URGENT Career Advice

A career is not a ladder, but a highway with off-ramps and on-ramps and turns. You may want to go north, but you may need to get there by heading east.
Sometimes, the way to go up is to go down. Or sideways.
Take on projects that you can put your name on.
Create a voice within your organization. Have your fingerprint or handprint on something no one else does within the organization.
Be a change agent.
Embrace risk.
Don't be afraid to take on a challenge – even if you fear you don't know enough about it. You will learn it through your leadership of others.
Promote yourself rather than waiting for somebody else to promote you. Don’t wait for a promotion to take on new responsibility.
You are in charge of your own destiny. There is no pre-set path to success.
Just do it. You can’t always reconstruct an opportunity. Have a run at it and give up later if it is necessary, but an opportunity may never come again.
• You are not always ready for a promotion. You are not the No. 1 person until you have the job. You can’t practice for it until you do it.

Don’t be afraid to go lateral. Go for the best experiences.
Always ask what you can do better.
Work in an environment that has a culture that is consistent with your values.
Merchandise your success. Don’t be humble about your results.
It is not the responsibility of senior management to notice your results. Make sure you advertise them.
You will be rewarded for your willingness to be bold and go after something.
Speak up for yourself. Don’t always accept the immediate response. Continually push the envelope, but do it in a way that doesn’t alienate people.
Ask your boss and boss’s boss how you are doing against your objectives. That way, they know what you are doing.
It is okay to say no. It doesn’t mean you will never have another opportunity.
If you stay in a demeaning situation or one that holds you back, you will become mediocre.
Life is too short to do work that you are not passionate about.
This is a marathon. It is not a sprint.