Are you building your career?

4:00

Build / Work ratio is a critical career indicator missed by most people.

Here's what I mean.

At the end of every working day, what do you have in your hands? That's what you built that day. You own it.

A freelance graphic designer might have a new logo or brochure, which she designed for a client that day. That work sample is now part of her portfolio. She built a part of her career.

But if you're a middle manager for a corporation, then chances are, at the end of every working day you did not build anything for yourself. Sure, you solved problems for the company, you motivated a team member, you did some paperwork, etc. but you did not do anything concrete for your career.

Therefore, your Build / Work ratio is small, compared to the B/W ratio of the freelance graphic designer mentioned above.

The B/W ratio is a powerful indicator of how fast you are building your career.

If you are only "working" and not "building" career assets (i.e. work samples that you can show to future clients or employers), then your career is not growing as fast as it could be. You might, in fact, be falling behind compared to your competitors in the same profession or company.