Career Planning Tips

Intro to Career Planning

Career counselors often follow a career development model using the following 4 steps to help students create a Career Action Plan.  No matter what plan you use...have one!  It's easier to see where you're headed and to evaluate your progress when you have a series of steps to navigate.
 

Step 1.  Assess Yourself

Discover what you have that is valuable to an employer. Can you clearly talk about your interests, skills, abilities, personality type? The more you take stock of yourself, the easier it is to make a good career decision, write your resume and sell yourself in the interview to get the job you want.  The foundation of career success is solid knowledge about "you".
 
STEP 2.  EXPLORE THE WORKPLACE
Study the jobs, industries and current labor market conditions that match your current skills set and/or explore what training programs would prepare you for the job.  And don't just do this online!  Contact people doing the job you want and ask for an "info interview". 
 
STEP 3.  DECIDE AND SET GOALS
This is reality-check time...PRIOR to taking action. It's about making decisions and is often the first time job seekers consider seeing a career counselor because of the stress involved. In this economy it's extremely important to set a realistic goal based on current labor market conditions.  SMART goal setting is a popular method to manage your plan.

STEP 4.  TAKE ACTION

Unfortunately, most job seekers make this the first step when, in fact, the most successful job seekers start with self-assessment. This fourth step is about resumes, cover letters, interviewing, developing good job leads, applying for work, negotiating salaries, etc. It would also be the step to enroll in training for a new job if that has become your goal.

There are other career development models that you might want to review to assist you in your career planning...some examples are below. 

The University of St. Thomas' career development is also listed in the mega-jobsites page because it links to job search articles and tips. http://www.stthomas.edu/careerdevelopment/model/default.html

The University of Waterloo websites with a popular graphic of career planning steps...and checklists to help you manage your progress. http://www.cdm.uwaterloo.ca/steps.asp

Contains a simple assessment exercise...a reality check feature...and concise job descriptions for hundreds of jobs. www.cacareerzone.org

The State of California EDD has developed an excellent website and career planning guide, although it is dated 2003-2005, information is current and you may find it helpful. http://www.californiacareers.info/downloads/ccpg7_04.pdf