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career choice:

April 22, 2009

 

Students choices may well be more difficult today than at any time in history, for three reasons: there are infinitely more courses to choose from; career definitions are more fluid and changing; and the levels of expectation are rising. Most men and women entering the workforce today can expect to change careers three or more times during their working lives.

What’s really important to you? What do you like to do so much that you would almost feel guilty getting paid to do it? These questions are designed to help you get at one of the key elements in career choice: values. Your values are the emotional anchor of all that you do. A skill is something you’ve learned to do. A talent is something you’ve been born with, or at least that you seem naturally qualified to do. Do you regard yourself as highly intuitive? Are you outgoing or reserved? When faced with a decision, do you rely primarily on facts or feelings? In this high tech information world, there is an incredible pressure to specialize, to know more and more about less and less. That’s dangerous, because it increases your chances of being obsolescent immensely. Which position will offer me the best chance of becoming excellent at what I do?” And that may not be the one that pays the highest initial salary.

The personal goal  is mentioned above as a  substitution instead, of words like “values”, “skills”, “talents”, and “preferences”. It’s not that goals aren’t useful, but rather that they should emerge naturally from these other factors and, even though you may write them down and paste them on your mirror, they should not obscure the need to be willing to change and adapt to new conditions, your own growth, and developing opportunities.

         

Posted by edgarneverendingquest at 10:54 pm | permalink | comments[1]