Conducting an Honest Self-Assessment

Only two months until the end of 2019 and that means that year-end reviews are right around the corner. For some people this may mean raises, promotions, and good fortune while for others they may be getting feedback that they aren’t expecting. Regardless of which side you are on, it’s a good idea to conduct a self-assessment of how you would grade yourself so you can go into your meeting prepared to toot your own horn or utilize constructive criticism.
Create a Personal Deck of Achievements
Many times, at work, it is easy for the days to become weeks and the weeks to become months and before you know it, you have worked on dozens of projects and reports that you and your bosses forgot you even touched. The easiest way to get recognition for your growth is to record it. Create an organized deck or spreadsheet of what you have worked on since your last review that you can show your boss. That way you aren’t struggling to remember what you did when called in to discuss your progress.
Top 5’s and Not-so-Top 5s
What are your strengths and weaknesses? It’s the most overused interview question, but also the most important to keep in mind for yourself to know where you have shined and where you may have fallen short over the year. This way you are able to identify areas where you should focus on during your year-end reviews, and areas that you need to better position yourself in  for improvement. Weaknesses aren’t always weaknesses if you are able to show your boss that you are already on the path of improvement.
Prepare an Improvement Potential Path
A weakness or shortcoming isn’t the end of the world if you have a plan to better your skills in that area. If you have noticed you have a weakness, it is probable that your managers and coworkers have noticed too. Prepare a plan to improve your weaker skills before your manager addresses those weaknesses as a reason to pass you up for the promotion. This could be taking a class, asking for training, or taking extra time to complete a task.
Your Knowledge, Skills, Attributes, and Other
What do you know? What can you do? How do you work? What are your secret weapons? These are all questions that you should be able to answer about yourself and be prepared to tell your manager. In addition, you need to keep track of when you learned new  knowledge, skills, and attributes to better trace your progress and self-improvement to justify that you are growing in your career.
Know Where You Started and Where You’re Going
It is impossible to track how far you’ve gone if you have no idea where you started. Similarly, it’s hard for your manager to give you direction if they don’t know where you are going. Be clear in voicing your goals within the company and your progress. That way all the key players in your career know what your next steps are and will keep you top of mind when looking to fill positions that align with your goals.
While year-end reviews can be nerve-wracking, a successful self-assessment will prepare you for any feedback that you may receive. Before you go into your review, know where you have been and where you want to go. Contact your DCAProSearch recruiter to go over your career and set your career goals before going into these reviews to better understand what to expect and where you should be going.