Career Growth Accelerator - Assessing Yourself - Using a Nine-Block to Map Your Skill, Potential, and Energy Investment

🎧 Episode Notes: Using a Nine-Block for Skill, Potential, and Energy Investment Most career assessments try to paint a static picture of what you can do well with the least effort, but they often fail to provide a practical roadmap for your next career move. This episode provides a simplified, multidimensional version of a classic management tool to help you prioritise your growth:

Understand the Nine-block Matrix: • Visualise a grid where the x-axis represents your current performance • (how well you are doing now) and the y-axis represents your potential • (your capacity to grow to the next level). The Energy Dimension: • Go beyond a 2D map by evaluating the energy cost • of each skill on a scale of 1–5; this helps you identify where you are on "autopilot" versus where a skill is draining you. The Risk Factor: • Assign a risk or criticality score • to your skills to determine which are "fundamental" to your role (like software delivery) and which can be safely dropped to make room for more valuable growth. Spot Opportunity Flags: • Identify areas where you have high potential but low performance and low energy output • ; these represent your best opportunities for rapid improvement with the least input. Make the Counterintuitive Trade-off: • Learn why you might need to drop a skill you are already good at • if it has low growth potential, redirecting that energy toward a new skill that offers higher long-term value for your career. Categorise Your "Bread and Butter" Skills: • Recognise those mid-level skills that ensure your reliability and help you get the job done but shouldn't be the primary focus of your intense energy and development. 📮 Ask a Question If you enjoyed this episode and would like me to discuss a question that you have on the show, drop it over at: developertea.com. 📮 Join the Discord If you want to be a part of a supportive community of engineers (non-engineers welcome!) working to improve their lives and careers, join us on the Developer Tea Discord community today! I am in there as well, and you can message me directly. 🧡 Leave a Review If you're enjoying the show and want to support the content, head over to iTunes and leave a review! It helps other developers discover the show and keeps us focused on what matters to you.