There are many factors to consider when choosing the perfect career, especially if you’re just starting out in the world of work. If you’re not familiar with what your chosen career entails and how much it pays, you could end up making a bad decision that will leave you unhappy and broke in the long run. To choose the perfect career, consider these seven tips to help you make the right choice.
- Know yourself
Before you set out on your career search, it’s important to get a clear picture of who you are and what makes you tick. Take some time to do an honest assessment of your skills, personality traits, likes, dislikes and values. Do you like organising and managing tasks? Would working in a team be more fulfilling or do you prefer solo work? Have you ever gotten excited about sitting in front of a computer for hours at a time?
Work out your options
When you’re choosing a career, it helps to have an overview of your options and what they entail. This doesn’t have to be a full-on research project—just do enough research on your chosen fields so that you can form some sort of opinion or conclusion about each. Then it’s time for some introspection: sit down with yourself and ask why you want each job and which one best suits your personality.
Take action
What’s holding you back from making a decision? Work out how much money you want to make and how quickly. Do some research into what kind of person that takes and what sort of education you’ll need. What would your friends think? How will your parents react? And, above all, is it something you truly want? Once you can answer these questions for yourself, getting started on your journey shouldn’t be too far off.
Set realistic goals
No matter how much you want it, there’s no such thing as a perfect career. But that doesn’t mean your goals can’t be realistic—it just means they must account for circumstances beyond your control. In other words, make sure your goals are tied to what you can actually accomplish rather than an idealised version of yourself or life events outside of your reach.
Don’t settle
The bottom line is that you need to choose a career that makes you happy and fulfilled, as opposed to one that merely pays well. If you’re not happy in your career, it will show in your job performance, which will reduce your chances of getting promoted or reaching higher goals. Your paycheck shouldn’t be your primary motivation when choosing a career—you should pick something that gives you an opportunity for personal growth and development.
Consider your personality traits and how they would fit in different careers
Personality plays a large role in determining which careers would be best for you. Consider what traits you have that would be either beneficial or problematic in your desired career. For example, if you are organised and punctual, but don’t like working with a lot of people, consider an occupation that doesn’t require a lot of teamwork. Having clear knowledge of your personality traits can help with figuring out exactly what type of job will best suit you.
Ever compare yourself to others
Just because one guy is making a lot of money, doesn’t mean you need to earn that much. Or just because one woman is in love with her job, doesn’t mean you need to love yours. We all have different goals, values and needs; and we should never force ourselves into a career we don’t want just because our friends are happy in theirs. The right job for you is out there waiting – no matter how long it takes to find it!
Author Bio:
His experiences working for top brands like Unilever and Samsonite inspired him to write ‘The Rules of Work. Shivank set out to provide non-bullshitty, fact-based career advice that helps millennial workers get more opportunities and grow their careers faster. This blog is where he documents the daily challenges he and his colleagues face. Check him out on OfficeProductivity.org.
