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What careers should I consider going into? ?
I'm about to be in 11th grade, and I still have no idea. I'm into art, math, science, and things that involve critical thinking. I can't imagine any careers for me to have because I'm also the type of person who gets easily bored. I also don't really excel in anything because I'm more of a jack-of-all-trades.
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5 answers
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Briana’s Answer
Hi, Aleshanee,
The first thing you need to remember is that there is no rule about how you need to "commit" to one field or one career path. Very many people go to college, major in a subject, and then go into a career that is barely related at all. Many people change careers after working for a while. Many people change college majors, or choose to double-major or have a minor. My point is, there is no reason to belive that the choice you make about what to study now is going to lock you into that one field and that one career path forever. Choosing to pursue one interest over the others doesn't make them disappear as options.
That being said, if you would like to start thinking of a few potential college majors and/or potential career paths, I'd advise to look beyond the content of the jobs and do more research into what a typical workday is like. For example, you may know that you are interested in visual art. But the day to day work lives of a graphic designer vs an illustrator vs an interior designer vs an animator vs a marketing consultant are all very different, even if they all involve visual art.
Start asking yourself what kind of setting you enjoy and see yourself succeeding in. What kind of work hours and schedule? What kind of work/life balance? What kind of pay? Do you like flexibility or structure? Fast paced environments or slow paced? A lot of guidance or a lot of independence? Working alone or on a team? You stated that you get bored easily, so I'd begin looking into jobs that are fast paced and work in a variety of settings, for example.
These are the elements that determine how content you are in your job, not just being interested in the work. If you start brainstorming these questions, you can start looking into more specific careers that fit your criteria.
The first thing you need to remember is that there is no rule about how you need to "commit" to one field or one career path. Very many people go to college, major in a subject, and then go into a career that is barely related at all. Many people change careers after working for a while. Many people change college majors, or choose to double-major or have a minor. My point is, there is no reason to belive that the choice you make about what to study now is going to lock you into that one field and that one career path forever. Choosing to pursue one interest over the others doesn't make them disappear as options.
That being said, if you would like to start thinking of a few potential college majors and/or potential career paths, I'd advise to look beyond the content of the jobs and do more research into what a typical workday is like. For example, you may know that you are interested in visual art. But the day to day work lives of a graphic designer vs an illustrator vs an interior designer vs an animator vs a marketing consultant are all very different, even if they all involve visual art.
Start asking yourself what kind of setting you enjoy and see yourself succeeding in. What kind of work hours and schedule? What kind of work/life balance? What kind of pay? Do you like flexibility or structure? Fast paced environments or slow paced? A lot of guidance or a lot of independence? Working alone or on a team? You stated that you get bored easily, so I'd begin looking into jobs that are fast paced and work in a variety of settings, for example.
These are the elements that determine how content you are in your job, not just being interested in the work. If you start brainstorming these questions, you can start looking into more specific careers that fit your criteria.
Updated
Rita’s Answer
I was exactly like you. I'm stronger in the sciences and easily get bored. I went into medicine. I don't think it's a bad decision but it's very long, tough, and more than what I imagined. I think the hardest part is dealing with people. I remember in college, there was a test you can take to see what field would fit you. I don't think I ever took the test but you may want to consider it.
Updated
Becky’s Answer
You can do more than one thing if you want to. Your interest in many things (being a jack of all trades) is a valuable asset that will give you skills and knowledge to help you with whatever you do in life and excel at it. Having the correct mindset around your traits is extremely important. Being a jack of all trades doesn't mean you cannot or won't excel at anything. It can mean you are willing to create a broad knowledge base that will help you apply different strategies and ideas to whatever you are working on. Satiate your desire to know and be interested in many things while building a mindset of following through on any commitments or promises made to yourself or others in your pursuits.
A great way to focus your interests and find careers and and jobs that may keep your interest is to start with an interest profiler. The https://www.onetonline.org/ website is a great place to start. They not only provide an interest profiler you can use for free, ONet online also gives you tools to research careers that you may find interest in or that are highlighted as part of your interest profiler input.
Best of luck in your pursuit of lifelong learning, and personal and professional fulfillment.
A great way to focus your interests and find careers and and jobs that may keep your interest is to start with an interest profiler. The https://www.onetonline.org/ website is a great place to start. They not only provide an interest profiler you can use for free, ONet online also gives you tools to research careers that you may find interest in or that are highlighted as part of your interest profiler input.
Best of luck in your pursuit of lifelong learning, and personal and professional fulfillment.
Updated
Megan’s Answer
Hi Aleshanee!
From what you shared I get a graphic design vibe. I think you could combine all the things you are good at and like with graphic design. You can do freelance graphic design or work for a company that might relate to your passion. You are always working on new projects with graphic design so you should not get bored. I see someone else suggested it too. It might be something to look into.
From what you shared I get a graphic design vibe. I think you could combine all the things you are good at and like with graphic design. You can do freelance graphic design or work for a company that might relate to your passion. You are always working on new projects with graphic design so you should not get bored. I see someone else suggested it too. It might be something to look into.
Updated
Daniel’s Answer
Hi Aleshanee!
First things first - that's ok that you don't know what to do. Most people do not know what they want to do the rest of their lives and it can be stressful to think about. I felt the same way a couple of years ago right before I graduated high school. My suggestion is to go to a community college to obtain your basics. This will help you have time to try some different jobs in completely different fields. Also, by going to a community college you will be saving money and giving yourself more time to decide on a career/job while making progress on your degree. Don't let people put pressure on you that you have to decide now on the rest of your work life. I had a teacher in high school tell me that I would be a failure if I did not know what degree/career I wanted by the time I graduated high school. Well, I did not by graduation but decided a year later on what I wanted to do and absolutely love it (operations)
I really think business is a great field to go into since it keeps your options wide open. That way you are not committing to one specific field and find out later that you hate it. Some fields in business include:
1. Operations
2. Finance
3. Sales
4. Marketing
5. Human Resources
I decided to go into Business Operations since operations touches almost every facet of the organization. I enjoy the different challenges and operations also gives me the flexibility to try new things. Another great aspect about operations is they usually support the other divisions of an organization. Since, there are many divisions of an company if you do not enjoy one area its not a big deal since you can support other areas of the business.
Many larger companies will start you in a rotational analyst program. By doing this you will get to see usually 2-4 different sections of the business. Companies offer this to not only help you hone in on your career path but many companies have realized that if there employees actually enjoy their job they will get better overall performance.
Good luck on the journey and know that you are not alone!
First things first - that's ok that you don't know what to do. Most people do not know what they want to do the rest of their lives and it can be stressful to think about. I felt the same way a couple of years ago right before I graduated high school. My suggestion is to go to a community college to obtain your basics. This will help you have time to try some different jobs in completely different fields. Also, by going to a community college you will be saving money and giving yourself more time to decide on a career/job while making progress on your degree. Don't let people put pressure on you that you have to decide now on the rest of your work life. I had a teacher in high school tell me that I would be a failure if I did not know what degree/career I wanted by the time I graduated high school. Well, I did not by graduation but decided a year later on what I wanted to do and absolutely love it (operations)
I really think business is a great field to go into since it keeps your options wide open. That way you are not committing to one specific field and find out later that you hate it. Some fields in business include:
1. Operations
2. Finance
3. Sales
4. Marketing
5. Human Resources
I decided to go into Business Operations since operations touches almost every facet of the organization. I enjoy the different challenges and operations also gives me the flexibility to try new things. Another great aspect about operations is they usually support the other divisions of an organization. Since, there are many divisions of an company if you do not enjoy one area its not a big deal since you can support other areas of the business.
Many larger companies will start you in a rotational analyst program. By doing this you will get to see usually 2-4 different sections of the business. Companies offer this to not only help you hone in on your career path but many companies have realized that if there employees actually enjoy their job they will get better overall performance.
Good luck on the journey and know that you are not alone!