How to choose a career that makes me happy?
Now that we are more than a month into the new year, people whose New Years Resolution was to get a new job are starting to feel antsy. Although I am a licensed marriage and family therapist, I also have a PPS credential so I am a qualified/certified career counselor. Because of this, I get people who come in for help in choosing a career. Because my main focus is being a therapist, my approach is going to be a little different than someone who is purely a career counselor. The therapist part of me integrates into your career search things that a career counselor wouldn’t. One example of this is that one of my focuses is helping you to explore YOU so that you can then figure out what you might like doing as a career. Once we explore who you are, and you feel comfortable with that, it can be helpful to go to a career counselor who focuses on the next steps of career hunting (for example: resume building).
When I was in school, my professor said that a job is something you do to pay your bills and a career is something you would do if you didn’t have to work. She suggested that we volunteer our time somewhere, and if we liked it enough to do it for free, we’d most likely stick with it and enjoy it as a career. This philosophy guides how I go about helping my clients to find a career they enjoy.
Questions you should ask yourself when thinking about a career:
- What do you like doing in your free time? Make a list of the things you like doing. Not everything you like doing is something you would want to do 8 hours a day, but this is a start. You would be surprised at what jobs are out there they you had no idea existed. When I was in the self-exploration phase of my career journey, I had never heard of a therapist before. Once I learned about what a therapist did, I was full steam ahead! 25 years into my career, I still love it!
- What are you good at? Again, just because you are good at something, doesn’t mean that you want to do it 40 hours per week for the next 30-40 years, but it is a good start. Thing broadly: are you good with your hands, are you a “people person”, are you physically strong, are you a literal thinker, are you….. the list can go on forever.
- What are you NOT good at? If you faint when you see blood, then perhaps being a nurse might not be your thing. That being said, there are nurses who don’t have to deal with blood, so that is the sort of thing WE explore during your appointment. If you are a clumsy person, perhaps a job where you aren’t responsible for breakable things would be a good fit. You don’t want to constantly struggle at a job, and so if you are NOT naturally good at something, take that into consideration. It could be something you work on to be better at, but it might be that you take signs from mother nature and find something that fits your personality and skill set more.
- What do other people with your personality do? You can google these sorts of things to get ideas and you can also talk to people who you meet out in the world who remind you of you. Find out what they do for a living and if they LIKE IT.
If you live in California and are looking for help choosing a career, please give us a call at Long Beach Therapy: 562-310-9741.