Have you started the New Year with a plan for your successful career in tech? How do you ensure you will achieve your ambitious goals in 2021?

Many of us use the time by the end of a year, when life slows down, to look back and review our achievements. We think about where we have started and what we have set out to do in the year. However, sticking to our resolutions is not always easy and often we lose track of what we actually wanted to achieve. Let us help you to do it differently this time and start the New Year with a plan for a successful career in tech!

The time span between the 25th of Dec and the 6th of Jan is known as the 12 Days and Nights of Christmas (Rauhnächte). It is the time of transition when we can leave the old year behind and create space for the new one. It is the time when we can manifest wishes and intentions for the future. The 12 days/nights symbolize the 12 months in the new year. They each predict the events in the assigned month.

During this time, we have guided you with a plan for your career in tech in 2021 with our LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook posts. For each of the nights, we helped you to create events, goals and plans for the upcoming months. Each night was assigned to a different theme and provided guidance and information on how you can prepare yourself for a successful 2021! Herewith, we provide you all 12 posts again for you to check in every month!

Bookmark this page so you can visit it every month again!

January – Set your goals

Take out pen and paper, and start setting your goals in January. On the first night of Christmas (starting at midnight), think about what you want to do in January! The beginning of the year is always a good time to define your goals for the year.

Here are some guidelines on how you can define your goals in January:

• Investigate your current position, what do you like about your work, what excites you, are you still in the right position? Write down all the points, pros and cons.
• Prepare yourself for your goal setting meeting with your superior. Investigate your company, what are they planning for the future, what new positions are available or soon opening up? Think about, where you want to be by the end of the year and talk about it in the meeting.
• There are lots of events happening to support you in thriving in your career! Find out, which events are taking place and reserve your spot for the events coming up this year.

#tipoftheday: Join our Culture-Purpose-Match workshop on the 16th of Jan and find your dream company in 2021! Register here.

February – Plan your Career

Now that you have set your goals, discussed them with your boss and set yourself up for success, it is time to plan the next steps in your career in tech! February will just be the right month to do that!

Want to get some advice on how? Let us share our insights with you:

• If you want to plan ahead, take some time off and get away from all the hustle of daily work life. Perfect timing in winter! Book yourself a cozy hotel room or an Airbnb in the snowy mountain to find some peace and tranquillity to plan ahead.
• Find some books you want to read in February to set your mind towards success. Is it Designing Your Life or the old classical How To Win Friends and Influence People?
• Investigate websites with tips and tricks on how to enhance your career and sign up for their newsletter now! Take the time in February to reassess the content of these newsletters and find out, which are offering the help you need!

#tipoftheday: Sign up for our Newsletter and get lots of information helping you to thrive in your career – sign up here.

March – Learn a new skill

Are you ready for the new goals you have planned for 2021? The only constant in our lives is change – and so are the skills you might need to reach your career goals in 2021. In March, gain new skills and enhance your CV to impress!

We understand that it is not always easy to learn something new, so here is our advice for you:

• Set a SMART goal for learning a new skill (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) and make sure it fits your life and career. Will you start a new job? You might not have as much time to learn something, but you might want to gain a new skill before you start!
• How do you learn the best way? In the next months, observe how you learned something new. Did you learn it because you read about it, because someone taught you, or was it hands-on?
• Spend some time investigating the different opportunities to learn. Set some time aside and visit different institutions (online or in person), talk to alumni’s and find out how the course could help you to proceed in your career!

#tipoftheday: Join our Full Stack Developer Program in March and start your career in tech! Apply here.

April – Get connected

There is nothing more empowering than sharing your story with a group of like-minded people. And there are many out there for you – let’s explore in April!

Finding your group of people that inspire and empower you is not always easy, here are some of our thoughts on how you can find them:

• Find out what interests you most! Over the next months, explore different topics and read about them. Sign up for a newsfeed, such as Refind, and get your daily dose of articles from different areas.
• Talk to your friends and family to understand, what’s on their minds lately, what are they currently working on and how could you support them. Can you identify a common goal or maybe even work together on something?
• Join a community! Explorer the different communities and join their events in April. Which one did you like most? Where did you find inspiring and like-minded people? Sign up for the newsletter or even become a volunteer!

#tipoftheday: check out our list of female tech communities to find a community to join as a member or even a volunteer. You can find the overview here.

May – Focus on your Career

Now that you are set to grow and thrive, let’s focus on getting the plan for your career in tech going! In May, companies are looking for talents so it is just the right time to get you started.

Here are our tips on how you can build your best career:

• Get your application portfolio ready! You never know when there is an opportunity coming up, so it is always advisable to have your portfolio ready. Spend some time in May to update your CV, consolidate all your documents update your social profiles.
• You want to stand out? Knowing what you do best and where you are an expert in is the first step to stand out. Be confident about what you have achieved and talk about it to get the job you want!
• A lot of jobs are never advertised! So finding the right job might not happen by applying to open positions. Talk to your friends and former colleagues, tell them what you are passionate about and where do you want to go. They might just have the right connection to your next job!

#tipoftheday: Get to know companies in a personal meeting by joining our Talent Matching candidates pool! Be among the first to be invited for the next Talent Matching Event and sign up here.

June – Get inspired in June

Inspiration is the key to lead a successful career! Being inspired will help you to go the extra mile, to find your purpose and define your goals. It might be about time to get some inspiration in June!

Let us help you find inspiration with our tips:

• Who has inspired you this year? Who has been your role model? Take some time to sit down and write down the names of those, who gave you this little push towards the right direction.
• How have these people been inspiring you? Was it what they stand for or how they lead the way? Could you identify common traits or strengths? Find out what it was and how to adapt those yourself!
• Be inspired by inspiring others! Nothing has a bigger impact than being a role model yourself. Investigate some opportunities for how you can inspire others. Who would you like to support and what are they looking for? This is the perfect timing to inspire others by writing an article about your journey or talk about it in a podcast!

#tipoftheday: Listen to amazing women in tech and get your daily dose of inspiration with our podcast Tech Inspired! Check out all the interviews we have done so far and get empowered here.

July – Investigate your Future

During the summer months, it gets quieter and it is time to relax! It might be time to think about a new employer? Let us investigate in July!

Finding the right employer has lots to do with what you value. In the past months, we gave you plenty to discover your value and purpose, now we look at employers:

• Make a list of companies you would like to get to know better. Maybe you come across them in your daily life or you hear about them in talks, podcasts or events. Prepare a list you want to investigate further in July.
• How can you understand the culture of a company? Spend some time to understand the companies by browsing their website, follow them on LinkedIn, Facebook or Instagram. What are they posting about?
• Talk to their people! Check your network and find out if someone works there. Meet them for an after-work drink and find out what they like about the company. What do they cherish and what do they hate?

#tipoftheday: Check out the Company Profiles on our website! We investigated these companies for you, we highlight their cultural values, their mission and vision and why they are a great place to work! Find them here.

August – Expand your Network

„If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.“ (African Proverb). You have been going fast until now, let’s make sure we go together for the rest of the year. August is the time to expand your network and support each other.

How can you find a supporting network? We got you here with our tips:

• Building up a network takes time. How have you networked in the past months? Who are the new people in your network? How were you supporting each other in your career and growth? Write down what has happened so far.
• What are your next steps? Who could help you grow further? Which topics are you interested in? In which area would you like to be more connected? Answering these questions will help you to identify the networks that would support you most going further.
• Find your network by exploring different organizations. Check out the LinkedIn groups, meetups or find an event on Eventbrite that is around the area of your interest. Sign up and get ready to expand your network.

#tipoftheday: All the events from our partner communities can be found on our website! Visit our Events page and sign up for the event you are most interested in here.

September – Asking for help in September

There is so much happening and you have so many ideas, sometimes it is hard to choose the right path for yourselves. Don’t feel intimidated, it happens to all of us! September is the time to think about, how to get the help you need to move forward.

You might not even realize how much help there is, so here is our advice on how to ask for it:

• Sit down and look back at the past months. Where did you get stuck? Have you experienced the same struggles over and over again? Is there a pattern? Find out what is hindering you to do the next step.
• Plan to reach out to someone you have collaborating closely. Ask them, how they would describe you. You might be surprised to hear, what others see in you, the good and the bad. Knowing how others see you will help you identify with your struggle.
• Now it is time to change! And yes, we all need help with it! Is there someone at work you look up to or get inspired? Ask this person, if she/he wants to be your mentor.

#tipoftheday: We understand that it is not always easy to ask for help. That’s why we introduced the Mentor Matching Program! Sign up now and let us help you find a mentor to ask for help.

October – Celebration Time

We worked hard, reached our goals and followed our plan to make dreams possible! You have plenty of reason to in October!

And here are our tips for how you can best prepare to celebrate your success in October:

• Celebrate by regain energy and relax before the last months of the year are starting! So book a holiday or the trip you always wanted to do! Fly away, take the train, or simply travel in your mind! The world is yours and there is so much to explore!
• Sometimes we lose track of what we have reached therefore we suggest you keep a success diary. Every night before you go to bed, write down 3 things you have achieved. No matter how small or big, they all matter! In October, you will be surprised by how much you have achieved!
• Sharing is caring, so don’t forget to invite your friends to celebrate together! You might want to start your own Working Out Loud Circle for the remainder of the year.

#tipoftheday: celebrate with us and join the #wetechtogether conference this year! Meet lots of like-minded people, get hands-on experience and listen to inspiring people in tech. Sign up for our newsletter to be the to grab a ticket here.

November – Get the advice you need

You will receive a lot of advice in your life, some you will follow others not! Let’s find out which you followed in November!

Here is how you can find this one good advice:

• There are many people giving you advice, and they are as different as these people. So which ones did you follow and were helpful? In November, sit down and think about the advice you have received. Who has given them to you? How did you integrate them into your life?
• You might still looking for good advice and are struggling to find just the one for the situation you are in. How about talking to someone who is not an insider? Even if this person might not be able to help you, you already gain more insights by speaking out loud about what you go through.
• Another good place to find advice are blog or social media posts. Start following different people on LinkedIn, Social Media or their blog sites. Review how often you have read through their posts and remove those you have seldom visited.

#tipoftheday: visit the blog posts by TechFace. We share lots of useful information about career and tech topics and how you can build and plan your best career in tech here.

December – It is time to look back

The year is ending and it is time to review what you have achieved. While preparing for a festive season, don’t forget to look back in December!

Here are our tips on how to prepare for your yearly review:

• Write a letter to your future me! It is the start of the year, where do you want to be by the end of it? What do you want to reach and what to change? What has to stay the same? Write it down, put it in an envelope and store it in a safe place until December!
• Create a vision board! This will not only help you to plan your next year, but it also shows you how much you have achieved! Can you aim even higher? What is the next big step you planned? Can you go even further?
• Go back in time and visit all the months. Get out what you have written down, review what you have done each month! Who have you meet, how did you change your career, what did you celebrate? Sit down with friends and enjoy the success you can celebrate now.

#tipoftheday: Are you ready for a new challenge? Check out the project we have in store for you to help you get your #unicornjob in 2022! Visit the project Skills Finder website and sign up already today here.

You got this!

Have you followed all the guidance and advice? If so, we hope by the time you get to the end of the year, you can look back to a successful year! And the best part is, you can use the above steps again to prepare for the next year! Get ready to plan your best career in tech!