How to set your professional goals for 2023

If the last few years have taught us anything, it’s that plans change.

What was on your to do list this time last year?

What did you think 2022 would look like?

How did it work out?

If you’re in review and planning mode at the moment, I’ve got some resources to help you set your professional goals for 2023.

What does the year ahead hold?

Perhaps you’re planning to find a new role in 2023, to change jobs, start your own consultancy business, deepen your experience in your current role or aim for a promotion?

Whatever you’re plotting, give yourself a head start with the information in this article.

This is a great opportunity to invest time in yourself and have space and time to think about you.

If you’re not feeling in the mood to do this, that’s ok. I know how much internal communicators have on their plate as this time of year. This article is here as and when you need it, there’s no pressure.

2023 blocks and All Things IC logo

How to set your professional goals for 2023

I find the only way to have any chance of new year goals or aspirations lasting to Easter and beyond is to make them visible, tangible and realistic.

I encourage you to hold yourself to account e.g. making promises to yourself in 30 day increments.

My team and I do this exercise with clients, particularly when teaching Team Days in the All Things IC Hub.

When we are finishing the day together, we ask attendees to imagine it’s 30, 60, 90 days from now. Then six months, then a year.

Questions we ask IC professionals to answer include:

  • What can I complete in these timescales?
  • What are the barriers or things that will stop me?
  • What do I need to start, stop or continue?
  • Who do I need to ask for help?
  • What do I need to park/discard?
  • What conversations do I need to have?
  • What does good look like? (If that’s too hard to answer, we flip it to be what does bad look like?).

Imagine you’re reading this article at the end of 2023, what do you want the year to have been like for you?

What’s ahead for your business?

As with most of our work as internal communicators, if you are looking at your professional or IC goals, you need to know what your organisation’s goals are.

If you know a merger or acquisition is ahead, or you’ll have a new CEO in place in six months’ time, how does that impact you?

Do you have gaps in your knowledge and need to seek training or information to help you be prepared?

This is where we can support you via training, consultancy or mentoring. All Things IC regularly hosts confidential Team Days or creates Remote Masterclasses to help internal communicators confidently face challenges.

Bespoke topics Caroline, Dan and I have written and taught this year include Measuring IC, Setting IC Standards, Change Communication, Preparing for Initial Public Offering (IPO) and How to help Leaders Communicate.

Do get in touch if we can help you prepare for the year ahead.

We’ve also overseen channel audits for various organisations and are taking bookings for 2023.

Tip: If you book your 2023 Team Day before the end of this year you’ll benefit from 2022’s prices.

All Things IC Hub Team Day

All Things IC mug. Text: what's your word?

What’s your word?

If you had to describe your career aspiration for 2023 in a word, what would it be?

I’ve been setting my intentions and aspirations at this time of year for over a decade. Why? I find outlining my goals, ideas and dreams helps me shape them into reality.

One of the key parts of that planning is choosing a word. The criteria I apply reflects the mindset for the upcoming 12 months. I use it to hold myself to account.

It’s a largely positive exercise and helps drive my business, All Things IC, forward.

Sometimes it’s more realistic than aspirational – like 2014/5 when I had three children under the age of two-and-a-half, following the birth of my twin sons.

Survival was the name of the game!

I launched All Things IC in 2013 while on maternity leave with my daughter. But I had been preparing and planning since 2009, when I was working in-house in corporate communication and internal communication (IC) roles.

You can choose a word if you’re planning to stay in the same role, if you’re searching for a new job or if you’re looking for your next contract. You can also choose one for your personal life.

For 2022 I chose clarifying and maximising. As I’m writing this article in December 2022, I’m proud to have built my fantastic in-house team here at All Things IC. My PA Louise has been with the business for five years next month, and we welcomed Caroline Cubbon-King and Dan Holden as Communication Consultants in April 2022.

We have clarified and maximised various business processes, products and services over the past 12 months, including adding to our suite of in-person and Online Masterclasses.

I’ve loved seeing Caroline and Dan teaching, and hearing feedback from clients who have enjoyed working with them.

What to explore

If you’ve studied my How to be a Comms Consultant – Exploration Online Masterclass, the image below will be familiar to you.

If you’re thinking about exploring the idea of being a Comms Consultant in 2023, the course helps you work through your ideas and make decisions about your career.

Key milestones are mapped against the words.

We may run this course face-to-face in 2023. If you’re currently working in-house and would like to know upcoming Exploration Masterclass dates, do get in touch. We’ll add your name to a waitlist and let you know future dates.

Timelines of words for All Things IC

 

The year ahead will mark All Things IC’s 10th birthday in January. My team (AKA Team Teal) and I have been plotting and will share our plans soon.

Tip: Mark 17 May 2023 in your diaries.

Experimentation was my chosen word in 2015, it’s when I was scoping out the idea for Masterclasses and setting firmer foundations.

I’ve chosen it again for 2023 as I will be experimenting with new ideas and ways to support and advise internal communicators around the globe. The current cohort of the All Things IC Inner Circle will be privy to some of that thinking early next year.

What’s your word for 2023?

What will IC pros need to think about for 2023?

My colleague Dan recently wrote about the Institute of Internal Communication’s Future of Work Trends 2022 report.

The 2022 edition of the report highlights eight key trends impacting colleagues at work in the 2020s:

  • Technology’s impact on work
  • Globalisation and global connectivity
  • The age of hybrid working
  • Shifting socio-cultural attitudes and intergenerational working
  • Changing employment models
  • Changing operating and organisational models
  • Impact of climate change and resource depletion on organisations and
  • Humane organisations.

Further reading via the All Things IC blog: The IoIC Future of Work Trends Report 2022.

Upcoming courses at the All Things IC Hub

Review and plan IC course

How to review and plan internal communication 

Our popular Online Masterclass How to review and plan your internal communication will help you look back and plan forward for 2023.

The course can be taken at your own pace and you’ll have access for 12 months. As with all my Online Masterclasses, there are no live lessons and it’s full of resources to help you.

You’ll find text lessons, surveys, quizzes, workbooks and captioned videos.

Whether you’re brand new to IC, or are leading a function, you’ll find practical resources and hints to spark thoughts and set you up for success.

How to review and plan internal communication includes lessons on:

  • How to review your internal comms
  • How to refresh your intentions
  • Future considerations and key themes
  • How to plan for the year ahead.

This self-study course is available to enrol in and start today. Your investment is £499, see the Online Masterclasses website to sign up.

Do you plan your year in January, or April or September? Whenever you plan, this course will help you as I’ve made the content applicable all year round, not just aligned with calendar years.

Enrol today.

New date: 10 January 2023 planning masterclass with Caroline Cubbon-King

New 90-minute 2023 Planning Masterclass date

Our remote 2023 Planning Masterclasses have sold out. Based on feedback from IC pros we kept adding new dates for December, and all three are now fully booked.

We’ve added an additional date on 10 January 2023 at 1pm UK time. Be quick as places won’t last long. Your investment is £129 +VAT. If you are outside of the UK, please contact us for a payment link.

If you’d prefer us to run a session for your team, do get in touch.

Preparing year-end communication

What does your year-end internal communication look like?

A few days ago I published a brand new blog post to help internal communicators think about marking the end of the year.

How to communicate the end of 2022 contains advice from my team and I, plus the global IC community. Thank you to everyone who shared their thoughts via that article.

Further reading via the All Things IC blog:

What's your top tip for year-end IC?

Thank you for stopping by, I hope you’ve found the information in this article useful.

Rachel.

Post author: Rachel Miller.

First published on the All Things IC blog 5 December 2022.

 

Comments

  1. Dan Holden says:

    I love working with our clients and Masterclass attendees to create a 30, 60, 90 days from now plan. It always helps make actions realistic and achievable.

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