Choosing Careers

You will get a lot of bad career advice in the long road of life. Some of you will come out a winner, and many others will become “losers”. There are many theories on why this happens. What I can tell you is that many of the theories are just plain wrong. In this article, I will expose some of these idiotic theories and point you to what really matters.

Do What You Love

This is a crock of bull. I love to sit around and watch television, sleep till noon, and then go out with my friends. If we all did what we loved, we wouldn’t make a living. That’s why it’s called work. Sure it is ideal to feel a love towards one’s work, but the question sends you down the wrong path. Instead, ask yourself this, “Of the available and marketable skills that the world needs, what would I like the best?” This question focuses on what needs done and second on what you love.

There are thousands, if not millions of graduates every year who do nothing with their degrees. They often graduate in something with no real value to society. Thus, they get no reward from society. Sure, there is intrinsic benefit, but is that really why you got the degree?

I am the best

The scriptures say pride goeth before the fall. There are lots of degrees that are highly competitive upon graduation. Many people are very mistaken about their ability. They reason that because they did well in high school or whatever that they can really compete in anything. This cocky attitude is setting you up for big disappointment.

Why? In the first place, there are a lot more losers than winners in a competitive field. By the numbers alone, you are most likely going to be the loser.

You need to know the supply of labor and the demand on labor to figure out your chances of success. Many people just don’t realize the battle they are taking on is next to impossible.

For example, attorneys that go to state schools must graduate in the top 10% of their class to get a decent job after graduation. In the field of economics, there are about 7000 applicants for every decent position. So, who gets the jobs? In most cases, it’s the top 10% from an elite university and most have advanced degrees.

There are a lot of cocky students that think they are going to for sure make 100k a year shortly after graduation. Many are even in fields with little to no prospects. These students reason that statistics don’t apply to them because they are the best. Again, it’s a cockiness problem. Read the rest of this entry »

Changing careers can be exciting and frightening at the same time. Those who are in need of a job due to workforce reduction will be anxious and fearful, but there are still career choices out there. In today’s economy, it won’t be easy to find another job. Some will need to acquire new skills, while others may have to adapt their present skill set to fit into another area of work.

One thing to remember is that we all have skills, some gained from present and past jobs, and some from daily life activities and even personal hobbies. It’s the harnessing of these skills, or better said, the “re-shaping” of these skills, that will help you to move on to a new job or career.

“Change is good” – that’s what we all hear. It certainly can be. There are many opportunities for the job transitioner. So many schools today offer online classes and degrees, that learning the latest skills for a new career have been made as easy as clicking the button on your mouse. There are also several free career assessment tests online to lead you in the right direction.

There are a few questions you need to ask yourself before moving on:

1. Is it new training you need, or re-shaping your current skills?
2. Will you need to obtain a new degree or certificate, or will some classes do the trick?
3. If you need to return to school for a new degree, will you be able to afford it?
4. What about schedules? Can I go to school and still do what I need to do at home?

So many options are available today that it may be hard to decide which option is right for your situation and place in life. Let’s get started addressing these questions:

Question #1:

Are your present skills marketable? If so, you may only need to put them in the right context on your resume to sit for a new job interview. If your resume needs to be redone, there are many resources on the internet to help you with that process. Transferring skills from one type of job to another really isn’t that difficult.

However, if you lack some of the more technological skills needed in today’s workplace, you’ll need to take some training. This can be in the form of online classes, community college classes, or computer based training on DVD, if you’re comfortable as an independent learner. Read the rest of this entry »