No "top 10 ways" here... Just some step-wise insights that, in retrospect, worked for me.
Here are the prerequisites for "who you are"...
Begin that targeted career effort somewhere between not too early (i.e., woefully not enough "basis" knowledge) and not too late (declining memory, poor and bad habits, not stuck in your ways, and you don't have too much knowledge so that you don't shoot yourself in the foot with regular thoughts such as "why do that if it can't be done". You're ready to go when you possess lots of energy and self-taught/self-read knowledge to be real(world) learning.
Step 1: Find just about any entry point into a business that incorporates your interests. I literally started in the mailroom at Victor Technologies in Scotts Valley, CA.
Step 2: Exercise your energy and growing insight using tools such as writing and teaching:
- Volunteer to instruct folks on stuff you've learned. Create a class, e.g. "how to write Excel macros."
- Write articles on related topics. What better use for your own blog, especially if you find the going tough finding a publisher for your magazine article. You'll have both an instant outlet (i.e., your blog), and a growing portfolio of articles to forward to potential publishers as time goes by. And man, does time go by... quickly.
- And, heaven forbid, let the marketing folks know that you love to give speeches. If you're an engineer, they're likely to gobble you up and send you to great places. And in those places, you'll meet people who are likely to impact your career further down the line. Trust me.
Step 3: If you can, start from the bottom up. That means "mailroom" or "production line." A few years later, when you're programming the software that runs that production line, you'll realize how your colleagues, who came straight out of Berkeley computer science, have no idea what happens to their software and, more importantly, they lack the desire to know why. Those are the folks most susceptible to losing their jobs to Russia or India.
Step 4: And finally, stick with it. Period. When times get tough, rely on tools, such as teaching, writing or an occasional test-the-water interview (see below) to renew your energy.
So, how should you avoid killing that momentum that you've built up? Simple. Change jobs. With the way that the new world economy works, this is rapidly becoming a built-in feature of any career. Stay fresh and expand your experience touch points. There's nothing more depressing than running into old workmates who stuck with their job at Amdahl, for instance. Their knowledge became hopelessly proprietary. More importantly, they didn't get into the habit of exploring slightly risky opportunities for growth.
Going from one department to another department position definitely can help. But you're really not dealing with new business culture and new perspectives to grow from.
If employer change just seems too much to bear, do yourself a favor and go interview! Odds are, you'll come back with an improved perspective on your achievements, your value to the company and, with some good luck, a clear path forward for shifting gears.
All during this time, keep reading. Keep reading stuff that doesn't relate to your job at all. If you're a technology person, read stuff that's about business issues, irrelevant to Java or HTML. If you're a business person, read some techie how-to books. And to really build on what you read and experience at work... write!
