You were expecting a pleasant, uneventful family dinner, but now you’ve been asked the formal worst inquiry of all time. “Have you decided on a major yet?” No, Aunt Janice, I have not. I’m still looking, learning, exploring, and determining the best career path for me.
You’ve been making preparations for this inquiry, and you’ve even practised your response. But now you’re nervous, you’re feeling incredibly awkward, and your heart is racing, which only adds to your anxiety. Your mind is screaming inside your head, “PLEASE HELP ME, I have no IDEA what I’m doing with my life…”
Instead, you mumble, “Oh, I’m not confident yet, still figuring what I’d Like to do…”
They give you a pitying look. “That’s fine; you still have plenty of time to make a decision.” That’s very reassuring. Thanks. On that note, your family meal has been ruined. You’ll not be able to enjoy the family dinner with these thoughts in mind.
You are not alone if this has happened to you.
Getting the correct career path – what you might do for the rest of your life – is a MAJOR DEAL. It’s intimidating, and it’s natural to feel stressed, anxious, and worried. We are all. Or, at least, we were always at some point.
But, dare we say, finding your chosen career can also be enjoyable? Consider this: you can be and do whatever you want. Look at a list of 8 helpful hacks to help relieve your stress regarding finding a good professional life.
Here’s to finding your place in the world at your own pace!
With these eight steps, you’ll be able to pick the right career for you.
Understand/assess yourself, who you are right now
It would be best to learn about yourself already to choose the right career. Because of your values, preferences, people skills, as well as aptitudes, as well as your type of personality, some professions are a good fit for you while others are wholly inappropriate.
Use self-assessment techniques and chosen professional tests to collect information about your characteristics and, based on them, generate a list of professions that are a good fit. Some people prefer to work with such a career counsellor or other career advancement professionals who can guide them through the process.
Make a list of the top careers in which you are interested
Could you imagine looking for work in the newspaper? No, thank you. Look through LinkedIn, start taking some chosen professional tests (with a grain of salt), and discuss other people’s experiences in a variety. You will benefit from the fact that you will have access to virtually all of the world’s information and begin strategic measures career options. You must be willing to put the time to sift through all available information. We understand that it can be overpowering, but take it one step at a time.
Then, combine a particular wealth of knowledge with your newly acquired personal knowledge. The process of cross-referencing will assist you in narrowing your search to a more manageable number of careers. Not, you know, every profession on the planet.
Examine your career’s short and long-term objectives
Once you’ve made a decision, determine your long-term and short-term objectives. This assists in charting a path toward eventually landing work in your chosen field.
Long-term goals generally take three to five years to achieve, whereas short-term goals can usually be completed in six months to three years.
Allow your research on required education and training to serve as a guide. Do more research if you don’t have all of the information. Set your goals after you’ve gathered all of the necessary information. Completing your training and education is an example of a long-term plan. You apply to college, traineeships, other training programmes, and internships.
Develop your skills by your career choice
Make a detailed list of your areas of expertise, accreditations, and skills acquired. Colleagues and coworkers can provide comments and input on your people organisational, personal-social, and technological knowledge.
Develop a career action plan
Create a career action plan, a written document that outlines all of the steps you will need to achieve your goals. Consider it a road map that will take you from point A to point B, then to points C and D. Make a list of all your short- and long-term goals, as well as the steps you’ll need to take to achieve each one. Include any potential roadblocks to achieving your objectives — as well as strategies for overcoming them.
This may appear to be a lot of work, and it is. But it’s much easier to carve out a career trajectory once you know whatever you want. Taking this step would save you a lot of trouble and ambiguity in the long term.
Gain real-world experience by working on various internships
If you like the job after shadowing, you can pertain for a summer job or internship to gain work experience and learn about potential future roles in the company. If you have a business degree that qualifies you for various positions, the training will help you constrict your options and gain valuable hands-on experience.
Expand your network
Participate in professional networks and talk to people regarding their career paths. Learn about the benefits and drawbacks of various roles and decide if they are right for you.
Always have a backup plan
If your career choice is Plan A, make sure you have a Plan B ready ahead of time.
This allows us to explore your choices and can be very beneficial if your career aspirations do not take off as you had hoped.
To create a Plan B, select another field from the list of wants you created earlier in the process.
Take the second-best alternative and plan ahead of time what you’ll do with that as well.
Bottom Line
The correct answer to choosing a career besides digging deep and conducting extensive research can be found.
However, we are confident that you will make the right choice of career for you with a bit of exertion and self-reflection.
So, take a look in a mirror, figure out which field you belong in, and chart your course to success.
Best wishes!
