What to do if you have no idea what you want to do when you grow up. So you’re fresh out of university. All the cramming and caffeine-fuelled sleepless nights have finally paid off. You’ve reached the other side and maybe it feels different than you thought it would? Maybe you saw all the grown-ups in their matching suits and shiny heels, walking past your campus whilst you were downing last night’s cold left-overs, and assumed university would spit you out in a similar form? If you’re here because your pumpkin hasn’t quite turned into a royal carriage yet, you’ve come to the right corner of the internet.
“What am I going to be when I grow up?” A great deal of people never discover the answer, and I don’t want you to be one of them. The quest for a life craft that leaves us feeling like we’ve achieved something here is such a universal feeling that it’s no wonder so much confusion comes with it. The reason so many people struggle to understand what career is right for them is two-fold. Firstly, they are not crystal clear about who they are. Secondly, they are not aware of the myriad opportunities that are available to them in the modern world. So how do you overcome these two major hurdles and figure it out?
Well! Follow my 5 steps to proven success and well see if we can’t get you that kick-ass career you’ve always known you wanted.
1. Understand Yourself
“Who Am I?” An age-old question, and one that rarely ever gets properly figured out, even by the best of us. But it is still one of the few questions of our lives that deserves our full attention. Often people come to me wanting a quick fix. They hope that in a one-hour coaching session I’ll tell them exactly what job will turn that career dissatisfaction into instant satisfaction. Unfortunately, it’s not that simple. To understand yourself, you simply need the right attitude and the right assessment tools. By the right attitude, I mean you need to approach this task with a level of self-awareness and honesty. The right tools include personality-profiling and personal or professional coaching. You need to combine the personality testing with time spent clearly defining your values and needs.2. Get clear on your purpose.
On to the next big question, “Why am I here?” This is often such a scarily big question; it just seems easier to place in the ‘too hard’ basket until the next existential crisis. So, let’s break this down a little. What we are really asking ourselves is ‘how do we do something of value with our time?’ Happiness research has shown it is incredibly important that we feel like we are adding value and contributing to something larger than ourselves.Are you thinking that is all fine and well, but the vastness of the question still lingers? Regrettably, I can’t squash/water down the importance of this question, but here are a few other questions you can ask yourself that might be a good starting point: When do I feel pure joy? What achievement am I most proud of? What do people come to me for advice on? When was the last time I felt truly energised? What excites me? What unique interests did I have as a child? What would I be doing if money was no object?
