.. Serving Students at Santa Ana College and Santiago Canyon College     CAREER PLANNING .

An effective career planning model encourages individuals to understand their strengths, explore and gather occupational information, make decisions, set goals and take action.

STEP 1: 

SELF ASSESSMENT -- Ask yourself... Do I want and need to...

• INTEREST:  Identify my highest interests as well as the occupations which would allow me to express those interests.
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• SKILLS:  Find out what job-related skills  you enjoy using the most, and what transferable skills you have gained from previous experiences that you can use in new and exciting careers that you may never have thought of before?
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• PERSONALITY:  Learn in which industries people with your type of personality and communication style are most often successful.  Understand how to effectively communicate with others  who have styles the same or different from yours.
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• VALUES:  Discover your "Motivators" and what causes you to "Burn Out" -- what "Energizes" you and what "De-motivates" you.

STEP 2:

OCCUPATIONAL EXPLORATION

Researching occupations can help you to: discover the wide range of work available, learn what careers others with a similar background have pursued, find out the specifics of a particular job, and detect work related trends.

STEP 3:

ACTION PLAN

• Educational / Training Plan
• Work Experience Plan
• Job Search

Organize your ideas into the following three groups.  By having long-term goals, you will be able to set your course to becoming successful in your career.  Then by working backwards to the present, you will be able to take a step at a time toward your ultimate goal.

  Group 1:  Work I Would Like To Be Doing In Five Years

  Group 2:  Work I would like to be doing in 2-5 years

  Group 3:  Work I would like to be doing now

How much of your total being (body, mind, spirit) do you want to commit to the work you have listed in the "now" column?  Will you be able to see this work as part of the big picture, the dreams you have, your special way of contributing to the world?  Receiving pay from an employer means completing the tasks required by the position.  Will the joy you experience be greater than the burdens?

Focus

Have a clear understanding of the field in which you want to work.  Use all your energies to engage in activities that will position you for work in that field.  Laser beam focus and total commitment will increase your chances for success immeasurably. Network, build a resume by doing volunteer work, and spend time at job search efforts. Write and re-write resumes, cover letters, etc., and reading  job hunt tips. Peruse newspapers, write/call/visit companies.  Developed a simple filing system to keep track of contacts/applications.  There are always possibilities, even during tough economic times, but time must be spent investigating the options. 

Importance of networking:  Jobs are had often through contacts, even student membership in associations.  Membership notifies you about upcoming opportunities, names of contacts, helpful courses/seminars/workshops, and keeps you abreast  of contemporary issues in your field.  To maximize employment possibilities, get out and make connections, do volunteer work, develop people skills. 

Do not waste elective courses just to get an easy grade.  True professionals in the field know their industry "from birth to grave".  Take courses that provide knowledge in related areas.

PLUS SUCCESS SKILLS

Do not underestimate your abilities and never misrepresent yourself: The best way to avoid this is through ongoing self appraisal.  Do not lose your sense of identity.  Keep on expanding yourself, don't give up your interests.  Do not, however, neglect work for the sake of excelling in other interests.  However, an entire sense of self worth is not exclusively generated by one single aspect of  life -- work. 

Your personality and attitudes are the most important predictors of your success in your career and in your life generally.  You can't accomplish more than you believe you can.  Your thoughts, positive or negative, come into existence (self-fulfilling prophecy).  The only limits you have will be those you accept on your own abilities.  The secret of an athlete's success can be yours too. Create a mind picture of the lifestyle you prefer.  Use your imagination to create what you want in life.

Close your eyes and visualize yourself doing the work you have written in the "now" section above.  Are you inside or outside?  Is there anyone with you?  What tools or equipment are you using?  What are you saying, writing, or thinking?  What deadline are you working towards?  To be successful in visualizing your work, you need to have a strong desire for the goal to be achieved, a belief that it is possible to attain, and a willingness to live with the outcome. 

Complete your visualization with an affirmation (in the present tense of the verb as though it already exists). "I am ...." You can phrase it as a role, e.g., a customer support representative, or as an activity, e.g., supervising volunteers.  Say the affirmation so often that the thought becomes very comfortable and exciting for you.  Finding this type of work is so much easier when you can describe it to others.

Review Your Progress

It's time for a check-up now that you have been doing this work for a while.  Is your job providing you with all the benefits you had hoped, e.g., sense of accomplishment, income, career growth?  Do you get out of bed in the morning with energy and enthusiasm because you truly like and have pride in what you do, a feeling that your work is useful to someone?  What adjustments do you need to make to bring that dream you had back on track?  Is it time for a new vision, a new sense of what you want to do with your life?  Below are some questions.  Add others that fit your situation.  Think positively about the results of this self-evaluation whatever the outcome.  You may just take the right steps in time to avert a crisis.

Do you know how you contribute to the overall success of the organization, i.e., your role in the big picture of the company's changes to be competitive and excel in the marketplace?  Having this knowledge about yourself applies equally to the profit and non-profit sectors of the economy.

Has management acknowledged your contributions, especially regarding attitudes, conduct and productivity?  When it comes time for restructuring or beginning a new project, those individuals with perceived value will be rewarded with a new assignment.

Do you still expect great things from yourself and others?  Are you part of a world class work group?  Are you receiving cross training or rotational assignments to add to your personal and career development?  Are you contributing to team building, conflict resolution, the training of others, and to the total systems approach to improvement?

Have you hit a brick wall in your growth and advancement?  Do you feel you are in the wrong place and need to do something different within that organization or a different organization?  Is it time to become self-employed, or to move from self-employment to the payroll of an organization?

Are you seeing problems rather than challenges in your everyday work?  Attitude makes the difference between being dragged down by problems rather than energized with challenges.  Are you putting forth your share of solutions, creative answers?  Do you see yourself as an innocent victim in the fast paced changes happening in the organization and in the world?

Have you battled with expediency or politics when deciding an issue?  Are there too many times when it is difficult for you to do what you think is right or to maintain your integrity?  Are there constant moral conflicts?

What encouragement do you get to continue your learning activities?  In this age of always having to be ready for something new, do you receive training, financial reimbursement, etc.?  Have you established a relationship with a mentor, or mentors, inside or outside of your workplace?  How has the association been helpful to you?  Are you ready to be a mentor to someone who could learn from your experience and achievements?

Do you feel that you are earning the money you are being paid, i.e., are you putting forth the effort that equals the compensation?  Have you undertaken more responsibility or greater amounts of work and feel you are not being adequately remunerated for it?  Where is accumulating wealth positioned in comparison to other priorities in your life?  Has your work positively or negatively affected your personal health and habits, as well as your relationship with family and friends? 

You may find a pattern emerging in your answers.  Is there need for: (1) a drastic change? (2) a relatively minor correction? (3) a pat on your back because you are moving along well toward your short- and long-term goals!  When necessary, start again at Step 1 to achieve career/life planning success.

More practical, hands-on skills may be needed upon graduation.  Read more, study harder, and attend more work related courses after graduation.