Choosing A Career

Your destination in life to a considerable extent is determined by your career choice. Choosing a career can be overwhelming especially with the increased growth of businesses in various industries. With several career options, how do you get the right pick?

Self-Assessment

Before considering a particular career path, you must first understand yourself, your values, personality type and soft skills. It is important to know these things, because there must be a perfect synchronization between your chosen career, your skills, interest and education. When evaluating yourself, ask these questions; “what am I good at? Am I creative with ideas? How good do I relate with people? How organized am I? Do I need to possess organizational skills? etc. However, it is also important to note those things which you are not good at. For instance, if you are not good with numbers, then you know you must rule out a career choice that involves numbers and calculations. The essence of a self-assessment is to find a balance between your skills and your interest.

List your Career Options

Upon completion of your self-assessment, it should be clear the several types of career path you can pursue. Listing them helps you stream-line your options, and it should focus on those career choices that interest you and are compatible with your skill set.

Research

Based on the list you have come up with, conduct a research on each career choice in order to get a deeper insight into what it entails in terms of educational requirements, employment outlook, professional opportunities and annual earnings. When conducting your research do not rely solely on the information you get on the internet. Meet professionals currently operating in that field of interest to get their take about the chosen career path. Doing this will equip you with the information you need to eliminate other career options you are no longer interested in thereby reducing your list to just one chosen career choice.

Set Your Goals

Once you have made your choice, the next step is to set your goals. This constitutes setting long term and short-term goals that will serve as a guide along your chosen career path. Your long-term goals have to do with your dream position in that particular field in the next 3-5 years. While, your short-term goals have to do with the professional training and relevant experience you need to arrive at your desired destination.

Create an Action Plan

This plan consists of specific steps that enables you to achieve these set goals. Consider it a road map that takes you from point a to b progressively until you arrive at your career destination. Your action plan should also contain foreseeable challenges, and the steps you are to take in addressing these challenges. This plan should also state the required training you need to acquire along your career path.

Choosing a career requires careful consideration, as it is an integral part of your life. However, it should not be based on financial benefits alone but on the satisfaction derived from embracing the chosen path.