|
..
Serving
Students at
Santa Ana
College and
Santiago
Canyon College
CAREER PLANNING
.
|
.
THREE
STEPS TO THE CAREER LIFE PLANNING PROCESS
An effective
career planning model encourages individuals to understand their strengths,
explore and gather occupational information, make decisions, set goals
and take action.
STEP 1:
SELF ASSESSMENT
-- Ask yourself... Do I want and need to...
-
INTEREST:
Identify my highest interests as well as the occupations which would allow
me to express those interests.
.
-
SKILLS:
Find out what job-related skills you enjoy using the most, and what
transferable skills you have gained from previous experiences that you
can use in new and exciting careers that you may never have thought of
before?
.
-
PERSONALITY:
Learn in which industries people with your type of personality and communication
style are most often successful. Understand how to effectively communicate
with others who have styles the same or different from yours.
.
-
VALUES:
Discover your "Motivators" and what causes you to "Burn Out" -- what "Energizes"
you and what "De-motivates" you.
Career
Assessment
STEP 2:
OCCUPATIONAL
EXPLORATION
Researching
occupations can help you to: discover the wide range of work available,
learn what careers others with a similar background have pursued, find
out the specifics of a particular job, and detect work related trends.
Occupational
Exploration Reference Tools
STEP 3:
ACTION PLAN
Now that you have
thought about yourself (Step 1: Self Assessment) and about the different
types of work (Step 2: Occupational Exploration), the time has come to
set some career objectives. Examine the results of your assessment
and occupational exploration efforts. This is the time to make a
commitment. In order to begin the next phase, you need to have a
sense of direction, some goals to work toward.
Decision
Making and Goal Setting
Organize your
ideas into the following three groups. By having long-term goals,
you will be able to set your course to becoming successful in your career.
Then by working backwards to the present, you will be able to take a step
at a time toward your ultimate goal.
Group
1: Work I Would Like To Be Doing In Five Years
Group
2: Work I would like to be doing in 2-5 years
Group
3: Work I would like to be doing now
How much of
your total being (body, mind, spirit) do you want to commit to the work
you have listed in the "now" column? Will you be able to see this
work as part of the big picture, the dreams you have, your special way
of contributing to the world? Receiving pay from an employer means
completing the tasks required by the position. Will the joy you experience
be greater than the burdens?
Focus
Have a clear
understanding of the field in which you want to work. Use all your
energies to engage in activities that will position you for work in that
field. Laser beam focus and total commitment will increase your chances
for success immeasurably. Network, build a resume by doing volunteer work,
and spend time at job search efforts. Write and re-write resumes, cover
letters, etc., and reading job hunt tips. Peruse newspapers, write/call/visit
companies. Developed a simple filing system to keep track of contacts/applications.
There are always possibilities, even during tough economic times, but time
must be spent investigating the options.
Importance of
networking: Jobs are had often through contacts, even student membership
in associations. Membership notifies you about upcoming opportunities,
names of contacts, helpful courses/seminars/workshops, and keeps you abreast
of contemporary issues in your field. To maximize employment possibilities,
get out and make connections, do volunteer work, develop people skills.
Do not waste
elective courses just to get an easy grade. True professionals in
the field know their industry "from birth to grave". Take courses
that provide knowledge in related areas.
PLUS
SUCCESS
SKILLS
Do not underestimate
your abilities and never misrepresent yourself: The best way to avoid this
is through ongoing self appraisal. Do not lose your sense of identity.
Keep on expanding yourself, don't give up your interests. Do not,
however, neglect work for the sake of excelling in other interests.
However, an entire sense of self worth is not exclusively generated by
one single aspect of life -- work.
Your personality
and attitudes are the most important predictors of your success in your
career and in your life generally. You can't accomplish more than
you believe you can. Your thoughts, positive or negative, come into
existence (self-fulfilling prophecy). The only limits you have will
be those you accept on your own abilities. The secret of an athlete's
success can be yours too. Create a mind picture of the lifestyle you prefer.
Use your imagination to create what you want in life.
Close your eyes
and visualize yourself doing the work you have written in the "now" section
above. Are you inside or outside? Is there anyone with you?
What tools or equipment are you using? What are you saying, writing,
or thinking? What deadline are you working towards? To be successful
in visualizing your work, you need to have a strong desire for the goal
to be achieved, a belief that it is possible to attain, and a willingness
to live with the outcome.
Complete your
visualization with an affirmation (in the present tense of the verb as
though it already exists). "I am ...." You can phrase it as a role, e.g.,
a customer support representative, or as an activity, e.g., supervising
volunteers. Say the affirmation so often that the thought becomes
very comfortable and exciting for you. Finding this type of work
is so much easier when you can describe it to others.
Review Your
Progress
It's time for
a check-up now that you have been doing this work for a while. Is
your job providing you with all the benefits you had hoped, e.g., sense
of accomplishment, income, career growth? Do you get out of bed in
the morning with energy and enthusiasm because you truly like and have
pride in what you do, a feeling that your work is useful to someone?
What adjustments do you need to make to bring that dream you had back on
track? Is it time for a new vision, a new sense of what you want
to do with your life? Below are some questions. Add others
that fit your situation. Think positively about the results of this
self-evaluation whatever the outcome. You may just take the right
steps in time to avert a crisis.
Do you know
how you contribute to the overall success of the organization, i.e., your
role in the big picture of the company's changes to be competitive and
excel in the marketplace? Having this knowledge about yourself applies
equally to the profit and non-profit sectors of the economy.
Has management
acknowledged your contributions, especially regarding attitudes, conduct
and productivity? When it comes time for restructuring or beginning
a new project, those individuals with perceived value will be rewarded
with a new assignment.
Do you still
expect great things from yourself and others? Are you part of a world
class work group? Are you receiving cross training or rotational
assignments to add to your personal and career development? Are you
contributing to team building, conflict resolution, the training of others,
and to the total systems approach to improvement?
Have you hit
a brick wall in your growth and advancement? Do you feel you are
in the wrong place and need to do something different within that organization
or a different organization? Is it time to become self-employed,
or to move from self-employment to the payroll of an organization?
Small
Business
Are you seeing
problems rather than challenges in your everyday work? Attitude makes
the difference between being dragged down by problems rather than energized
with challenges. Are you putting forth your share of solutions, creative
answers? Do you see yourself as an innocent victim in the fast paced
changes happening in the organization and in the world?
Coping
with the Speed of Change
Have you battled
with expediency or politics when deciding an issue? Are there too
many times when it is difficult for you to do what you think is right or
to maintain your integrity? Are there constant moral conflicts?
What encouragement
do you get to continue your learning activities? In this age of always
having to be ready for something new, do you receive training, financial
reimbursement, etc.? Have you established a relationship with a mentor,
or mentors, inside or outside of your workplace? How has the association
been helpful to you? Are you ready to be a mentor to someone who
could learn from your experience and achievements?
Do you feel
that you are earning the money you are being paid, i.e., are you putting
forth the effort that equals the compensation? Have you undertaken
more responsibility or greater amounts of work and feel you are not being
adequately remunerated for it? Where is accumulating wealth positioned
in comparison to other priorities in your life? Has your work positively
or negatively affected your personal health and habits, as well as your
relationship with family and friends?
Job
Search
You may find
a pattern emerging in your answers. Is there need for: (1) a drastic
change? (2) a relatively minor correction? (3) a pat on your back because
you are moving along well toward your short- and long-term goals!
When necessary, start again at Step 1 to achieve career/life planning success.
More practical,
hands-on skills may be needed upon graduation. Read more, study harder,
and attend more work related courses after graduation.
|
