When it comes to career development, it's easy to jump into action mode without strategic premeditation or foresight. It's easy to forget to do the most important thing for career success: determining who you are.

If you don't know who you are, then others won't know either. And if they don't know you, they certainly won't remember you if or when they come across a career opportunity that fits your career priorities or goals.

Knowing who you are doesn't require complex psychoanalysis or, God forbid, the involvement of a psychotherapist. It's simply a matter of writing on a piece of paper: "As a serious professional, I specialize in ____________."

This simple sentence will help you to focus all your career efforts in the right direction. Of course, coming up with such a strategic sentence won't be easy. The best way is to iterate then validate. In other words, you can go from "I specialize in direct marketing" to "I specialize in direct marketing for the IT consulting industry" and so on.

It's worth to think long and hard about this exercise, because the more precise and specific your area of specialization, the easier it will be for people to remember you.

If they remember you and the area you specialize in, they are more likely to forward to you ideas, information, resources, connections or career opportunities which fit your focus. This will enable you to grow your career faster.

You might say, "Well, I think my friends know what I specialize in. They've known me for a long time."

Maybe so. But it is wise to verify it though, by simply asking five of your friends to complete the sentence "(Your name) is a serious professional. He/she specializes in _______________."

If the five answers are similar, then you are correct. If the five answers differ markedly, well, it may be time to call up your friends and update them on the status of your career.

Nevertheless, even if your five closest friends know what you specialize in, one's career is often advanced by what is called "weak ties": acquaintances that you are connected with, but with whom you don't have a deep or close relationship. Your connections on Linkedin, for instance, could be called "weak ties."

Malcom Gladwell wrote a book titled The Tipping Point, where he describes the importance of "weak ties." The book is worth reading because it contains insights that are useful to professional networking.

In addition to asking your five closest friends to complete the sentence above so you can ascertain whether you truly have a coherent professional identity, you could return the favor to them by completing the sentence "(Your friend's name): I think that as a serious professional, you specialize in ____________."

The fact is that most people are not really sure what they specialize in. A quick review of dozens of Linkedin profiles will show that most people have consciously or subconsciously omitted to clearly define their area of specialization.

Some will mention several areas of specialization, but that is not advisable nor does it inspire trust.

For instance, would you trust a surgeon who only does surgery all day long and wants to become the best in his field, or one who does surgery but also renovates houses and moonlights as a landscape artist?

Ultimately, trust is the name of the game in one's career, and trust can only be inspired when other people know for sure what your professional identity is and what specialization you are committed to.