what are your interests?
Career interests are what you like doing with respect to activities and work environments. If you identify your career interests it will help you make a well-planned career decision. If you choose a career in which you are interested in it will boost your creativity, you would not mind putting in extra effort, because you will be enjoying what you are doing.
There are high chances that your interests may change over time, you may find an interest you didn’t realize had or you had not gotten a chance to discover or explore it yet. It is important to identify career assets often.
SKILLS REQUIRED IN DIFFERENT INDUSTRIES
A skillset is the combination of knowledge, personal qualities, and abilities that you’ve developed through your life and work. It typically combines two types of skills: soft skills and hard skills.
Soft Skills are interpersonal or people skills. They are somewhat difficult to quantify and relate to someone’s personality and ability to work with others. This in-demand skill set includes good communication, listening, attention to detail, critical thinking, empathy, and conflict resolution abilities, among other skills.
Hard Skills are quantifiable and teachable. They include the specific technical knowledge and abilities required for a job. Examples of hard skills include computer programming, accounting, mathematics, and data analysis.
Skill Sets for Administrative Careers
Administrative Skills are those related to running a business or keeping an office organized. These skills are needed for a variety of jobs, ranging from office assistants to secretaries to office managers. This skill set might include:
- Written and verbal communication
- Interpersonal skills
- Document management
- Microsoft office skills
- Event coordination
- Organization
- Time management
- Problem-solving
Skill Sets for Information Technology (IT) Jobs
There are many different jobs in the IT sector. Employers typically look for a combination of technical skills and soft skills when hiring. Some employers may look for expertise in a specific language or program, while others might look for a more general skill set. Desired IT skills include:
- Written and verbal communication
- Communicating complex information simply
- IP setup
- Cloud computing
- JavaScript
- Python
- Cybersecurity
- Networking
- Analytics
- Project management
- Critical thinking
Skill Sets for Education Careers
The skill sets you to need to be a great teacher range from leadership and compassion to organization and computer skills. By highlighting these key traits, you’ll appeal to the schools to which you are applying. The skills needed for a career in education include:
- Classroom management
- Interpersonal skills
- Active listening
- Written and verbal communication
- Organization
- Flexibility
- Assessment skills
- Instructional skills
- Public speaking
Type of education or training needed
To get started with the career of your choice, you must get trained as per the requirements of the industry i.e. you need to attain a certain degree of expertise so that you will have good knowledge about the field. While choosing your course and college, always ensure that you are taking admission in an affiliated and a reputed college.
set smart goals
The trouble with not having a goal is that you can spend your life running up and down the field and never score.
Bill Copeland
SPECIFIC
Your goal should be clear and specific, otherwise, you won’t be able to focus your efforts or feel truly motivated to achieve it. When drafting your goal, try to answer the five “W” questions:
- What do I want to accomplish?
- Why is this goal important?
- Who is involved?
- Where is it located?
- Which resources or limits are involved?
Measurable
It’s important to have measurable goals so that you can track your progress and stay motivated. Assessing progress helps you to stay focused, meet your deadlines, and feel the excitement of getting closer to achieving your goal.
A measurable goal should address questions such as:
- How much?
- How many?
- How will I know when it is accomplished?
Attainable
Your goal also needs to be realistic and attainable to be successful. In other words, it should stretch your abilities but still remain possible. When you set an achievable goal, you may be able to identify previously overlooked opportunities or resources that can bring you closer to it.
An achievable goal will usually answer questions such as:
- How can I accomplish this goal?
- How realistic is the goal, based on other constraints, such as financial factors?
Relevant
This step is about ensuring that your goal matters to you and aligns with other relevant goals. We all need support and assistance in achieving our goals, but it’s important to retain control over them. So, make sure that your plans drive everyone forward, but that you’re still responsible for achieving your own goal.
A relevant goal can answer “yes” to these questions:
- Does this seem worthwhile?
- Is this the right time?
- Does this match our other efforts/needs?
- Am I the right person to reach this goal?
- Is it applicable in the current socio-economic environment?
Time-bound
A time-bound goal will usually answer these questions:
Every goal needs a target date so that you have a deadline to focus on and something to work toward. This part of the SMART goal criteria helps to event everyday tasks from prioritizing your longer-term goals.
- When?
- What can I do six months from now?
- What can I do six weeks from now?
- What can I do today?
create your career action plan
Put together a career action plan, a written document that lays out all the steps you will have to take to reach your goals. Think of it as a road map that will take you from point A to B, then to C and D. Write down all your short- and long-term goals and the steps you will have to take to reach each one. Include any anticipated barriers that could get in the way of achieving your goals—and the ways you can overcome them.
This may sound like a lot of work—and it is. But it’s much easier to forge a career path when you know what you want. Taking these steps early will save you a lot of struggle and uncertainty in the long run.
why do you want to pursue this career
Always ask yourself why you want to pursue a certain career as you evaluate which choice is right for you. Don’t let the opinions or expectations of others sway your decision. Ultimately, your career choice is solely yours!
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