"Nobody cares about your career as much as you do."

Career counselors earn their livings preaching this maxim. Entrepreneurs consider it their mantra. And as a manager, I've found that employees who understand it are the most appealing to work with.

Eager to excel, they constantly look for new opportunities, raising their hands for tough and adventurous assignments, and stretching themselves in new ways. Refusing to be defined by others, they repeatedly take risks and resist conforming to a prescribed path.

They can also be the most challenging. Tough on themselves, they want recognition and rewards from their bosses. They are the employees who don't hesitate to call me late at night when they have a "great idea" for a new project. And when they perform in outstanding ways, they aren't afraid to ask for a raise or promotion.

One reporter I worked with told me his goals and preferences the minute he joined my staff. He announced that he didn't like to spend time in executive suites talking to "suits. I like grit." That preference took him to places most of his colleagues shunned. He spent one holiday weekend in a trailer park in Missouri, where he narrowly avoided being beaten up by a group of homeless migrants, and a week with factory workers in the poorest counties of northern Vermont.

Passionate and Generous

He produced numerous prize-winning stories. Yet no prize dulled his drive to produce more, to start anew on another story that intrigued him. Nor did the prizes make him arrogant. Deeply passionate about his work, he was also a generous team player, quick to share ideas and offer help to colleagues.

He knew the difference between caring about his career and caring only about himself. He wasn't at all like another fiercely ambitious employee, who always sought bosses who could help her advance but never extended a helping hand to others -- and was preoccupied with how much credit she was getting and how fast she was advancing. By contrast, his ambitions had little to do with climbing over others.

He could have moved to a prestigious editing job, but rejected that route as "a bad fit" for him. A one-month stint as an editor was enough, he told me, noting that he hated being confined to an office. He stuck with what he loved most, eventually writing books as well as newspaper and magazine articles.

Self-motivated career movers know they must strike a balance between acting independently and in concert with others. While they can't passively wait to be discovered, they also need help and criticism. These employees aren't afraid of feedback and seek it out. Rather than reassurance, however, they want to know frankly what weaknesses they have and how they can improve. They use feedback to hone their skills, to map their next move and grow on the job.

One such employee didn't become defensive when I noted that her writing talents far exceeded her business-reporting skills. Instead, she raised her hand for a tough beat, convincing me she could and would master it, then buckled down to the task of learning how to read financial statements and technical reports.

Don't Sit Still

And what about those who don't get the job or promotion they want, even after aggressively pursuing a move? There are those who blame the system, their boss and themselves, often all at once, and end up getting stuck -- and those who assess their situation squarely and then refuse to sit still.

One veteran employee of mine who wanted to be a manager but didn't get tapped for a promotion two years in a row -- partly because management openings were scarce at the time -- concluded he might do better elsewhere. Instead of getting depressed, he got active, networking and sending out his resume. Within a short time he got a management offer at a new company, and he has since advanced to a higher management job at another company.

I've learned from each of these employees to take more responsibility for my own career. Whether my title changes or not, I want to keep growing on my job, and so I welcome new experiences. When I had the chance to travel to Asia for work a few years ago, I seized the opportunity, even though I was at first fearful about some of the itinerary, which included a helicopter trip over the mountain ranges of Nepal and a trek in western China. Not only did I meet fascinating people and learn about a part of the world I'd long yearned to see, but I also broadened my skills as a reporter.

Similarly, writing this column has been an exciting chance to write about issues I and others face on the job every day and to communicate with new readers. If you would like to share ways in which you have cared for your career, write to me.