277: Top Mid-Career Success Trends for 2025

This episode reflects on important lessons from 2024 to help mid-career professionals navigate the job market and elevate their careers as they enter 2025. Key insights include the necessity of networking, the importance of flexible work arrangements, embracing leadership, committing to lifelong learning, and prioritizing personal well-being. 

• Reflecting on the frustrating job application process 
• Emphasizing the role of networking 
• Understanding the importance of flexible working arrangements 
• Recognizing the need for leadership at all levels 
• Promoting lifelong learning and adaptability 
• Highlighting the significance of personal and professional well-being

Chapters

• 0:00 Career Trends for 2025
• 11:37 Investing in Lifelong Learning and Well-Being
• 21:20 Building a Successful Mid-Career Path

Transcript

John Neral: 0:00

We made it. As 2024 comes to a close, I'm taking some time in this episode to look back on the job market and share with you some insight and trends that we've seen this year and what it means for you heading into 2025. If you've been looking for a new job or seeking a promotion, chances are you have been frustrated with some part of, or the entire process. So what are you supposed to do? Let me offer you this what if 2025 was the start of your second act? Stay tuned, because I've got five lessons to help you reevaluate and elevate your career trajectory in 2025 that will help you find the job you love or love the job you have. Let's get started. Happy New Year. My friends.

John Neral: 1:00

This is the Mid-Career GPS Podcast, and I'm your host, John Neral. I help mid-career professionals like you find a job they love or love the job they have, using my proven four-step formula. I'm recording this episode on Monday, december 30th Now. Normally I have some things banged for a while, but for whatever reason, it was a little difficult for me getting this episode out there and right off the bat. I'm going to try to get through this with my voice, because I feel like I'm getting the end of 2024 cold, but yesterday we learned that President Jimmy Carter passed away at the age of 100. And when I think about his legacy and I think about his brand and what he means to so many people, is that in that second act, you have an opportunity to redefine, reshape, strengthen, whatever it is that you want to do. He is more often known for what he has done outside of his presidency than what he did during the four years he was in office, and so I open today with this, very simply because what if? What if? This new year was an opportunity for you to play differently, stronger, more intentional than you have ever done in your career? If there's something you want to reshape or redefine, we can do that. If there's an opportunity for you to focus in one particular area, go for it. If there's one theme that I have going into 2025 for myself, it's about keeping things simple, right, not overcomplicating things, whether it be in my business or in my personal life, I feel like this past year has been like we had to do so much, and we don't. We just need to be more focused and concentrated on what is immediately and directly ahead of us. So, with that, if you are listening to this podcast for the first time. So glad you're here. We start season five next week. We have over 275 episodes banked. Hope you'll go back and pick some favorites and check them out If you've been here for a while. Thank you so much for being along this journey with me. I am excited for what I have in store for you on this podcast in 2025.

John Neral: 3:35

So what have we learned this year? Well, the first thing is that applying for a job has been more frustrating than ever. If you are the person who is applying for jobs excuse me on LinkedIn or Indeed, you know that you are having to navigate an AI tool called an applicant tracking system. You are coming up against bots. You are coming up against hundreds of people who are applying for the same position. More than likely, these are automated responses and you are getting lost. And so then, all that work and that effort that you're telling everybody well, I've applied for so many positions and all that becomes futile. And you're sitting there and you're asking yourself how do I get noticed? How do I get to the top of the list? Well, one thing that we have absolutely learned in 2024 is that the power of your network and how your network talks about you is more important than ever If you do not have a core group of people who are advocating for you and supporting you. What I want to offer you in this new year is to start building one, build that core four, core five individuals and dig deeper into their network to see who might be a great connection for you and vice versa. But if you are not networking in this job market, whether you are actively looking or not, my friends, you are missing a pivotal and essential component in building your mid-career GPS. You must be networking. That means you need to be having conversations with people. Right, it's going to mean getting away from the microphone and the screen and getting out there and meeting people in person, going to events or work functions where you get to network and have conversations with people. But it is about building a strategy to network and, again, keeping that as simple and intentional as possible. For my clients this year, what I've seen what we've seen more often than not has been when they have tapped into their network, doors opened. But it was coaching them on how to open those doors and how to dig more deeply into their network that was able to get them those results, all right.

John Neral: 6:01

Lesson number two, and this one. This one's going to be a little controversial, but I will tell you it is not going to go away. Number two flexible working arrangements remain a priority. What's been going on? You know there is a lot of conversation around people being back at the work site five days a week and there are benefits and advantages and disadvantages to all of that.

John Neral: 6:34

What I want to offer you in this is you have to know your needs. If you have situations where you need that flexibility, that is an opportunity for you to decide how important is that need and how quickly and effectively do I need to have those conversations with my leadership about exactly what it is that I need. The same thing is true if you're interviewing for a new position, if you're leaving a company and you're seeing things on a job posting that says you know 50-50 working arrangement and you want 100% work from home. What I want to offer you in this is put some filters in to determine if that is a non-negotiable. Don't waste your time, most importantly, and don't waste theirs and don't waste theirs. That's something to consider because, as we look at what corporations and the federal government will be doing in the early part of 2025, we know that those things tend to trickle down and go to other companies as well. You are responsible for your career and your career path and you have to know your needs.

John Neral: 7:48

I have clients I work with who need flexibility because of their children or their aging parents, or they have a longer commute. There is no harm in asking. It doesn't mean the company automatically or absolutely will say yes. That is about the agreement around you have around your working arrangement. I had someone recently say to me that they were concerned that you know, if they had to take a doctor's appointment and they were going to take, say, three or four hours off in the day, does that mean then they have to go back into the office? Are they allowed to work from home or do they have to take the entire day off? I can't answer that. What I can help them with is what would work best for you and is that amenable or agreeable to your leadership to help you do that. Okay, all right.

John Neral: 8:38

Number three, this one we're going to talk more about this in 2025. For certain, leadership is needed now more than ever, and I want you to listen very carefully to this, because everybody has an opportunity to lead. You do not need the title of a manager director, vice president, senior vice president, senior director you don't need the title in order for you to lead. People are watching. They are watching to see how you show up as a leader. It is your job to stand out and do that. How are you showing up as a leader and what does that mean for you? What I want to offer you here is that, heading into 2025, leadership will be more at the forefront of every conversation.

John Neral: 9:36

Whether you are interviewing for a new job or not, If you are looking to elevate your career, I want you to think about where are you leading within your current organization and where could you be leading? And why is leadership needed now more than ever? And why is that leadership necessary? You and I both know that it's so easy for us to get wrapped up in Instagram reels and sitting there with the popcorn and reading through the comments, because on some level, we sit there and go oh, look at how everybody's upset and everybody's frustrated. We know that doesn't help. What I'd be looking for is I'd be looking for the people who are strategically and intentionally having the conversations within their organization to solve the problems by demonstrating their leadership, rather than tearing everything down. We can become so reactionary in this climate right now, and I get it On some levels. It's absolutely understandable and warranted. It may seem, but when you think about how you are looking at your leadership and what you're saying about leadership, turn that around and ask yourself what are you saying about your leadership? Are you the person who's pouring gasoline on the fire or are you the one trying to put it out? Leadership will absolutely be at the forefront of our conversations in 2025, and we will see examples within organizations of people doing exceptional jobs, like we always have been, and people who are falling short. How do you want to show up as the leader, and what does that leadership from you look like? Within your organization or to a new organization? All right, lesson number four.

John Neral: 11:37

Lesson number four is about embracing lifelong learning and adaptability. So where are you investing in yourself? And the thing to keep in mind here, especially as we think about the economy and how we have a little less in our pockets than what we did before, or maybe you've got a little extra money and you're trying to figure out where is that going to go to? And everything Investing in your learning doesn't have to be a five-figure investment. In some cases, it doesn't even have to be a four-figure investment. It could right your investment. It could right, but where are you actively thinking that you want to invest in yourself to help you be a better mid-career professional?

John Neral: 12:29

Is it a book? Is it a course? Is it a blog that you're reading? Is it a section of YouTube videos that you enjoy watching? Are there people you follow? Is this podcast part of your lifelong learning? This podcast doesn't cost you a thing, okay, like, what is it that you're doing? How are you feeding yourself with information that you then in turn, get to make that of value to your team, clients, leaderships and organizations because of how you are being fed, just like last week, a couple weeks ago, I launched a brand new. It's a journal. I put it out on Amazon. It's called 30 Self-Coaching Questions for Mid-Career Professionals. Right, the journal's doing really, really well. So, if you've gotten the journal, thank you so much. If you've gotten it, do me a favor. Please leave a rating and review on it. The journal is $7.95, okay, for the price of a really expensive cup of coffee, you could get a tool that could help you this year.

John Neral: 13:40

Figure out what may be the next step for you so you can find the job you love or love the job you have. There are so stressed that the default becomes I'm going to let my manager or leadership take care of that for me. If they want to develop me, they'll figure it out. That is absolutely the wrong thing to do. If you are depending on somebody else to be responsible for your professional development, you will be left behind. You will not be considered for promotions, you will not be considered for opportunities, because your leadership will look at you as a checklist of things they believe you want them to do for you. And I can tell you time and time again that's a huge mistake. You must be responsible for your own learning and development, right, and so, whatever your situation or circumstance is, acknowledge that, but focus on what you can control and what you can do, right.

John Neral: 14:59

So one of the things that I'm committing to for next year is I got out of reading, like I just got so consumed with everything, with the business and the work and stuff that I stopped reading, whether it be for enjoyment or it be for my own professional development and things like that. So I'm setting a goal for myself to read more. Okay, whether I get it on Kindle or I buy the book, whatever that is, it's a few dollars every month, but that's for my own professional development, right? So I will have some things for you in the new year. If you are new here, please make sure you go check out my website at johnnerrellcom. There's a whole section of free resources, as well as low ticket courses and products that are all like under a hundred bucks right now that you could take a look at and invest in.

John Neral: 15:51

Whether it be about your career clarity or it be about helping you prepare for an interview, your professional development needs to be at the forefront of your career and leadership plan, or what we call here the mid-career GPS, number five more than ever, and it came to an absolute head in 2024, and it's not going to go away. The number five lesson that we have learned this past year is that you must be paying attention to your personal and professional well-being. Stress is a reaction. It's a physical reaction to things that are going on. Where does stress start? Stress starts with a reaction. It's a physical reaction to things that are going on.

John Neral: 16:48

Where does stress start? Stress starts with a thought I'm going to lose my job, I can't get everything done, my spouse is angry with me. It all starts with a thought. Once we have that thought, we have a feeling associated with that thought. Once we have that thought, we have a feeling associated with that thought. Once we have that feeling, we then create an action. Sometimes that action is disassociation. Sometimes that action is knocking things off your to-do list. It's working harder, not smarter.

John Neral: 17:23

Whatever that is, I want to offer you in 2025 to really think about and take action on how you are taking care of yourself better than ever. And to start with one tiny thing. This is something I'm going to be working on as well, but the goal here is to find balance. This is something I'm going to be working on as well, but the goal here is to find balance. Where can you find balance in your professional and personal life that makes each day a little more manageable or easier for you? If you are dealing with burnout, I cannot recommend highly enough. Please go check out my friend, kate Donovan, c-a-i-t-d-o-n-o-v-a-n. She hosts a podcast called Fried the burnout podcast an absolute foremost leader in this discussion on corporate and personal burnout, and I cannot recommend her highly enough. I think the world of her and her work. But if you are dealing with burnout Kate says this all the time. I completely agree with it burnout is not your fault, right, but there are ways to deal with your burnout that can help you get through it and manage it and be more aware of when the symptoms come up. For that, right. But if you are not paying attention to your professional and personal wellbeing, it's so easy to dismiss and put all that off on the side. Okay, so let's just go back and wrap this up.

John Neral: 19:08

So the five lessons I shared with you today, right, no particular order. Number one was applying for jobs right now is more frustrating than ever. Build your network. Number two flexible work will continue to remain a priority. Know what your needs are. Number three leadership is needed more now than ever. How do you want to show up as a leader? How do you want to be seen as someone who's solving problems instead of fanning the flames? Number four is embrace lifelong learning. You are completely responsible for your professional development. Take charge of it. Are completely responsible for your professional development. Take charge of it. Take one simple step to better yourself professionally heading into 2025 and through it, and then, lastly, continue to focus on your personal and professional well-being. Mental health is so important.

John Neral: 20:02

So, as we go to wrap up, I want to wish you and your loved ones a very safe, happy and healthy new year. This is always one of those times we turn the calendar, we turn the page. It's just another day In the scheme of things, it's just another day. But if 2025 was supposed to be or you want it to be the start of your second act, what would that look like? I'm here for you. I hope you will continue to come back and listen to this podcast, share it with people in your network that you believe they would get something from it.

John Neral: 20:41

Let's make 2025 the year that you take more control of your career so you can find the job you love, or love the job you have. If I can be of any further help or assistance, the easiest way to do it? Two things. One, you can go to my website at johnneral. com J-O-H-N-N-E-R-A-L or connect with me on LinkedIn. Easy to find me over there as well. I'd be honored to have you part of my network and see you and support you over there as well. So until next time my friends, remember this you will build your mid-career GPS one mile or one step at a time, and how you show up matters.

John Neral: 21:20

Happy New Year. Make it a great rest of your day. Thank you for listening to the Mid-Career GPS Podcast. Make sure to follow on your favorite listening platform and, if you have a moment, I'd love to hear your comments on Apple Podcasts. Visit johnnarrellcom for more information about how I can help you build your mid-career GPS or how I can help you and your organization with your next workshop or public speaking event. Don't forget to connect with me on LinkedIn and follow me on social at John Darrell Coaching. I look forward to being back with you next week. Until then, take care and remember how we show up matters. Thank you.