Chapter 2: Achieving Career Success in a Changing Environment

Carla Van Horne

2 Chapter 2: Achieving Career Success in a Changing Environment

Learning Objectives

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Upon completion of this chapter, you should understand:

Reflect on your personal strengths, values, and experiences to support career development.
Conduct a personal SWOT analysis to guide future professional decisions.
Develop a realistic and adaptable career plan based on your goals and self-assessment.
Identify potential career paths and evaluate them for personal and professional alignment.
Set achievable goals and create an action plan for short- and long-term success.
Understand the foundational role of professional relationships in career planning. (Note: Networking strategies will be explored in detail in Chapter 3.)

NOTE: Throughout this text, the term finance professional and financial advisor will be used interchangeably to represent the advising role. In the finance industry, you will encounter many different titled roles that may vary by financial institution and location.

Planning for the Future

Ask any advisor/finance professional about their success, and they will tell you that being as prepared as possible can help you be ready for whatever comes your way. It is vital that new advisors/professionals plan for their future, and there are many books and articles you can find on this topic. In this chapter, we will cover how to develop a career plan and a business plan for your book of business.

Self-Discovery.

Image generated using the prompt “Create an image of a College Student learning about Self Discovery” sourced from OpenAI, 2025.

According to Eurich (2018), when we are more self-aware, we see ourselves more clearly, more confidently and creatively. Our decisions are sounder, we build stronger relationships, and communicate more effectively. She further states that individuals who are self-aware are better workers and often receive more promotions. This suggests that for finance professionals, being self-aware is crucial.

Here we outline why being more self-aware is vital for a finance professional:

Improved Decision-Making: Finance professionals frequently make high-stakes decisions that require clear judgment. Self-awareness allows them to understand their own biases and avoid letting these biases cloud their judgment, leading to better decision-making.
Effective Communication: Self-awareness promotes a better understanding of one’s communication style and how it is perceived by others, leading to more effective interactions with clients, colleagues, and superiors.
Emotional Intelligence: Understanding one’s emotions is an aspect of self-awareness contributing to emotional Intelligence. Emotional Intelligence can help finance professionals manage stress, maintain composure in challenging situations, and relate better with others – all crucial for career advancement. (Refer to Chapter 6 for more in-depth content on Emotional Intelligence)
Continuous Learning and Improvement: A self-aware finance professional can better identify their strengths and areas for improvement. This recognition leads to targeted skill development and continuous learning, a key aspect for staying relevant and thriving in the rapidly evolving finance field.
Leadership: Finance professionals must often lead teams as they move up the career ladder. Self-awareness enables them to understand their leadership style, strengths, and weaknesses, making them more effective leaders.

How is your self-awareness? Consider this quiz: Self Awareness

Career Plan

An effective career plan will guide you on your career path. Having a living document helps hold you accountable for achieving your career goals. It is essential to review your career plan at least once a year, and update it and create new career goals. According to Apollo Technical, people change their careers 12 times in their lifetime. (Apollo Technical, 2022). It is helpful to connect with others while working on your career plan; a mentor is an excellent source of information and feedback on a career plan. Your career plan must be achievable; otherwise, it can become disappointing when items are not realistic or attainable.

Part 1: Knowing Yourself

This part may seem simple, but, in fact, it may be the most difficult part to complete. You should do a wholesome self-reflection. It is best to be as honest as possible, as knowing yourself helps you identify what opportunities you should explore and what challenges you will need to overcome to achieve your career goals. In order to do this you should complete a Personal SWOT Analysis.

Strengths

Strengths are your skills, education, experience, networking, character traits, etc. Putting your strengths into words will help you see what advantages you have over your peers. A good understanding of your strengths will help position you for the career goals you want to achieve (Adapted from Addams & Allred, 2013).

Weaknesses

Weaknesses are gaps in your skills, education, experience, networking, character traits, etc. Everyone struggles with recognizing or admitting to their weaknesses and shortcomings, but there is power in identifying your weaknesses. Knowing what your weaknesses are makes it is easier to determine a strategy to manage or eliminate your weaknesses (Adapted from Addams & Allred, 2013).

Being aware of your weaknesses could be your biggest strength – Gordon Hester (Renowned Entrepreneur and Business Strategist)

Opportunities

Opportunities are technology, legislation, social values, economy, demographics of population, geographical considerations, positively impacted economic trends within sectors, etc. Making a list of opportunities will help you ascertain the types of opportunities that exist, and how they can guide you towards your goals (Adapted from Addams & Allred, 2013).

Threats

Threats are gaps in technology, legislation, social values, economy, demographics of population, geographical considerations, negatively impacted economic trends within sectors, etc. Understanding what threats may impede you personally or professionally can help you formulate a plan to overcome these threats. You will be able to avoid unexpected obstacles (Adapted from Addams & Allred, 2013).

Strengths:

What am I enjoying doing?
What are my unique skills?
What are skills that I have, but others don’t?
What do others see as my strengths?

Weaknesses:

What stopped me from achieving my goal?
What do I need to improve to achieve my goal?
What are my bad habits?

Opportunities:

How can my network help me with my future career?
How can my skills fill the need in the industry I want to work in?
Is there any significant change in the industry that I can take advantage of?

Threats:

Is my personality hurting my career path?
Are my peers doing a better job than I am in the same position?
Are there any skills that my competitors have that I don’t?
Is my financial situation impact my goal?

[Table 8.1] Ask these questions to determine internal and external factors. (Source: Hansen, 2022)

Answer the questions in Table 2.1; it is critical that you are honest with your answers. Ask a mentor or others for their opinions and be open-minded to what they have to say. Providing feedback to someone else is much easier than receiving feedback. Often, we are defensive. However, the people that we trust mean well and want to help us grow. You may find out there is something you do (something you never realised) that could give poor first impression.

Compile all your answers together. This information will be needed as you work on other the parts of your career plan.

Example of a Student Personal SWOT Analysis Plan: Student SWOT Analysis example

Part 2: Explore Possibilities

After you have completed your self-reflections and SWOT analysis, you should research the career path(s) you identified that you are most interested in. Here, you can list all your chosen career pathway(s). Research will help you determine what prerequisites and requirements are needed to achieve each career path. Make note of the time required to achieve these career paths. Some career paths will have licensing requirements combined with a certain amount of work experience. Having realistic timelines and expectations will help you be more successful in achieving your goals.

Part 3: Making Choices

Consider the suitability of each career option and decide (with the assistance of your mentor or another trusted person) which one is the best match to your career aspirations. Before making the decision, take the time to consider:

What are the perceived barriers/obstacles? How can they be overcome?
What commitments do you have outside of work/personally?
What is the level of involvement required?
Which of my options fits best with my desired employer’s needs?

Based on your choices and the development opportunities you have identified, you are now ready to write your goal(s). Aim to make each goal as specific as possibly. Creating 2-3 goals is a good start. Also, for each goal, determine what is required to achieve it.

Part 4: Make it Happen

To achieve your goals, you need to have an agreed upon course of action. Work with your mentor to establish a clear understanding of what steps you will be taking and the time commitment required to meet the relevant timeframes. Then develop a course of action/action plan.

Image generated using the prompt “Create and Image of a Career Development Plan,” sourced from OpenAI, 2025.

Example of a Student Development Plan: Student- Development Plan

Finally, in order to hold yourself accountable to your career plan, review it with your mentor or other trusted person. Listen to their feedback, make any necessary adjustments and have them sign off on your plan as a way to solidify the commitment. Commit to a time in the future to review where you are on the path to your goals. Remember, this is your plan; you can change or revise it as needed.

As part of your career planning, it is valuable to begin identifying key individuals in your network who can offer guidance, information, or future opportunities. Building your professional network is a strategic skill that will benefit your practice over the long term. Networking will be explored further in Chapter 3 as a core part of building and sustaining your book of business.

Importance of Professional relationships

As you plan your career path, identifying key people in your network can offer valuable insight, mentorship, and opportunities. Building these professional relationships is a strategic skill essential for long-term success, and it will be explored in greater depth in Chapter 3.

Summary

In summary, this chapter highlights the importance of self-awareness and intentional career planning for finance professionals. Using tools like a personal SWOT analysis and development plans, readers are guided through a four-step process:

Know Yourself – Identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.
Explore Possibilities – Research potential career paths and their requirements.
Make Choices – Set clear, achievable goals that align with personal and professional aspirations.
Make it Happen – Create and follow a realistic action plan with support from a mentor.

The chapter emphasizes emotional intelligence, goal-setting, and the value of networking, which is explored further in Chapter 3.

References

Addams, L., & Allred, A.T. (2013, October 1). The First Step in Proactively Managing Students’ Careers: Teaching Self-SWOT Analysis. Academy of Educational Leadership Journal, 17(4).

Apollo Technical. (2202, March 19). 17 Remarkable Career Change Statistics to Know. Apollo Technical LLC.

Bowell, S., & Nicholas K. (2018, December 31). The One-Page Business Plan Template for Financial Advisors. WealthManagement.com.

Career Employer. (2021, November 24). Creating a Financial Advisor Business Plan in 2022. Career Employer.

Eurich , T. (2018, January 4). What Self-Awareness Really Is (and How to Cultivate It). Retrieved June 14, 2023, from https://hbr.org/2018/01/what-self-awareness-really-is-and-how-to-cultivate-it

Hansen, A. (2022). The Best Personal SWOT Analysis Examples for Students (2022). Cornerstone.

Kitces, M. (2015, August 17). Essential Requirements In Crafting A One-Page Financial Advisor Business Plan. Kites.com.