10 Tips For Spring Cleaning Your Career

1. Take stock of where you are in your career and where you want to go

Many of us get so caught up in day-to-day work that we lose sight of whether we're on the right path. Do you enjoy going to work every day? Are you stimulated by what you do? Are you making enough to live the way you want and save for the future? Are you pursuing your professional dreams? If not, take steps. Think about this moment in your career as an 18-month segment. Talk to your boss to find out what you can do to get on a learning curve, and spend the next three months acquiring the skills you need, inside and outside your organization. Take on added responsibilities that will challenge you. In mastering new skills, you may discover new things that excite you and get ideas about what you want to do next.

2. Update your résumé

Replace hackneyed expressions like "strong team player" and "possess organizational skills" with strong, active verbs that demonstrate results. Whenever possible, use numbers to document your performance. Instead of saying "Managed a team of three" say "Managed a team of three employees who interacted with clients and had a 100% client retention rate over two years." Include keywords related to your skills and background, since many big companies use computers to screen résumés for phrases, like "analyst" or "financial modeling." Have a friend double-check your résumé for spelling and grammatical errors. And always be honest.

3. Update your LinkedIn profile

Add links to any websites that showcase your work. Write a summary of your career, with as many keywords as possible. Enlist colleagues to write recommendations. Increase your volume of connections by reaching out to former colleagues. Send a brief personal note with each invitation to link. Flesh out the "Experience" section to include a description of every job you've had.

4. Clean off your desk

Set aside an hour before or after work to declutter your desk. File business cards in some kind of searchable way, and file random documents, too.

5. Clean up your inbox

Save important e-mails and addresses. Unsubscribe from inbox-clogging newsletters. Write the e-mails you've been avoiding, and move on.

6. Clean up your online reputation

Either set your Facebook settings so prospective employers can't see your updates and photos, or be very sure to post information that presents you in a positive, professional light.

7. Take a class

Continuing education is a great way to explore other careers without officially shifting gears. It's often taught by a working professional who can give you an insider's perspective on a particular career. If you're happy in your current job, brush up on skills that will make you a more valuable employee.

8. Network

The best time to network is when you're not actively searching for a job. Join an alumni organization, and get to know people inside and outside of your field. Network internally by meeting colleagues for lunch or coffee at least once a week.

9. Pare down your to-do list

Consider all the things that compete for your time, and decide which to hold onto and which to discard. If you volunteer with three nonprofit organizations, select the most meaningful one, focus on it, and stop giving your divided attention to all three. Focus on the things that are important to you, and don't do the extraneous stuff.

10. Update your "bragalogue" of recent achievements

A bragalogue is a short, pithy story that incorporates a few bits of information about who you are and what you've done. Think of a few positive things you can say about your work, and be prepared to share them during fly-by encounters with your boss. Create a document for keeping track of your achievements, if you don't already have one. Every time you accomplish something, make an entry, noting what you did and why it was important. When possible, show how that achievement helped your company. The list will help you make your case for an internal promotion. Or, if you've stopped being excited about your accomplishments, indicate that it's time for something new.