Many people in the last decade have experienced either a layoff or termination in their lives or the lives of somebody they know. While many of these people affected have experienced outplacement-consulting services, some have not and they may be in for a rude awakening….corporations no longer “take care of you”. Managing your career in these times require you to have a game plan and an understanding of yourself and human behavior. That is why outplacement consulting and career coaches have become so popular and are being sought out by individuals, not just corporations. A career coach can help you manage more than just your career, they can help you communicate better and get along with others better.

1. Know Thyself
Most people don't know what they really want in their careers. They have a degree and they went out into the world. 20 years later, they don’t have a clue why life sucks. There are some very good assessment to determine personality types, preferences, skill, attitudes and interest. An honest assessment of what you like to do in the style you prefer and with whom you want to do it with, goes along way in determining what you should be doing in you career and in life for that matter.

2. Establish a game plan
What is most important to you in your career? You must know how to navigate using the tools granted to you by God. When was the last time you actually wrote down what creates satisfaction in your job.

3. Think of yourself as self employed…always
Job search is not something you do daily; as your skills in a sport get rusty without practice, so do your job search skills. What are the latest techniques and best practices, how can you maximize your network, etc.

4. Develop a clear and concise message about who you are and what you most want to-do
When you know what you're good at and what you want, you go for it, and people stand out of your way. You no longer have competition. You no longer self sabotage or tolerate the behavior of other associates or bosses.

5. Tell everyone in your network what you want

6. Stay motivated
It's not about pumping you up. It is about realizing how you were wired since birth and how to use that programming to achieve happiness. We call these values and beliefs. Knowing what is important will make it easy to say no to things and people that waste your time. At the same time, you will discover opportunities that in the past have eluded you.

7. Continue to promote yourself
Most people get caught up in the politics of the office. Circumventing this will energize you and put you leaps and bounds above your peers.

8. get out of your comfort zone
We get caught in our comfort zone; before long however, this comfort zone becomes a rut. It is at this point that we become complacent. Complacency leads to poor performance and poor performance leads to job termination. Continue to take risk. There is no failure in life …only outcomes…if you don’t like the outcome, make a course adjust or “change” and keep on truckin”.

9. Stay in top physical condition
There are more people on ”drugs”; today than ever in our society. Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, Xanax, Valium, Viagra, while some people have medical reasons for taking these, research has shown that many of these disorders stem from “burnout. Knowing what is important in all areas of your life as well as your career allows you to have peace of mind and balance.

10. Re-evaluate your values and goals yearly
How did you do this year, what needs improvement? What areas of your life need more attention? How are you measuring and tracking that?

Author's Bio: 

Art is the founder of Corner Executive Office(CEO) and current President of ACE Consulting Group, Inc. Where he consults with midlevel to senior leaders in the Fortune 1000 companies and below, assisting them with their Human Capital talent and strategy.
Art has successfully pursued alliances with Search and Assessment companies to bring together a company able to assist corporations with their human capital to create the perfect “fit” for both employee and employer thus creating a full employee lifecycle solution, alleviating performance and personality problems while increasing ROI. He has been involved extensively in career management, sales, training and development for the last 18 years Art has shown that through hard work and unparalleled commitment of service to the customer, one can be extremely successful.
He is past Vice President of Business Development in Lee Hecht Harrison’s Atlanta office. In this role, he was responsible for building and managing client relationships in the Atlanta area. He created and oversaw the marketing P&L. He supervised the events calendar to assure visibility of the company and instituted a PR firm to assist in bringing forth LHH’s Best revenue year in their history.
Before joining LHH, Art worked for the international outplacement firm, Drake Beam Morin, where he was the lead Account Executive in the Tennessee and Atlanta region. He was also a certified associate, were he conducted training for companies such as Promus Hotels, Rockwell International, Motorola and Kinko’s. Through consistent action and outstanding service, he has built a solid reputation.
Art is a former COO and consultant of Anthony Robbins and Associates in Atlanta, where he exposed many sales people and senior executives to the technologies in NLP and has been recognized by the Who’s Who of International Business for his work with such a diverse group of clients. Art also spent a decade building sales organizations, Coaching and Training insurance agents in the insurance industry.
Art has been published in many local publications including: The Atlanta Business Chronicle, Representative Magazine and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He is also a very dynamic and inspirational speaker. He has conducted training for many of the Fortune 500 companies in the areas of personal achievement and personal marketing. Art has spoken to audiences as large as 1200 people in the areas of career development; Values based jobs and personal motivation.
Art not only is an expert Consultant, Coach, Trainer and Personal Career Marketer, he holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Aeronautics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and holds a commercial pilot’s license. He has been actively involved in coaching kids in soccer for 15 years and is a Site Project Manager (SPM) volunteer with the Cobb County Habitat for Humanity.

In his own words: “…I come from a place of, how can I best serve? I got involved in this business after I was outplaced during a large corporate downsizing. I was determined to help others who had a need for self-assessment and redirection in their lives. I believe that outplacement can either be an eye opener or a death rattle. I am grateful that I have been blessed in my life. I look to find the good in all and I assist those individuals or companies who are seeking the next plateau”.
Art has a wife Rachael of 20 years and a set of fraternal twins, Arthur III and Erika, age 18.