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Everyone who has not successfully found their ideal career is out looking for it. But how does anyone conduct a successful job search? ‘Successful’ is not just finding a job, but one that fits you well. To achieve that, firstly you will need to know yourself but how are you going to do that? There are numerous facets and layers to a person’s ‘self’, but the three aspects that are relevant to match you to your ideal career are; Values, Skills, and Interests.
Values
Values are your core beliefs and ideas of what is right and wrong.
Skills
Skills are abilities you learn or acquire from training, and also things that you naturally do well. It often happens that we take the skills that we have for granted. The fact is that each of us has a variety of skills, but most of them go unnoticed. Do you know what skills you have? Do you know which skills you are better at?
Interests
As explained above, values are our core beliefs; the meaning and purpose behind the things that we do. We are most likely to be comfortable and thrive in work that fits the values we strongly adhere to. On the other hand, conflict may arise when we face a work situation that clashes with our values. Consider the few samples of values related to work. Which ones are closest to your beliefs? Which are clear and precise? Which are the least important?
| Accomplishment | Friendship | Challenge | Leisure |
| Balance: Family & Work | Promotion | Competition | Personal Growth |
| Exploration | Independence | Flexibility | Responsibility |
| Progress | Job Security | Rules | Stability |
| Creativity | Inner Harmony | Holistic | Integrity |
| Proficiency | Leadership | Learning | Options |
To be able to draw or lay out your blueprint, there will be two crucial aspects to explore. Firstly, yourself – your interests, talents and skills, and secondly, your options; in other words, knowing what is out there for you. These two elements go hand-in-hand so you have better understanding on what to look for. You need to know what you want and to do so, you need to know what is out there – things that interest you.
Have a ‘To-do-List’ for explorative expansion in terms of industries, occupations and opportunities:
Read occupational handbooks, career books and websites, or trade magazines.
Ask, starting with your immediate circle on the possible career options out there, their career paths, and what tips and advice they would impart to the younger generation – you.
Surf the net – it is the new directory, dictionary and encyclopedia. Check out the possible fields and options for graduates in your programme major.
Network with seniors or alumni to get some advice and exchange experiences with.
Talk or have informational interviews with corporate or business people, advisors or faculty personnel with experience in the field, or of the occupation and organisation of your interest.
The next step is to ‘filter’ the information collected and come up with a conclusion. The few categories you could focus on are as set out below:
Bear in mind that the categories also depend on your current situation and personal values. A few off-the-list that some might want to consider are the ‘company’s reputation,’ ‘geographical location,’ ‘growth prospects,’ or whether or not you fit in with the ‘requirements.’
After completing the exploration of industries and fields, your self-assessment, and filtering your possible options to the specific choices, you are almost near the end of your job search. To start your career, you will need an action plan for your job search. There are a few commonly used mediums which employers use to advertise job vacancies, and a few other unconventional ways that might make the positions exclusive to only certain individuals.
| Common Job Search | Non-advertised Jobs |
|---|---|
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After identifying your targeted job, the next step you will need to take is to prepare your resume, cover letter, and brush up on your interview skills. First timers may opt to attend the CV & Cover Letter Writing Workshop, Grooming Workshop, and Interview Tips and Techniques Workshop.
Career evolution involves the enhancement of the necessary skill sets according to the requirements of different careers. Some careers require hard skills or technical knowledge, in which case you may want to consider attending seminars, conferences or other programmes to obtain the relevant skills.
Other careers may place more emphasis on soft skills like presentation and communication skills, especially in this modern era where service is key and a company’s greatest asset is its people. This is why people skills such as leadership, listening and communication skills come in handy and other soft skills like time management, risk management, problem-solving, decision making, and effective writing skills are also good skills to have.
To move your career forward, you will need to know your career goals; gathering the necessary information will help you set the right objectives. Map out your storyboard by first knowing what you want to achieve in the next 5 or 10 years. You will then need to plan how or what you need to do to get there. Begin with the end result in mind.
Revisions are made as necessary.
At this point, you are probably already working or have some working experience. Why is it important for you to rate yourself in terms of your career? Apart from self-improvement, doing so provides you with a good platform to gauge where you are in your career and if you are on the right track to achieve your goals. This helps you compare your expectations with what you have achieved, providing you with useful insight on the improvements needed.
To measure your performance in the workplace, you are encouraged to have a checklist based on the following areas:
- Duties and responsibilities given
- Personal development
- Work environment
- Relationship with co-workers
- Growth and learning opportunities
- Working hours
- Monetary incentives
- Career advancement
- Personal values
- Organisational support
Kindly note that each individual’s values and career expectations are different so create a set of questions on what is most important to you in your career like recognition, career advancement, learning opportunities, team work, integrity and quality of work, among others.
