Confused about career? 3 helpful tips to help you
Quite often, I hear the people around me saying that how lucky is the present generation: they have lots of options — ‘career’ options to choose from. The society is changing and embracing new career forms — be it in sports, art, photography, writing. In fact, to the extent that now being in a regular job is okay until and unless you are taking home big fat salary or you are a part of some exciting start-up.
But I have a different view point. Having too many options to choose from acts like a double edged sword. Career options had always been there but only now there is an acceptance. But at the same time, I see most of the younger generation confused because of too many available options. The children are not good at one thing but in multiple disciplines. They are good at academics, sports, writing, theatre to name a few. So it has rather become challenging for them to decide what to pursue further. And this confusion is not just with younger generation, even the people in workforce find themselves at cross-roads, wondering in which direction to move forward — because of the variety of career options and all seem exciting and rewarding.
Useful tips
So how does one decide what career to choose? There is no straight answer to that but following tips can certainly help one:
1. Be a keen observer of your own self
This might be a good starting point. Observe your habits, your daily routine and what brings happiness to you — is it playing basketball, is it writing, is it solving physics, mathematics problem or photography? Dive deeper into your observation. Keep a check on the moments when you pick your activity — is there a pattern to these activities, when do you pursue them — is it one time thing or you stick to them in some random phases or you enjoy pursuing them on regular terms. Such pattern observation can be useful in getting the initial direction of your interest. In a recent interview, I was asked in which work activity I would like to spend 70% of my time. I found this question uncomfortable at first, knowing that I like to devote my time doing 10 related activities, but when I reflected, I found my answer. Give it try and honestly answer this question. I am sure you will find your answer.
2. Ask opinion from your trusted people
Ask an open opinion from your trusted aides — this could be your family members, close friends or even your teachers. This one might be tricky as their remarks may be biased but at times, they tell you the traits and characteristics that you yourself might not have known. I remember, I reached out to my math tutor in 11th grade to have an honest discussion on my abilities to excel in engineering. He suggested that I go for administration. I was his student for three years. He had observed me closely. He told me that my traits clearly showed that I love to lead and manage things than being told what to do. I hate to admit it that I didn’t pay heed to his advise at that point in time. Would have definitely saved some of my precious years! Rather just followed the general opinion— you scored great marks, should definitely take science.
3. Ask for an expert advice
Just discovering your interest or talent is not enough. Reach out to career counselors and field experts who may help and guide you. While career counselors may help you discover your interests and find suitable career options, a field experts can provide you information on future aspects in the field of your interest. One should know what are the pros and cons, what are the challenges ahead before signing up for it. In addition, there is nothing like getting mentored and coached by an expert in the field itself. With technology advancement and networking sites, it has become easier to reach out to right folks and get the tips (to say the least). In my current profession, I reach out to the experts on regular basis to understand how the future of the field is shaping and what it holds for me.
To conclude, everyone wants to have a flourishing career and be happy in the work they do. Being confused about it is the last thing anyone wants to get to. I hope these simple tips will atleast help you to get started instead of just procrastinating about what to do because of too many options available.
