So, you’ve decided to take a trip. This time, it’s a big road trip. You know the kind, where Chevy Chase should be driving. You pack up your bags, load up the SUV, and just drive.
As you’re driving north up the interstate, it strikes you...you didn’t make a plan. Where are you going and what are you going to do once you get there? Good questions to ask.
How many of us jump into our “work SUVs” without a plan and just drive. As a recruiter, I can tell you that this occurs more than you might think. This includes some pretty high-level people who liked “the drive” they were on, found a direction and probable destination, and stuck with it. Most of us, however, are not quite so lucky. Employees jump from job to job, without committing themselves to a destination.
Unless you start to plan ahead and take these steps now - you could find yourself at the end of the road with your career, and not be at all where you wanted.
One thing that I see with great resumes and great careers, is that they appear as if they made a plan with a chosen destination early on. Even if that is not always possible it’s never too late to make a chosen destination point, take your time to complete the necessary steps, and dream big!
As we’ve all heard before, the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. However, as so many of us know, it’s difficult to make a career path (at least in ag) a straight line. One mindset which may help you reach your career goals, is to think like a great chess player. While I’m thinking mainly four to five steps ahead will benefit you in the long run, I’ve read that some of the greats think up to 20 moves ahead...20!
While it may not take as many moves as Bobby Fischer can think ahead, I myself am an example of how planning ahead can get you to your goal.
The path I thought I would take, and did take, on my way to my goal of VP of Sales, looked like this:
1. Bird Dog
2. Sales Assistant
3. Sales Coordinator
4. Production Scheduler
5. Outside Buyer
6. FOB Sales - Food Service
7. Retail Value Added Sales
8. Regional Sales Manager
9. Director of Retail Sales
1. VP of Sales (and then, even VP of Operations)
As I review my 29 years in produce, I still think my most efficient career ascent to my ultimate goal was in the first ten moves. I had a Big Dream, which I planned for and then acted on.
So what else is needed? Okay, perhaps some luck? Of course, but as Ross here at Joe Produce always says, “the harder I work, the luckier I get”. Hard work goes a long way.
When you find yourself in the situation where you need or want to move forward in your career (or even start it) think about where you want to be and you want to be doing in the next 10, 15, or 20 years. Then choose a destination, and make sure your plans go way beyond just wanting to be financially successful; the money wil come with your career success. And, I truly believe that, more importantly your happiness during your journey will be greater and the end result all that much closer to what you really want if you take the time to plan your steps.
Dream big! Choose your destination. Plan. Think multiple moves ahead. Enjoy the journey... 
