Your Career Painting

If leadership is a continuous practice and a competency model a roadmap, the next question is:

How does an employee use that roadmap to build a growth journey?

We often ask, “Where do you want to be in 3–5 years?”
Vision matters. But progress starts with understanding how you’re showing up now.

I encourage employees to begin with the present:
- Review the competencies for your level. Where do you see yourself in each area?
- What are your strengths today? Where do you see opportunities to grow
- Gather perspective from managers and peers. What do they see?

Instead of treating development like a ladder to climb, try seeing it as a painting in progress. Each competency you strengthen, brings part of that picture to life. As the picture becomes clearer, you eventually move to a new canvas, bringing the skills you’ve built before, allowing this piece to become more complex.

Just like it’s impossible to paint the lake, trees, and sky at the same time, you focus on 1 – 2 competencies to develop at a time, circling back to them as needed, adding layers as you go.

If your career were a painting, what part are you strengthening right now?