responsibilities in the future.

· Know for certain what ascent means: Discerning and understanding what is correct for you is an essential ingredient of any career planning. If you happen to get bogged down at any stage of your career journey and are sceptical of either your actions or your career objectives, you will need to introspect. After weighing the pros and cons of a higher position being aspired for, you could well surmise that it will adversely affect your work-life balance; therefore you may decide that your present role offers you adequate growth prospects that you genuinely seek in life.

· Influence the matrix: Your lateral move could have been brought about by any factor, however, you can always make the best of living through varied viewing platform and standpoints. You will thus be able to see beyond because you will, in all probability be required to embrace and leverage varied vantage points patronised by specific age groups, specialities and experience clusters. In other words, other things being equal, lateral moves serve to provide manifold possibilities for growth.

· Plan & coordinate your own raise:  Organisations have become flat and middle-level roles have diminished. People who have served for a decade plus see no next level for elevation because their immediate bosses perhaps hail from the same age group and it is unlikely that they leave. You could tide over such a crisis situation by understanding how you are making a difference and crafting a business plan for a new section that you may perhaps head. Making such a scheme known to the management may pay dividends. Your ingenuity, hard work and self-assuredness is essential for moving up in such an organisation.

Whether you are entertaining the idea of a lateral career move or have already decided to pursue an opportunity, you must think over everything seriously. You must guard against burning any bridges and most importantly, be convinced that all your interests are being served. Your new position may not be for better remuneration, but in the long run, you will be happier if you remain enthusiastic and are not confined to one area of expertise.