Are you the one who finds difficulty in choosing a career? Are you the one who is not satisfied and wants to change your career? Or Are you the one who is looking for purpose and fulfillment in life? You can be in any career stage and want to progress further but don’t know how to start making informed career decisions.
Focusing on self-reflection is the first step to take. Self-reflection is like dating yourself to know more about yourself. It is a continuous process to discover your likes, dislikes, personalities, beliefs, values, strengths, areas of improvement, and more about yourself. The habit of regular self-analysis is a key to career development. Career Development is a continuous lifelong process through which people focus on seeking, obtaining, and processing information about themselves, a world of work, and more for developmental experiences.
Understanding oneself sets the strong foundation to make informed career decisions. Many factors influence preferences and career decision-making skills. This article attempts to cover the valuable tips to get started.
- Deep dive into strengths and weaknesses
Strengths encompass the qualities and characteristics developed through various learning experiences. Create a list of strengths derived from the self-reflections and the feedback you received from your close friends, family members, colleagues, managers, and other people from your network.
Collecting the list of strengths, such as your technical skills, soft skills, leadership qualities and more, will make you feel accomplished and also make you grateful for the things you have.
Likewise, creating a list of weaknesses or areas of improvement gives you a clear picture of the areas you can improve on. Acknowledging and accepting your weaknesses is the first step to converting them into strengths and growth.
2. Identifying the core values and beliefs
Our values and beliefs are the foundation for making decisions, setting goals and, experiences in our lives. Our values determine what is important to us in various aspects of life. Here are a few questions that help to identify values in one aspect of our life; career.
→ What is essential to me at work? Is it financial security, respect, growth or a sense of purpose
→ What kind of environment brings the best out of me? Do you prefer working independently or thrive in collaborative settings?
→ What impact do I want to create?
Our beliefs shape the lens through which we see ourselves and the world. Supporting beliefs, such as I can do it, lift you, and limiting beliefs, such as I am not enough, pull you down. Beliefs are the truth that we hold within ourselves. Some beliefs work in our favor, and some do not. What are your beliefs that support or limit you, list those down.
A career in which your values are aligned with your organization or work and your supporting beliefs make you unstoppable to achieve the goals will make you feel satisfied and accomplished.
3. Career Assessments
Psychometric career assessment is one of the recommended scientific tools to measure an individual's mental capabilities, cognitive abilities & behavioral style. It helps to measure your affinity for a course, stream, or role based on the required personality characteristics and aptitude for the same. There are accessible online assessments where you can assess personality, values, and more. You can research and connect with a career counselor or career coach who can help you make a career decision.
A set of structured questions in assessments helps you do self-analysis and generates the report based on your answers. It facilitates discovering your potential and interests, learning styles, and skills to excel in the 21st Century.
4. Learning from Experiences
Career development is a continuous learning process from various life experiences, including successes and failures. Reflecting on those experiences can guide you in making career-related decisions. Imagine a situation where you have observed your seniors (role models) doing their work diligently and efficiently with the competencies they had. You got an opportunity for job shadowing, and on a path to enhance your competencies, you started planning an in-depth learning course, earning certifications, and applying the learnings into practice.
A learning experience either by observing or learning by doing, you can connect those experiences to make a better future choice in any career decision-making, like accepting or rejecting job offers, investing in personal development, or transitioning from one career to another.
It is expected to get confused, overwhelmed, or anxious while making career-related decisions, such as which career to choose, what career development programs to pursue, setting career goals, and more. Self-reflection is an initial step that involves analyzing our strengths, and weaknesses, identifying values, amplifying supporting beliefs, taking career assessments, and more. This introspection provides a clear understanding of oneself, which helps in career development.
About Author
Ms. Nibha Shakya is a Certified Career Coach with the mission to raise consciousness in choosing and excelling in a career. She is a Co-Founder and Career Coach at Career Coach Nepal (CCN). She has 12 + years of experience as a Strategic and Operational Human Resources Professional who translates business vision into HR initiatives that improve performance, profitability, and employee engagement. Impact-creating leader through the blend of HR experience, personality, and career coaching, counseling with a vision to contribute to career seekers to create an impactful career. She is passionate about teaching, and developing future leaders.
About Career Coach Nepal (CCN)
Career Coach Nepal was founded on year 2020 and envisions a future where career seekers are equipped with the necessary marketable & employable skills, and knowledge. Furthermore, it aims to be a support system for navigating their career journey and excelling in their chosen careers, driving the growth and prosperity of Nepal's and the world’s economy.
CCN’s objectives are focused on preparing career seekers to be successful in their careers and providing an opportunity to get engaged in their dream careers. This can be possible by providing holistic career services ranging from entrepreneurship guidance, career counseling and coaching services, mentoring, and capacity development programs.
Contact Information:
Phone: +977 9824128700
Email: [email protected]