In an effort to help, I have outlined five guidelines that most people don’t even consider when creating a workable plan for their next career move.

1. Don’t pick a job, pick a boss. Your boss is probably the biggest factor in your career success. A boss who doesn’t trust you won’t give you opportunities to grow. A boss who’s too easy on you won’t drive you to improve. When you accept your new position, you’re hiring a tutor to teach you about work. Be sure to choose wisely.

2. Over time, the most important skill for advancing your career is learning how to work to an agenda rather than to a schedule. Figure out what needs to happen, and then find ways to make it happen. A two-minute elevator exchange can be as productive as a one-hour meeting but only if you know in advance what you need from the encounter.

3. A career needs consistency, especially when the world around you is changing. Most companies change priorities with the financial winds. Don’t be surprised or take it personally when their goals start to diverge from yours. The key is to reconnect with a group of like-minded people. And as you mature through different phases of your career, it opens new and unexpected horizons.

4. No matter how high your career registers on the conventional charts, you must listen to your heart. Almost everyone who devotes themselves to a given vocation, and who pours their love and energy into that activity, develops a certain expertise in the field: Any work can serve this purpose, so that whatever it is one chooses to do – done with the right attitude and proper affection – becomes a joyful activity and has the potential of becoming a long-term career.

5. Finally, a quick word on careers and money: the less I’ve cared about money, the more money I’ve made. Make the right decisions for the right reasons and the right things will happen.

Q) Over the past decade, I have worked as a sales manager for three different employers, two of them Fortune 500 companies, and have also done a stint as a self-employed consultant. I’m not a job hopper; each move has increased my salary or expanded my skills and responsibilities. In my current job I’m no longer learning or growing. In spite of this, I’m reluctant to make yet another switch after only two years. How can I determine, logically and not emotionally, when it’s the right time to make a move?

A) After more than a decade of well-publicized reengineering, cost cutting, outsourcing, flattening of organizations, and consolidating of industries, the number of managerial jobs has shrunk, and so has the opportunity for old-fashioned promotions. These days, if you find yourself blocked or no longer learning and growing, you may have to change jobs to give yourself a promotion. That’s not necessarily an easy task; you have to time your moves carefully. To help you decide, consider the following four thoughts on when to jump, and how to land safely.

First, the key to any successful move is to make sure that you’re reading your current employer correctly. Look for telltale signs regarding your own fate. Key questions to ask yourself: Am I being given choice assignments? Do others seek my input on major decisions? Am I getting more or less positive feedback than in the past? Do I dread going to work? Remember, there is a right place and a right time factor when it comes to promotions. You can be doing well, but if your company isn’t, your advancement may be hindered. Big events such as mergers, restructurings, or a new CEO can be early warning signals that it’s time to leave.

Second, scrutinize your workplace relationships. As a simple exercise, think about whether your boss actually likes you, not just respects your work, not just depends on you, but actually likes you. Bosses, no matter how seemingly professional, impartial and meritocratic, still tend to look out for those they genuinely like.

Third, don’t hold off your search until you’ve sunk to the deepest level of workplace depression. It’s often good to make a move when you’re on top. It’s the old story: success begets success. When your current employment picture is rosy, you just naturally exude confidence. The best time to switch is at the peak of your cycle, especially if what counts for you is pay and quality of work.

Fourth, always try to be open-minded about your career, thinking about how to expand your skill sets, how to add to your toolbox – not how to climb to that next rickety rung on the corporate ladder.

Joe Hodowanes, a career strategy adviser in Tampa, Florida, offers a free resume and career analysis. Fax your resume to (813) 936-0201 or email it to jmwanes@jmwanes.com For questions, call Joe at (813) 936-0091 or visit www.jmwanes.com on the Web. All Job Search Advisor articles on this website are the property of www.jmwanes.com (J.M. Wanes & Associates). You may download
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© 2006 J.M. Wanes & Associates.