I’ve written in the past about the pros and cons of job hopping. Yes, it’s true; you can spin it any way you want. But let’s be real: job hopping is no fun. Whether it’s a “good thing” or a “bad thing,” for your career might be debatable in theory. But, in reality, it’s a serious pain.

When you bounce from job to job, you find yourself in a perpetual state of transition, never really settled. You’re always “new,” trying to learn the ropes and figure out the next step in your “career”. You’re always playing catch up.

If you remain a job hopper for a prolonged period of time, you may even find yourself sliding slowly backwards. Five years down the line, you could look back and realize you’re not just standing still (professionally speaking), you’re actually regressing—your skills are deteriorating and your resume is becoming a scattered, inconsistent mess.

If you’re reading this and thinking, “Oh no! That’s me!” I want you to keep reading. Don’t panic, but pay attention. I’m going to tell you how to stop job hopping once and for all.

First off, STOP. Don’t make any drastic moves. My guess is that drastic, spontaneous moves are what got you into this situation.

It’s time to take things slow.

Here’s what usually happens: You find yourself in a job that doesn’t match who you are and what you want. You decide it’s time to leave. But, instead of taking your time and figuring out the RIGHT move for your career, you get anxious. You start blanketing the town with your resume, talking to everyone you know. With every minute that goes by, your panic rises.

So, when the first opportunity comes along, you jump.

“It’s not perfect,” you think. “But it’s something.”

Then, a few months down the line, it happens again. You’re not happy. You panic. You jump onto the next thing, knowing it’s still not perfect but at least it’s somewhat better.

It’s a vicious, painful, stressful, self-inflicted cycle.

Now is the time to put an end to it. Your situation will never improve if you don’t slow down and think before making your next move. In the past, you haven’t taken the time or invested the energy to make strategic career moves. You’ve simply leapt without looking—out of panic, out of fear, or out of sheer frustration. You’ve taken the route that, on the surface appeared to be easier and faster, but ultimately lead to more pain.

To stop the cycle, you need to do everything in your power to make sure your next career move doesn’t lead you down the same path. You need to take a different approach. You need to follow a smart, strategic and structured process that has proven results. No more guessing. No more grand leaps of faith. It’s time to do the work on the front-end to make sure your results on the back-end are actually what you want.

But here’s the problem many job hoppers have: They don’t know what they want. They’ve been entrenched in this cycle for so long, they’re starting to worry that nothing will satisfy them. They start to think that no job within reach will pay a decent wage and still provide them with some level of fulfillment. They start to believe that settling is their only option.

Sound familiar? Snap out of it.

You deserve career fulfillment and yes, it’s possible—no matter who you are. If you haven’t found it yet, you haven’t made it a priority. You’re not really trying.

I know that sounds harsh, but it’s the truth. There’s no mystery here. Finding the right career is a science. It takes some work, but there are few things more rewarding in life.

If you’re ready to stop the vicious cycle of job hopping once and for all, I invite you to join me for a free webinar:

How to Stop Job Hopping & Find Career Fulfillment

Date: TBD

Time: TBD

Do you bounce from one job to the next, never feeling satisfied? Do you worry that you’ll never find a job that pays a decent wage and makes you happy? You’re not alone! But you don’t have to accept this as a way of life. Everyone can find long-lasting career fulfillment and success…even YOU. During this webinar, I’ll give you real strategies for overcoming the challenges that have kept you professionally stuck and unhappy for way too long.

Attendees will learn:

• How to stop negative job hopping patterns—and why NOW is the time to do it
• Why conducting proactive career research will ensure you make the RIGHT career moves at the RIGHT time
• How to identify your own career preferences (and ignore the negative influences of others)
• The 4-step process you MUST follow in order to find long-term stability and peace-of-mind

Register for free here: THIS WEBINAR HAS BEEN RESCHEDULED–More information will provided soon.

Photo Credit: Blackeiffel (Flickr)

This article is the first in a 10-part series on the topic of overcoming career-limiting habits.

Unreliability was identified as the number one career-limiting habit and it’s no surprise. After all, if the people you work for (and with) can’t depend on you, what purpose do you serve? Truth be told, unreliable people are actually dangerous to the success of the entire team.

If you want any level of career success, people have to trust you. They have to know that you will do everything in your power to meet your commitments. If you want to be seen as credible and a valued member of the team, you must first be reliable. Here are 3 strategies to help you overcome the career-limiting habit of unreliability.

Be True to Your Word

Never, never, never make a promise you don’t intend to keep. There is no quicker way to lose trust. And once trust is gone, it takes a very long time to recover (and sometimes, it’s simply gone forever). When you give someone your word, you are providing a personal guarantee and believe me, a broken promise will not go unnoticed.

Think of your word is a contract. Before agreeing to anything, be sure you understand the terms and conditions. If the deadline or expectation is unrealistic, address it. Yes, you always want to push yourself and challenge your capabilities, but not to the point where you can’t meet the commitment.

Under Promise, Over Deliver

Don’t just tell people what they want to hear. Instead of making promises that aren’t backed up with realistic planning, help yourself and make your commitments attainable. Set the bar at a reasonable level. And then, jump right over it.

If you promise something that is too challenging and then fail to deliver, you have no one to blame but yourself. Give yourself some leeway. Remember that (almost) nothing goes as smoothly as you hope it will in the workplace. Plan for disruptions. Expect surprises. Add “padding” to your estimates. This will only impress people when you perform over and beyond. And it will provide you with some wiggle room should Murphy’s Law kick in and everything that can go wrong actually does.

Confront Mistakes

We all make promises that we intend to keep and then later realize we can’t. We all make mistakes. And though we want to do our very best, everyone falls short at times. These are just the facts of life. It’s how you deal with them that matters most. Be upfront and address problems right away.

If you can’t follow through on something you said you would, be apologetic and attempt to make it right immediately. If something happened that made it impossible for you to deliver on a promise, speak up and do everything in your power to fix it. Most importantly, don’t hide or make excuses or shift blame when things go wrong. Take responsibility. Own up to it. Make it right. And then figure out what happened so it can be prevented in the future.

Being reliable doesn’t mean you’re perfect. It just means that others can have faith in you. They can feel confident in your abilities and in your character. These are the things that business relationships are built on. Without question, unreliable professionals will certainly struggle when trying to get ahead in the workplace, so take action today to overcoming this career-limiting habit.

Photo Credit: MichaelKuhn (Flickr)