6 answers
Alex
Student
Queen Creek, Arizona
1
Question
Asked
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how do i pick a career direction?
how do i pick a career direction?
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6 answers
James Constantine Frangos
Consultant Dietitian & Software Developer since 1972 => Nutrition Education => Health & Longevity.
5019
Answers
Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia
Updated
James Constantine’s Answer
Dear Alex,
Steps to Determine Your Career Path
Determining your career path is a pivotal choice that can significantly shape your future. Here's a practical guide to help you navigate this process:
1. Understand Yourself:
Begin by analyzing your interests, values, abilities, and personality. This self-understanding can guide you towards careers that resonate with your identity.
2. Explore Various Careers:
Investigate a range of industries and professions to understand the diverse career opportunities that exist. Take into account aspects like job prospects, potential earnings, job duties, and educational prerequisites.
3. Establish Goals:
Outline your immediate and long-term career ambitions. Clear goals can offer you a sense of direction and motivation as you explore various career possibilities.
4. Seek Expert Advice:
Engage with professionals in areas you're drawn to, consult career advisors, or consider utilizing career evaluation tests to gain insights into potential careers that align with your interests and abilities.
5. Acquire Experience:
Pursue internships, part-time work, volunteer roles, or job shadowing to gain practical exposure to different careers. This hands-on experience can help you ascertain if a specific field suits you.
6. Weigh Your Options:
After thorough research and experiential learning, assess the advantages and disadvantages of each potential career. Reflect on aspects such as work-life harmony, advancement prospects, and personal satisfaction.
7. Decide:
With the necessary knowledge and insights at your disposal, make an educated decision about the career path you wish to follow. Remember, it's perfectly fine to change directions as you progress and transform in your professional life.
8. Embrace Lifelong Learning:
Commit to ongoing learning and skill development throughout your career to remain competitive in the dynamic job market. Lifelong learning can pave the way for new growth and progression opportunities in your chosen profession.
Keep in mind that determining a career path is a journey that may require some experimentation. Stay receptive, be ready to explore fresh opportunities, and trust your intuition as you navigate this crucial decision-making journey.
Top 3 Reliable Sources Used:
Harvard Business Review: Offers insights into various facets of career progression, including advice on selecting the appropriate career path and advancing in your chosen profession.
The Balance Careers: Provides extensive guides on investigating different careers, goal setting, gaining pertinent experience, and making well-informed decisions about your professional trajectory.
CareerBuilder: A trusted resource for job hunters, offering tools for self-assessment, industry trends, job market evaluations, and guidance for choosing a fitting career path based on personal preferences and strengths.
May God Bless You,
JC.
Steps to Determine Your Career Path
Determining your career path is a pivotal choice that can significantly shape your future. Here's a practical guide to help you navigate this process:
1. Understand Yourself:
Begin by analyzing your interests, values, abilities, and personality. This self-understanding can guide you towards careers that resonate with your identity.
2. Explore Various Careers:
Investigate a range of industries and professions to understand the diverse career opportunities that exist. Take into account aspects like job prospects, potential earnings, job duties, and educational prerequisites.
3. Establish Goals:
Outline your immediate and long-term career ambitions. Clear goals can offer you a sense of direction and motivation as you explore various career possibilities.
4. Seek Expert Advice:
Engage with professionals in areas you're drawn to, consult career advisors, or consider utilizing career evaluation tests to gain insights into potential careers that align with your interests and abilities.
5. Acquire Experience:
Pursue internships, part-time work, volunteer roles, or job shadowing to gain practical exposure to different careers. This hands-on experience can help you ascertain if a specific field suits you.
6. Weigh Your Options:
After thorough research and experiential learning, assess the advantages and disadvantages of each potential career. Reflect on aspects such as work-life harmony, advancement prospects, and personal satisfaction.
7. Decide:
With the necessary knowledge and insights at your disposal, make an educated decision about the career path you wish to follow. Remember, it's perfectly fine to change directions as you progress and transform in your professional life.
8. Embrace Lifelong Learning:
Commit to ongoing learning and skill development throughout your career to remain competitive in the dynamic job market. Lifelong learning can pave the way for new growth and progression opportunities in your chosen profession.
Keep in mind that determining a career path is a journey that may require some experimentation. Stay receptive, be ready to explore fresh opportunities, and trust your intuition as you navigate this crucial decision-making journey.
Top 3 Reliable Sources Used:
Harvard Business Review: Offers insights into various facets of career progression, including advice on selecting the appropriate career path and advancing in your chosen profession.
The Balance Careers: Provides extensive guides on investigating different careers, goal setting, gaining pertinent experience, and making well-informed decisions about your professional trajectory.
CareerBuilder: A trusted resource for job hunters, offering tools for self-assessment, industry trends, job market evaluations, and guidance for choosing a fitting career path based on personal preferences and strengths.
May God Bless You,
JC.
Rebecca Tang
Banking
1623
Answers
Hong Kong
Updated
Rebecca’s Answer
Thank you for your question. Many students have similar question. The most important is to find out what careers you have interest.
Below is my suggestions :
1. Think about what you have interest, e.g your hobbies, favourite subjects, etc. and identify the related careers
E.g. If you like music, would you like to be a musician, singer, musical artist, music composer, music producer, etc.
If you have interest maths, would you like to be an accountant, engineering, banker, financial analyst, maths teacher, etc.
2. Find out more on these careers and determine what you have interest
3. Speak to someone who are working in these careers. Seek guidance from your mentor, school career counsellor, your parents, etc.
4. Shortlist 1-2 careers you would like to pursue
5. Explore the entry criteria of relevant subjects in colleges
Hope this helps! Good Luck!
Below is my suggestions :
1. Think about what you have interest, e.g your hobbies, favourite subjects, etc. and identify the related careers
E.g. If you like music, would you like to be a musician, singer, musical artist, music composer, music producer, etc.
If you have interest maths, would you like to be an accountant, engineering, banker, financial analyst, maths teacher, etc.
2. Find out more on these careers and determine what you have interest
3. Speak to someone who are working in these careers. Seek guidance from your mentor, school career counsellor, your parents, etc.
4. Shortlist 1-2 careers you would like to pursue
5. Explore the entry criteria of relevant subjects in colleges
Hope this helps! Good Luck!
Kennyaha Sims
Hospitality assistant manager
1
Answer
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Updated
Kennyaha’s Answer
Choosing the perfect career for your future can be an exciting journey! Start by considering what you love to do in your everyday life. What activities bring you joy and never seem to lose their charm? Keep these passions in mind as you explore potential career paths. Remember that time when you watched someone doing a job and it sparked your interest? Could you picture yourself doing that for the rest of your life? Do you have the necessary skills or are you willing to learn them? Consider whether you're looking for a full-time job or just a side gig. There's a world of possibilities out there!
If you enjoy helping others, perhaps a career as a Certified Nursing Assistant could be your calling. You could earn your nursing license and make a real difference in people's lives.
Or maybe you love to travel and the open road calls to you. In that case, truck driving could be a fantastic fit. This career offers a good income and the freedom to choose who you work for, whether it's a private company or a well-known corporation. Plus, you might get the chance to drive different types of trucks depending on the company's needs, although this might require passing a specific test.
Remember, the perfect career is out there waiting for you. Happy exploring!
Commercial Driver
Game Developer
Chef/head cook
Water treatment Specialist
Marine Biologist
If you enjoy helping others, perhaps a career as a Certified Nursing Assistant could be your calling. You could earn your nursing license and make a real difference in people's lives.
Or maybe you love to travel and the open road calls to you. In that case, truck driving could be a fantastic fit. This career offers a good income and the freedom to choose who you work for, whether it's a private company or a well-known corporation. Plus, you might get the chance to drive different types of trucks depending on the company's needs, although this might require passing a specific test.
Remember, the perfect career is out there waiting for you. Happy exploring!
Kennyaha recommends the following next steps:
Alastair Higginbottom PMP
Social Impact Program Manager
3
Answers
Oxford, England, United Kingdom
Updated
Alastair’s Answer
In my experience, most people never get to the point of feeling like they know exactly what they want to do. I have been fortunate and have a made a career and have always enjoyed working even if the job was my dream one... my top tips for al jobs (dream job or not)
- find purpose in the every day - It cant all be product launches and nobel peace prizes, if you find work which provides you with a sense of purpose regularly you are onto a good thing
- See the value in what you do - Even if you are doing something that you think is mundane, unchallenging or uninspiring, if you can see what has changed as a result of your efforts, knowledge or experience each day that is a powerful place to be
- seek opportunities to stretch and test your abilities - in all jobs there are opportunities to take on more responsibility, challenge the status quo, and work with innovation. do it once, do it twice, keep doing it - soon you wont need to seek out opportunities they will come to you and you can leverage that capital to get ahead
- enjoy work - there is a joy in working hard - the most successful people typically work hard every day, if you dont enjoy it it will be a long career
- find purpose in the every day - It cant all be product launches and nobel peace prizes, if you find work which provides you with a sense of purpose regularly you are onto a good thing
- See the value in what you do - Even if you are doing something that you think is mundane, unchallenging or uninspiring, if you can see what has changed as a result of your efforts, knowledge or experience each day that is a powerful place to be
- seek opportunities to stretch and test your abilities - in all jobs there are opportunities to take on more responsibility, challenge the status quo, and work with innovation. do it once, do it twice, keep doing it - soon you wont need to seek out opportunities they will come to you and you can leverage that capital to get ahead
- enjoy work - there is a joy in working hard - the most successful people typically work hard every day, if you dont enjoy it it will be a long career
Owen Lam
Technical Consultant
3
Answers
Berlin, Germany
Updated
Owen’s Answer
Hi Alex, hope you are well.
Just going to add a relative simple answer here for your general question.
- Who do you admire? Try to ask them if you know them. If not, search more about how they become who they are.
- What do you enjoy doing? Math or writing or talking etc - choose a related field to study at uni.
- What do you like? Say if you like bridges, consider finding career related to Civil Engineering.
Write them out here, may be we can give you more concrete ideas then.
Cheers!
Just going to add a relative simple answer here for your general question.
- Who do you admire? Try to ask them if you know them. If not, search more about how they become who they are.
- What do you enjoy doing? Math or writing or talking etc - choose a related field to study at uni.
- What do you like? Say if you like bridges, consider finding career related to Civil Engineering.
Write them out here, may be we can give you more concrete ideas then.
Cheers!
Roel Ramon
Product Management and Development
56
Answers
Dallas, Texas
Updated
Roel’s Answer
Choosing a career path is always a crucial step. Start by taking some time to think deeply about your interests and your strengths and weaknesses. This self-understanding will help guide you towards careers that suit your abilities. Once you've identified potential careers, aim to choose one that you believe will bring you the most joy and satisfaction.