Even though you might be happy right now in your job, do you feel the same way about your career?

For example, your current job might be giving you everything you want in terms of salary, working hours, challenges and experiences. But what about in a year’s time? Or 2 years? Or 5? Or 10? You can’t guarantee that what you have now will still be right for you in the future - that’s if it’s still even available in the future.

And that’s why being smart when it comes to career management is a great idea - and why you shouldn’t ever just let things ride - no matter how happy you are in your current job.

This is especially true when you’re working in the creative media sector, as new opportunities, new clients, and even new agencies seem to spring up daily. You never know when you’re going to run into something - or someone - new, that could blow what you currently have right out of the water.

So the basic principle of smarter career management is to never stop looking. I’m not talking about furiously searching job boards and classified ads everyday, or sending your CV or resume to 20 prospectives a week - I mean quietly keeping your ear to the ground, and your finger on the pulse, and being ready to act at a minute’s notice.

It’s not difficult. And for the most part, continuing to build your own networks of people, colleagues and companies will be enough. But there are a few other tips that you can make all the difference between you making that next step up the career ladder, or missing out.

• Maintain your profile on job boards - Most job boards offer you the option of keeping your account even after you’ve found a new job, with the ability to make it private so that your profile won’t turn up in any search results. Do this, and keep adding to it whenever you have something significant to say. Then, when the time comes to start actively looking again, or you happen to find a great job, you - and your online profile - will be ready.
• Build up a list of the best career sites or job boards - The best time to search and evaluate job boards and other career sites is when you’re not actually looking for a job. That way, you’re not searching them in a blind ‘must-find-a-job-now’ panic, and you have plenty of time to base your judgement on more than just whether there are any suitable jobs. You can check out their career advice sections, keep a tab on which companies are advertising vacancies, and much more. After a few weeks, you’ll have built up a comprehensive list of online resources that are useful to you - and you’ll be more prepared than last time when it comes to starting an active search.
• Keep your CV and covering letter bang up to date - again, doing this when you’re not searching in a panic gives you more time to think about how your CV or resume and cover letter sounds. You can put much more effort into making them reflect your skills, ability and personality more accurately, and again, you’ll be ready.
• Don’t stop browsing - Job boards, career sites, trade magazines… It doesn’t hurt to keep a regular check on what’s out there, and who’s hiring. It only takes a quick 5 minute search during lunchtime, or 15 minutes on the train going home after work.

So, think smarter and put a little bit of effort into preparing for the next time you think about stepping up your career. You’ll be pleased you did.