For as long as I can remember, at different junctions of my childhood, I’ve been asked, “What is your ambition?” “What do you want to be when you grow up”. Strangely enough, the answer is always different. At the age of 5, I wanted to be a singer because I was belted out a pretty good rendition of “My Boone”. At the age of 13 years old, I wanted to be a dancer and a gymnast because I was fascinated with that form of art and gymnastics was another form of sporty art to me. I spent the rest of my years in secondary school participating in school concerts, talent quests and became the school’s gymnastics captain and loved every minute of school
Then at 15 years old, I spent a period of recuperation in the local hospital and it was then that I realised my dream career - to be a nurse so that I can give back to others what the nurses gave me then. I studied harder in the last year of school than I did in the previous three years – just so that I could achieve the correct numbers of GCE “O” Level to get myself into nursing school. I started my “dream career” with the fighting spirit of a sportsman to win that GOLD!.- But that dream was short-lived when I developed a condition that forced me to make a decision to leave the profession just after a year into nursing school.
It is said that we spent most of our waking hours of our life working. We go through school preparing ourselves for the workforce. But when crunch time came, we are stumped! Questions like “Can we spend our time doing the things we love most? Will we truly feel happiness and fulfillment in our careers? Will I realize my dream career? How do I get there?” cross our minds and we begin to wonder.
Topics like goal setting for your career and work life balance are not usually taught in school, yet if we don't write goals and plan the steps we need to take to get there, there is every chance we'll end up somewhere completely different. Like personal goal setting, setting career goal charts out a focused plan in the direction of that dream career. Setting a career goal is a powerful process for thinking about your ideal career, and for motivating yourself to turn this vision of the career into reality!
If you set clearly defined short term and long term goals you will be able to measure your progress and eventually achieve personal satisfaction in all areas of your life. As you move towards your goals, your self-confidence will also improve as you see the progress you are making - progress which would be hard to measure if you have not formulated your goals properly and written them down. You will also find that with progress you become more aware of your abilities, skills and knowledge, which in turn will also boost your self-esteem.
Before setting specific goals for your career, whether for finding a new job or advancing in your current company, you should spend some time to ensure that you are clear about what you really want in your career. Think about the considerations:
1. Self discovery – Reflect on the discovering your purpose in life. This helps to give clarity about what you want to do as a career. As questions like “Why are you here? What do you want your life to be like?” The best way to achieve accomplishments and fulfillment is to ensure that your career choices are reflects your purpose in life.
2. Consider your Talents, Interest and Passions:a. Identify your Talents and Abilities – Start with listing your skills inventory. Include all the things that you are good at, or that come easily to you. Also, think about any specialised knowledge that you possess. Do you hold a degree in a certain are? Are you an expert on a particular topic or field?
b. Identify your Interests – Next make a list of your Interests. Ask questions like, “What sparks your curiosity? What subject do you find fascinating? What areas of knowledge would you like to explore? Why stop at one, choose two or even three areas of expertise you could develop
c. Identify your Passions - The last step is to make a list of all your passions. What do you really enjoy doing? What gets you excited? What do you feel strongly or passionately about? What really gets your juices flowing? What have you always wanted to try but never attempted?
3. Identify your driving values - Your driving values determine the aspects of a job or career that provide the most motivation and fulfillment. Understanding your driving values can help you make the best career and a work choice based on what is right for you. List and prioritise the values. Use this list to help you make future decisions about your career so that they are based on what is most important for you.
4. Strategic Career PlanA strategic career plan is a document that combines all the elements of your career goal. It includes:
• Your purpose statement
• Your vision for the next 3-5 years
• Your values
• Your guiding principles
Article Contribued by Tina Melati, Senior Consultant of Training Edge International
Email : tina.melati@trainingedgeasia.com
Website : www.trainingedgeasia.com
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