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What if I don't know what I am good for nor what I like
I am really good at school, but it does not mean it is easy for me. I am a hardworking person who always want to succeed in any task I am assigned. However, there is no subject in school that I could say I love or that is interesting to me for a future career. #career #career-choice #help
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Wayne Archibald
Cybersecurity Associate Director here to share knowledge!
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Wayne’s Answer
Hi Jesus,
Being undecided is something I went through myself. Take the time to reflect and plan while maintaining an open mind, knowing that you career interests — and the subjects you choose — are likely to change as you grow and evolve. It’s normal for teenagers not have their whole lives figured out. Don’t choose subjects just to choose one especially if it’s a subject area that’s overly challenging. Instead, explore alternatives that better match your abilities. For instance, if you wanted to be a doctor but aren't strong in science, you would evaluate other options within healthcare or explore other fields that match their strengths. It’s also okay to change your mind in the future.
The subjects you choose don’t have to be your career in the future. Only 27% of college graduates work in a job that directly correlates with their college major, according to research published by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
Furthermore, a study by the Association of American Colleges and Universities found that more than 90% of the employers believe that critical thinking, communication and problem-solving skills are more important than a candidate’s undergraduate major.
Many careers don’t require a specific undergraduate major. For example, students don’t need to major in biology, chemistry or pre-med in order to go to medical school, or pre-law or political science in order to go to law school.
.
Research and reflection can help you. As part of this reflection, ask yourself to identify your favorite high school classes. If you enjoy creative writing, for example, you might consider subject related to journalism or English. If you enjoy band or music, you could consider majoring in performing arts or audio engineering.
Other questions you should ask yourself include:
• What are my favorite activities?
• When I have an unplanned hour, what do I do for fun?
• What type of work environment do I see myself in: desk job, school, business, research lab, outdoors, working with my hands, etc.?
Some of this reflection may also happen in school. Use your time in school to:
• Take classes that sound interesting
• Try a new club, activity or community service project
• Get a job or internship in a field you're interested in, or job shadow someone working in that field
• Meet with advisors at the campus career center
Take Advantage of Helpful Resources. There are a number of resources available to help you choose a major, or at least narrow things down. These include reading materials and assessment tests that will help reveal your strengths and interests, specifically:
Websites
• O*Net Interest Profiler (a free assessment tool)
• College Board Big Future
• Naviance Assessments (ask if your high school subscribes to this assessment tool)
• Do What You Are
• Road Trip Nation
In addition, you can benefit from simply talking to a range of people, including:
• High school guidance counselor
• High school college/career counselor
• Parents and other family members
• Older friends who are in college or graduated recently
• Clergy or pastor
In summary, if you are undecided about a future career path, that’s perfectly normal. Follow my recommendations to learn more about yourself and where you want to be in the future.
Good luck!
Being undecided is something I went through myself. Take the time to reflect and plan while maintaining an open mind, knowing that you career interests — and the subjects you choose — are likely to change as you grow and evolve. It’s normal for teenagers not have their whole lives figured out. Don’t choose subjects just to choose one especially if it’s a subject area that’s overly challenging. Instead, explore alternatives that better match your abilities. For instance, if you wanted to be a doctor but aren't strong in science, you would evaluate other options within healthcare or explore other fields that match their strengths. It’s also okay to change your mind in the future.
The subjects you choose don’t have to be your career in the future. Only 27% of college graduates work in a job that directly correlates with their college major, according to research published by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
Furthermore, a study by the Association of American Colleges and Universities found that more than 90% of the employers believe that critical thinking, communication and problem-solving skills are more important than a candidate’s undergraduate major.
Many careers don’t require a specific undergraduate major. For example, students don’t need to major in biology, chemistry or pre-med in order to go to medical school, or pre-law or political science in order to go to law school.
.
Research and reflection can help you. As part of this reflection, ask yourself to identify your favorite high school classes. If you enjoy creative writing, for example, you might consider subject related to journalism or English. If you enjoy band or music, you could consider majoring in performing arts or audio engineering.
Other questions you should ask yourself include:
• What are my favorite activities?
• When I have an unplanned hour, what do I do for fun?
• What type of work environment do I see myself in: desk job, school, business, research lab, outdoors, working with my hands, etc.?
Some of this reflection may also happen in school. Use your time in school to:
• Take classes that sound interesting
• Try a new club, activity or community service project
• Get a job or internship in a field you're interested in, or job shadow someone working in that field
• Meet with advisors at the campus career center
Take Advantage of Helpful Resources. There are a number of resources available to help you choose a major, or at least narrow things down. These include reading materials and assessment tests that will help reveal your strengths and interests, specifically:
Websites
• O*Net Interest Profiler (a free assessment tool)
• College Board Big Future
• Naviance Assessments (ask if your high school subscribes to this assessment tool)
• Do What You Are
• Road Trip Nation
In addition, you can benefit from simply talking to a range of people, including:
• High school guidance counselor
• High school college/career counselor
• Parents and other family members
• Older friends who are in college or graduated recently
• Clergy or pastor
In summary, if you are undecided about a future career path, that’s perfectly normal. Follow my recommendations to learn more about yourself and where you want to be in the future.
Good luck!
Updated
Gonzalo’s Answer
1. Remember What You Loved as a Child
Often, our truest passions emerge in childhood, only to be squelched by real life pressures. So think about what you loved long before you had to worry about your career. Writing? Science experiments? Taking care of people? Getting back in touch with those instincts is an important step in finding your passion.
2. Eliminate Money from the Equation
If money were no object, what would you do? Would you travel? Spend all of your time with your children? Would you start a charitable organization to help abused women? Of course money can’t be ignored, but don’t let financial pressures dictate your choices. Your career should ultimately lead to financial security, but if financial security is the defining motivator, it’s unlikely you’ll end up doing what you love.
3. Ask Your Friends for Feedback
Sometimes you’re just not the best judge of what makes you happy. Ask the people who know you intimately when you seem the happiest and what you do the most enthusiastically. Their answers may surprise you.
4. Read through a University Course Catalog
Find some quiet time and see which courses naturally interest you. What would you study if you could do it all over? What courses do you think you could teach? Which subjects scare you to death, and which ones do you find boring? Revisiting these possibilities will help point you in the direction of subjects and topics that you love.
5. Identify your Professional Hero
Of everyone you know, either personally or in your extended frame of reference (from your dermatologist to Oprah), whose career would you most want to emulate? Reach out to her to learn more about how she got to where she is, or, if that’s not possible, read everything you can about her career and life.
6. Think of What You Enjoy That You Also Do Well
After you’ve done these exercises, think about what you’ve learned. Focus on the things that you both enjoy and do well—whether you have a way with animals, make a killer lemon tart, or are crazy for origami—and write them down. Then, narrow the list to the top three or four things. Keep it handy, review it often, and use it as your jumping-off point when you’re plotting your career move.
Credit: https://www.themuse.com/advice/do-what-you-love-how-to-identify-pursue-your-passions
Often, our truest passions emerge in childhood, only to be squelched by real life pressures. So think about what you loved long before you had to worry about your career. Writing? Science experiments? Taking care of people? Getting back in touch with those instincts is an important step in finding your passion.
2. Eliminate Money from the Equation
If money were no object, what would you do? Would you travel? Spend all of your time with your children? Would you start a charitable organization to help abused women? Of course money can’t be ignored, but don’t let financial pressures dictate your choices. Your career should ultimately lead to financial security, but if financial security is the defining motivator, it’s unlikely you’ll end up doing what you love.
3. Ask Your Friends for Feedback
Sometimes you’re just not the best judge of what makes you happy. Ask the people who know you intimately when you seem the happiest and what you do the most enthusiastically. Their answers may surprise you.
4. Read through a University Course Catalog
Find some quiet time and see which courses naturally interest you. What would you study if you could do it all over? What courses do you think you could teach? Which subjects scare you to death, and which ones do you find boring? Revisiting these possibilities will help point you in the direction of subjects and topics that you love.
5. Identify your Professional Hero
Of everyone you know, either personally or in your extended frame of reference (from your dermatologist to Oprah), whose career would you most want to emulate? Reach out to her to learn more about how she got to where she is, or, if that’s not possible, read everything you can about her career and life.
6. Think of What You Enjoy That You Also Do Well
After you’ve done these exercises, think about what you’ve learned. Focus on the things that you both enjoy and do well—whether you have a way with animals, make a killer lemon tart, or are crazy for origami—and write them down. Then, narrow the list to the top three or four things. Keep it handy, review it often, and use it as your jumping-off point when you’re plotting your career move.
Credit: https://www.themuse.com/advice/do-what-you-love-how-to-identify-pursue-your-passions
Updated
Alex’s Answer
Hi Jesus! It's a common problem, and you'll definitely figure it out. Your future job may look pretty different from any subject you're currently learning at school: different problems to solve, different ways to be rewarded.
Ultimately, to find something that fits you, you'll have to invest into 2 large areas or learning:
1. Learn more about yourself. What do you like doing every day? What are your values? What are your strengths? What do you need from your job and what to avoid?
2. Learn about the job market. What different jobs are available? What do they really consist of?
Some ways to find ideas on your future career:
(Learn about yourself) Take a Holland test to inventory your interests. There's a free open-source assessment: https://openpsychometrics.org/tests/RIASEC/ . On the result page, there is a 'Suitable careers' link that shows suggestions for careers. There will be all kinds of professions: consider them not prescriptive, but rather a set of ideas that may help you identify potential directions.
Inventory your values. Take any list of values, e.g. this one: https://www.thebalancecareers.com/identifying-your-work-values-526174 - and arrange them by importance.
(Learn about the job market) Talk to people. Jobs are not school subjects, they are more diverse and you typically won't know what people actually do on their jobs until you talk to them. It's called 'Informational interview'. A quick guide on how to frame it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6Pa4ZB4mvQ
Ultimately, to find something that fits you, you'll have to invest into 2 large areas or learning:
1. Learn more about yourself. What do you like doing every day? What are your values? What are your strengths? What do you need from your job and what to avoid?
2. Learn about the job market. What different jobs are available? What do they really consist of?
Some ways to find ideas on your future career:
(Learn about yourself) Take a Holland test to inventory your interests. There's a free open-source assessment: https://openpsychometrics.org/tests/RIASEC/ . On the result page, there is a 'Suitable careers' link that shows suggestions for careers. There will be all kinds of professions: consider them not prescriptive, but rather a set of ideas that may help you identify potential directions.
Inventory your values. Take any list of values, e.g. this one: https://www.thebalancecareers.com/identifying-your-work-values-526174 - and arrange them by importance.
(Learn about the job market) Talk to people. Jobs are not school subjects, they are more diverse and you typically won't know what people actually do on their jobs until you talk to them. It's called 'Informational interview'. A quick guide on how to frame it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6Pa4ZB4mvQ
Updated
Chris’s Answer
Most people won’t use their school/college degree in their career, and I suspect most people don’t have a clear idea of which career they want to pursue when they start college unless they are doing a degree. Spend time understanding what motivates you, what type of activities and challenges engage you. This will provide a basis for which areas you should look into pursuing and which to avoid. Getting work experience through internships and similar will help expose you to different work environments to build on your knowledge of what you do or don’t like. Utilize career advice resources to expand your understanding of the options out there - but don’t be worried if you don’t come to a definitive answer. Understanding what job is the best fit is an ongoing experience throughout your career, and your first job will not necessarily be the right fit. Your skills won’t necessarily be limited to one occupation/industry, so keep an open mind on the type of company you want to work for.
Basically there isn't a definitive or easy answer, but recognizing that is the case will help prepare you as you build out your career choices.
Basically there isn't a definitive or easy answer, but recognizing that is the case will help prepare you as you build out your career choices.
Updated
Isabel’s Answer
I would say practical experience through part-time jobs, volunteer / extracurricular activities help understand what's entailed in different job functions, industries and roles. By combining academic and on-the-job experience, you can better define what you're good at and passionate about. In terms of working hard, being diligent and reliable is a strong quality that is appreciated in many job categories. Considering working hard and smart, by applying productivity frameworks to prioritize your work. Good luck!
Lauren Grzyboski, CFE, CAMS, MBA
Cybersecurity, Privacy, and Forensics Associate
47
Answers
Updated
Lauren’s Answer
Hi Jesus,
Great Question! Not knowing what you want to do with your future career is completely okay. You can always go into college as undeclared and/or undecided. From there you can take various general education courses to better understand what field you might want to select as your major. In the meantime I would recommend researching different career paths in various fields based on interests you might have outside of academics. For example, growing up I always enjoyed watching crime/investigative shows and was good at problem solving. Fast forward a few years later and I currently work in forensic services at a professional services firm. That said, there are online personality tests available which can assess your interests, etc. and help you come up with top fields that could be of interest to you. I would recommend checking them out and speak to your school guidance counselor in more detail to further access different ways to approach deciding a career path.
Great Question! Not knowing what you want to do with your future career is completely okay. You can always go into college as undeclared and/or undecided. From there you can take various general education courses to better understand what field you might want to select as your major. In the meantime I would recommend researching different career paths in various fields based on interests you might have outside of academics. For example, growing up I always enjoyed watching crime/investigative shows and was good at problem solving. Fast forward a few years later and I currently work in forensic services at a professional services firm. That said, there are online personality tests available which can assess your interests, etc. and help you come up with top fields that could be of interest to you. I would recommend checking them out and speak to your school guidance counselor in more detail to further access different ways to approach deciding a career path.