How To Choose A Career
Finding the perfect career can seem like a daunting experience and at times can take a while to find the best fit for you. The average person spends around one-third of their life working, so it’s no surprise that many people want to find a career that will be a good fit for them.
Finding a career that you love can be a stressful and anxiety ridden experience. In this article, we will be breaking down the process into easy steps that you can implement into your career seeking routine. It’s important to note that you may have the option to change your path multiple times in your life, making the ability to choose a new career a valuable life skill.
Choosing a career first means learning as much as you can about yourself, your goals, and the larger context of work. Let’s do through our list of 4 easy steps to guide you into choosing the best career for you.
Understanding Your Current Skillset
There are some key questions that you should be asking yourself before we tackle the open job market. Before anything, writing down some of your existing skills that you believe you dominate is a good first step in starting your search:
What are your soft skills?
What is your personality?
What are you interested in?
Manual or mental labor?
What are your strengths?
What does success mean to you?
As you’re reflecting, remember to write down your observations. These can be helpful references as you’re evaluating job descriptions later on. If you’re unsure of some of your answers, go to the next one and come back to it. This is the easy bit that allows you to get to know yourself better.
Make A List Of Potential Careers
One of the most complex parts of finding and choosing a career is narrowing down potential career paths. remember that job titles don’t always represent the actual job perfectly. While a title might not seem desirable, the job description might be a good fit for you, so it’s up to you to do deep research on each career that interests you.
There might be career options that require additional training or bootcamps that you need to bear in mind. Jot down the additional requirements that you might need to later compare and contrast your options.
Use Career Explorers such as Indeed, Google, or LinkedIn to further understand career requirements. Make sure to highlight the job titles that sound like a good fit.
Get Trained And Update Your Resume
Once you’ve narrowed your list down to one or possibly two career paths, you’ll need to assess whether you need additional training or credentials. Many careers that are outside of your wheelhouse might require some bootcamps and training, especially skilled careers. This doesn’t necessarily mean having a 4-year degree. This list of careers offer different programs that don’t require degrees if you need a place to start.
Use your existing network to seek opportunities and advice. Tap into your extended web to explore jobs both they might hold, and jobs they think you may be interested in and/or good at.
Once you’ve determined that you are qualified for this career path, update your resume to reflect your relevant strengths and skills. It can be helpful to explore job postings to understand what employers in your industry and position are looking for in candidates.
Start Interviewing
Wether it be informal or formal, preparing yourself for interviews is a key step in landing your dream career. It’s one of the last step you take when deciding your career path. Make sure to go in prepared by studying and learning about the position, and have talking points and questions ready. This will help you connect with them while getting the most out of the interview.
Ask about company culture
Ask about position expectations
Ask about budget for your position
Be attentive and take notes during your interview. Ask questions during the conversation. If you don’t know what to ask, you can always ask an open-ended such as ‘tell me more about that…’
Send a Thank-You email — it’s a great touch that will make you stand out from the rest of the candidates. Even if you don’t want to go into that line of work after the interview, you never want to burn a professional bridge by not following up.
Choosing a career is a process that unfolds over time. It’s not an easy process and can at times lead to frustration, and if guidance might be the first step you need in starting your search, Career Mentoring might be a great options for you.
Want help choosing the best option for you? OneDegree Careers is a platform created to help career seekers explore and choose a high-paying skilled career that doesn’t require college debt. Sign up today for free career mentoring.