What do you want to be when you grow up? How do people figure out what they want to work at or what course of study to follow? How do you figure it all out? Managing your Career in the 21st century is a whole new ball game. For the first time literally, growing numbers of people have choices and with all this choice comes the added responsibility of self-management. It would seem obvious that the best route to follow would be to do something that you are good at but I find that when it comes down to it very few people across all age groups actually know let alone take advantage of their fundamental strengths.
Author, Richard Lieder, in his book “the power of purpose” proposes “that each individual is born with a reason for being and that life is a quest to discover that purpose.” Wow, read that line again!
If you are having trouble getting motivated when is the last time you actually sat down and thought about your interests, your personality traits, your values, your abilities and where they would be best utilised to help you find your sense of purpose.
Here are a few questions for you to really think about:
(a) What are you good at? Think about how those closest to you describe you. No jokes here, I mean the positive things that people say about you. Are you organised, a self-starter, friendly, good listener, technically minded. That kind of thing.
(b) Do you know what you need to learn that would enhance your natural or inherent skills and special interests? Have you narrowed down your interests? How much do you know about all the courses available?
(c) What do you want out of life? Have you given it much thought?
(d) How will you know when you get it?
The typical person works over 100,000 hours in a lifetime and most recent figures indicate that 60%of us are unhappy in our work. And still believe it or not most people spend more time planning a holiday or buying a new kitchen than they do thinking about their career.
Think about how many people you know who have just drifted through college with no clear idea of where they are going. Take a look at the statistics for first years dropping out of college and consider how poor career planning often results in Career or course Crisis.
I work with people from about age 15, through to retirement. I help people to make decisions at different stages of the career life cycle, whether working with a teenager who is trying to navigate the whole plethora of courses and choices out there, to working in organisations where individuals need career support.
Many people don’t know how to approach these career decisions. Too many people wait for the C.A.O deadline without doing any real course research or self-assessment. You wouldn’t prepare for a marathon the night before so why would you put so little thought into your career planning. This is where supportive career coaching can make all the difference, helping you to manage your career.
A recent survey by the Graduate Recruitment Association in the UK found that employers identified the following skills as vital for workers competing in the 21st century labour market:
- Self-awareness. Being clear on your strengths, your interests what you want in life.
- Self –promotion. How to write a CV, perfect your interview skills and practice your public speaking.
- Exploring and creating opportunities. Knowing where to look for further training, development and educational courses. What websites to look for with the information you need e.g.Courses.ie
- Action planning…Learning how to set and achieve goals, getting organised, and perfecting study techniques.
- Networking. Knowing who to talk to for advice and support.
- Matching and decision making. Knowing how to weigh up one course against another, making informed decisions.
- Development focus. Staying motivated with your ambitions.
- Self-confidence…Which comes with all of the above.
As a career strategist I have worked with thousands of people of all ages. I realise that each person has unique motivations when it comes to study and work. As an individual it is vital that you know what it is you enjoy contributing most. There is a saying that where the needs of the world and your talents align, there lies your vocation. So put sometime aside regularly to think about your future, if you are finding it difficult to get started find a supportive career coach or career counsellor for some professional help in career planning and refer to courses.ie regularly to keep up with what’s on offer…..Good luck! |
