When we are little, we are often asked the question ‘what do you want to be when you grow older?’, and as a child, the answer is usually something like ‘an astronaut’ or a ‘firefighter’.
Still, when it’s time to make that decision in your late teens, or even adult years, it can be extremely hard to find the answer.
To help you come to the right conclusion and avoid a life slumped over a desk, here’s seven steps that you should follow when trying to find your ideal career path.
1. Make a List of Your Hobbies
To enjoy what you do for the majority of the day, it’s essential to find a job that you love.
So, the best place to start is with your hobbies. What are you passionate about?
What would make you get out of bed on a cold wintery morning to go to work?
While your passion might not be your forte, it’s a good starting point to help you figure out what career you want to pursue.
2. Discover What You’re Good At
What you enjoy and what you’re good at can be two very different things.
For example, you might enjoy dancing, but you’re actually really good at organising.
So, a job as an event planner, office manager or personal assistant may be a sensible choice.
As well as listing your hobbies, create a second list of skills that you possess.
3. Identify Your Personality Traits
In order to find the right career fit, you’re going to need to take a closer look at your personality traits.
While you might be a gifted singer, your introverted personality might not let you succeed in this field because you’re too anxious to stand on a stage in front of people.
Therefore, it’s important to identify and take into consideration your personality traits when it comes to your career path.
It can often be confusing to figure out, so a state-of-the-art career test, like our own test, CareerHunter, can help you discover your most-suited professions using scientific data and testing.
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4. Determine What You Want Out of a Career
It’s also necessary to identify what it is that you want out of a career.
Do you want to receive a high salary? Have a respectable job title? Or simply work for a cause that you care about?
By answering these questions, you can narrow down what type of roles you’d be interested in working towards and find the path to success.
5. Talk to Industry Experts
Once you’ve narrowed down a handful of careers, talk to industry experts and find out more about the job and industry as a whole.
They will offer insight into the day-to-day practices, working hours, progression and further opportunities, which will help you get a clearer understanding of that career.
6. Research the Job Market
Besides talking to career experts, you should also research the job market and see whether there are opportunities in this field, or whether it’s a career that you’ll struggle to secure.
You also need to determine whether the role you are interested in has the potential for career progression, otherwise, you will get bored working in the same position for years on end.
7. Discover Your Core Values
Lastly, identify what your core values are, and use them to find a career that is fulfilling for you.
Make a list of qualities that are important to you and identify companies who have the same core beliefs.
This will help you narrow down your search and discover industries that you would be a good match for.
As you can see, it’s not that difficult to find the right career when you have a good way of identifying your interests and strengths.
Looking for more advice? Head over to CareerAddict.com for additional opportunities.
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