Steps to Choose a Career
Step 1: Assess Yourself – In order to begin the career search, you ought to first know your own strengths and skills. You should be aware of your key values and overall life goals.
Step 2: Define What You Must Have – This could include the minimum salary you want to have, along with the benefits you must have, such as health insurance or flexible work hours. In addition to that, your must-haves could be a certain work environment, specific job title etc.
Step 3: Pen Down a List of Jobs to Research – To do this, you should use your interests and education credentials. List down the things you enjoy doing and make a list of jobs that include those things.
Step 4: Carry Out a Complete Research – This would involve an in-depth research into your shortlisted jobs. Make sure you check salary information and job outlook data on the US Bureau of Labor Statistics to rule out lower paid jobs or jobs that do not have a bright future outlook. You may also want to look into the job duties.
Step 5: Update Your Resume – Once you have a list of jobs you want to apply to, you can invest in getting additional training and updating your resume.
Step 6: Apply for Shortlisted Jobs – Start looking for job opportunities in newspapers, job portals or individual company websites.
Step 7: Clear the Interviews/Entry Exams – If this is your first job in the specified industry, you might have to clear a job entry test. In most cases, however, you would be required to clear an interview to land the job.
Step 8: Begin Your Job and Start Working Your Way Up – Your struggle to develop a career begins after you start working. In most jobs, you will have to work your way up the hierarchy, getting consistent promotions with years of experience or additional educational credentials.
Bear in mind that the above is a rather simplified version of a process that can take you years to complete. In addition to that, it is important to know that you can switch career paths if you feel like you chose the wrong career in the first place.
Here are a few tips to keep in mind when you start a new career:
Start Strong – Try and make the most of your first year, learn what you can about the industry and establish yourself as an important part of the team.
Stay True to Your Goals – If you feel like your career is swaying you away from your eventual goals, you might want to re-assess and look for another, more fulfilling career.
