Make Morey Money & Be Happy in Your Job Using a Work Portfolio

Who doesn’t want to earn more money or find a job they like better?  I can’t speak for the entire job market but pretty much everyone that leaves our team at work is in search of higher pay or a more fulfilling job.

I myself have joined the ranks of the job searchers recently and have learned the power of a portfolio in helping you find jobs that do pay better and that you enjoy more.

Creating a Career Strategy
The first thing that happens when you go to build a professional portfolio is that you have to decide what should go in it.  It’s during this exploratory phase that you basically force yourself to create a career strategy.  Here are some of the questions you’ll answer that help map out your career plans.

• What work have you done in the past that you enjoyed and are proud of?
• What skills do you want to exhibit to potential employers? 
• What types of jobs are you targeting? 
• Do you have the needed skills for the desired jobs?
• What things in your current job do you want to avoid in the future?

Figuring out where you are professionally and where you want to be is key to finding work you enjoy and being happy in your job.

Building a Profile
Once you have your strategy figured out you start noticing things you do in your current job that you can use as part of your portfolio.

• Positive feedback from managers or clients.
• Examples of problems you solved and how.
• Successful completion of projects or attainment of goals.

You can document these as they occur, rather than having to try and remember them all next time you put together a resume.  Knowing you want to use your accomplishments in your portfolio you can take extra care to capture the details and document the success as it happens.

Overcoming Laziness
One of the main reasons people don’t have a portfolio is that they don’t take the time to put one together.  It certainly can be a good deal of work but once you form your strategy and create your initial profile, simply adding to it over time is much simpler.

Marketing Yourself
When an employer hires someone they are taking a risk, making an investment in their company.  While you see making more money as an end goal, they see paying you that money as a way to achieve their business goal.  The more you can convince an employer that your skills are what they need to succeed, the more money they’ll be willing to pay you.

One of the best ways to convince employers of your worth is to give them concrete evidence that you can deliver on what you claim on your resume.  Your portfolio demonstrates the work you can do and the results it’s helped others achieve.

If an employer can get to know you and your skills better through your portfolio you’re lowering the amount of risk they feel in extending you an offer.  By highlighting what you can do with your portfolio you’re differentiating yourself from other candidates and increasing your value in the minds of the person that’s considering hiring you.

Start Your Portfolio Today
I’ve put a lot of work over the last few weeks into career planning and portfolio building.  I wish I would have started one years ago, it would have saved me a lot of time and I’d likely already be in a job that I enjoyed more.  So block out some time in the coming weeks to start building your own portfolio so you can market yourself appropriately to make more money and find a job you can be happy in.

Ben Edwards, the founder of Money Smart Life, saved up enough to buy a Nintendo back when he was 12 years old. When he used the money to buy shares of Wal-Mart stock instead, he knew he wasn't like the other kids... His addiction to personal finance has paid off for his family and now he's helping you to afford the life that you want. Check him out on the web at Google Plus, Twitter and Facebook.

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