Careers have different hierarchies and promotional schemes. Even a little hard work and perseverance is far from reaching professional goals. So what can be the misconceptions about career development in Germany? As ambitious people are escalating the career ladder, here is what you should do for career development. Seven false conceptions to put into your own hands for your professional advancement.

Career Development in Germany

Building a career means more than a salary raise. Behind the concept of professional success there are very different definitions of career development. This term is often used to describe the professional career in general, which also includes the classic "ascending" hierarchies in a company and the assumption of new responsibilities. Nowadays, more than 75% name the aspect of professional freedom as a distinguishing feature of a successful career. Shifting in career is considered a sign of career development especially if it includes flexible working hours and a good work-life balance. Developing your professional situation is linked to various conditions:

-Qualifications: various positions insist on advanced studies to grant development such as engineering, accountancy, medical diplomas, etc…Your qualifications can be advanced through choosing a long term academic path and through sabbatical contributions.

-Experience and seniority: career development doesn’t happen over a few days. It is a process based on seniority at work.

To understand the general conditions of career development in Germany, sign up to Fratres and select Germany. Fratres is a worldwide job portal with updated information about employment in every place in the world. Here are 7 misconceptions that many German employees believe about career advancement:

1.Career Development means an Increase in the Salary:

 This is wrong!. Career development is not about earning more. You can advance in your career without making a huge increase in your Salary. German salaries in general meet the cost of living and they do not increase in a gradual way. That is, if you get promoted in your professional life, you may get additional advantages such as decreasing your working hours, obtaining a new job title, obtaining more employment benefits and the last advantage is increasing your salary. The job satisfaction in Germany and the personal level of awareness in one's own career are ranked higher than the level of the salary and the position in the company hierarchy.

2. Career Development means an early Retirement:

Various factors can facilitate the career boost. In particular, people with a huge professional contribution and career life are not easily abandoned. Retirement in Germany depends on the sector, some professional fields grant retirement at the age of 55 others at the age of 65. Retirement is not an early process in Germany. So many employees want to expand their professional activities. German employees have a decisive passion for the industry as well as bringing the best starting opportunities for a career. The transition from one position to another is not also a quick process, as managers consider the employment history, punctuality, the level of obtaining leaves and absences. All these features interfere in granting additional professional advantages for granting retirement or transition.

3. Career Development doesn’t need Soft Skills:

A lot of professionals think that hard skills are the only demands in the job market. But, nowadays many personal traits and soft skills are required in achieving career development. The reasons are various. First, Germany is trying to reach out to a strong European economy through encouraging communication and exchange with other European countries. Second, job commitment always depends on individual requirements. That is when applicants have the necessary personal traits, such as communicative skills, teamwork, and group management, they can develop their professional situations through soft skills. The current job market in Germany  is considering personal traits as career pushes such as;

• Communication skills
• Resilience
• Professional competence
• Decision-making power
• self-consciousness
• Determination
• Conflict resolution skills
• Sense of responsibility
• reliability

4. Focus on Career Development rather than Learning:

This is wrong; the process of learning will not harm your career development. The changing job market requires constant research, especially in the fields of technology, medicines, engineering, etc.. Learning should not be underestimated. It includes new skills and knowledge that can improve traditional work. Take a look at; What Is Career Advancement? And 12 Tips for Achieving It

5. Career Development means Working without Mistakes:

This is also wrong! Mistakes means valuable experience: One of the learning fields is that you develop your skills and knowledge through mistakes and errors in past jobs. Mistakes are one of the learning ways to make progress in terms of soft and hard skills. That means: Gaining experience - no matter what! Even your own self-presentation and communication skills do not necessarily work naturally as a career starter. Here, too, learn from your mistakes and get the best out of your language skills and charisma.

6. Career Development Doesn’t Happen Through Changing your job:

Many employees think that staying in the same field will help them advance in their career. The main assumption is that a career change in some sector will make you lose years of professional seniority, including benefits. But, some career change decisions can bring more advantages than keeping the same job. People changing jobs, for example, have a good chance of attaining a higher career level. Ideally, you will go through an average of 3 or 4 job changes up to your career peak in order to gain various work experiences. Take a look at; Ten Solid Evidences Why your CV Is Bad For Your Career Development.

7. Career Development Requires a Permanent Work Contract:

First, work contracts in Germany depend on the sector. Second, they include the terms and conditions of work and the mutual arrangements between employers and employees. Before signing any contract, you should make yourself aware of the types of professional advancements provided by the industry. If the promotional path is not mentioned in the job description, you can inquire about it during the job interview or your probation period. You can also read; Why Getting Started Had Been So Popular Till Now?

These were the top seven misconceptions about career development. Every sector provides various career paths. Some of them are eligible for progression. Others are based upon monotonous work and have a stagnant aspect that doesn’t grant development.