There are no clear cut approaches on how to succeed in career, but there some basic things one need to know to succeed especially in a very tough and competitive environment you find in Africa; Nigeria to be specific.

A lot of young people have seen their career goals and plans dashed, some of the tips I shared in my previous article are based on experiences and my interactions with people especially in the banking sector which you might also find useful in other fields.

Below are some of the challenges people face these challenges come from two major areas; the Individual challenges and organizations you work with.

Individual

1. High unhealthy competition in the Job Market: too little Jobs with too many qualified (qualified? This doesn’t matter now) to fill the position, so I am going to do whatever it takes to get the Job, I can now figure out later what the Job has for me or if it fits what I want and my goals, this leads us to the next point.
2. Lack of Personal Vision or Purpose: Many young people do not know who they are, what they want, and the potentials they possess. Vision gives focus and helps to develop a mission and a plan.
3. Lack of Capacity and Character: Capacity is the extent one has developed their skills and their in-depth knowledge of their chosen career path, while character is the personality of the individual. It is the totality of the person’s values and behavior. It enhances skills and it makes one outstanding from others within the same field. Character is a magnifying lens for your Capacity.

Organizational

1. No Plan to Mentor Future Leaders: Most organizations in Africa do not groom or train the young ones to take over leadership positions, this has also reflected in our political system, where a leader is ready to stay in power for the next 20 years. Good Leadership mentoring creates continuity in business and government. This is the biggest challenge Africa is facing right now and is reflected in the corporate governance issues common in most organizations today.
2. Lack of clear career path set by the organizations: Most organization do not have a clear cut career path designed for new recruits, this has mislead a lot of young people as most of these recruits just want to get the Job. They get the job and find out there is no career prospect for them or growth, so you can be on the same level for years.
3. Transparency in the appraisal system: Most organizations base their appraisal system on only the direct supervisors’ opinion which is often biased. So clearly they don’t focus on performance here, which means your performance is likely not to take you anywhere, until maybe God helps one find favour before their boss or they are transferred to another unit.
4. Poor attention to corporate Vision: Most organizations might argue they have vision written on paper, but actually do not work in line with that vision. This has a direct impact on the employees’ performance. Because there is no defined focus on achieving the vision, the employee tends to lose focus also on their career growth.

*image courtesy of 123rf.com