With thousands of careers to choose from, you might be struggling to find the best option that’s right for you. While some people seemingly know what they want to do before they leave high school, others might have to do a little research to discover the best vocation for them. Find out how to find your dream career.
Consider Your Personality
If you want to choose the right career, you must learn a little more about yourself. For example, what are your interests, skills, values, and aptitudes? Are you an extrovert or an introvert? Write a list of desired occupations and identify the best ones to suit your personality, and rule out the careers that would not be a natural fit.
Review Your List
Once you have ruled out occupations that do not match your personality, review the list to identify what appeals to you most. If you don’t know much about a career, do a little further research, as you could potentially find your dream job.
Weigh Up the Pros and Cons
There might be one or more careers popping out at you from the page. If so, weigh up the pros and cons of both occupations so you can identify the best fit. For example, people hoping to embark on a career in big data might be torn between going down the data science career path or becoming a business analyst – so you’ll need to identify if you want to lead from the back or front-end of data collection and analysis.
Identify Training Opportunities
If you believe you have found the perfect job for your personality, you should try to learn more about the role. Read job descriptions to identify business requirements and demand. After all, you will not want to get your heart set on an occupation only to discover no employer is hiring for the position.
You may also need to embark on educational or training programs to gain the appropriate qualifications. For example, you may need to attend college to gain a degree in your chosen field before you can secure employment. You must, therefore, be willing to dedicate both time and money into making your dream occupation a reality.
Meet Professionals
To help make up your mind, it might be beneficial to meet people who currently work in the occupation. Speaking with professionals will allow you to gain firsthand knowledge into your potential career, which could help make up your mind if it’s the right career path for you. Reach out to industry professionals for advice either via email or LinkedIn, as they might be more than happy to provide advice, and you could potentially gain a mentor in the process.
Create a Career Action Plan
Once you know what you want to do, all that’s left is to identify how you are going to do it. Create a career action plan that will detail the steps you will need to take to achieve your goals. Write down both your short and long-term goals, so you will know the perfect route to success.
