How To Choose A Career

There are a lot of options out there for careers. How can you choose a career path that is right for you, your skills, your interests, and that will have an impact for you? How do you know what career you might enjoy and will do well in? We hope that you’ll find this guide on how to choose a career helpful!

So, how to begin?

Start by assessing yourself and who you are right now, so you can start picking out your top career choices. What are you good at and what do you enjoy? Starting here will help you to narrow down some career ideas that match your skills and interests. Using that information, you can research different roles and see what’s available on sites like Practice Match.

Start by asking yourself these questions and exploring these activities:

• What subjects did you enjoy studying when you were in education? Why did you enjoy them? Was it because you liked the person who taught you, or is there something about the subject that you can relate to?

• What subjects do you well at? Why?

• Think about whether you prefer to work with numbers, visuals, or physical activities. Which would you choose as a favorite? Can you see yourself in a job where your choice forms a large part of what you do every day?

Use a career personality test to help you choose a career path

You could take an online career personality test to find out more information about your personal qualities and strengths. These are also known as career aptitude tests or self-assessment tests, and they can help you to make career choices based on your personal traits, or qualities.

Choose a career with the help of SWOT analysis

You could also do a SWOT analysis. You just need a pen and some paper, and to be honest with yourself. Nobody has to see the results of this exercise about you. You can use your SWOT analysis to work out your current strengths, weaknesses, threats to your goals, and opportunities that you could reach out and take if you really put your mind to it. This information will help you choose a career that suits you.

Self-assessment to find your chosen career path

Think about the five most important life and work skills that you already have, and which ones you want to build on. Are you best at communication, self-management, self-belief, teamwork, or problem-solving? Every career will need those skills, but some require them more than others.

For example, if you plan to go into sales, nursing, teaching, or reporting, then you will need to be great at communication. If you want to be a sports coach, then you will need to be fit, and enjoy physical activity. Some careers you might not expect will need you to be confident with numbers, such as being a food technologist. Develop the right skills for the right career.

Summary

So, now you know how to choose a career. After you have been able to have a really thorough think about your interests and skills, make a list of all the careers that you think might be a good match. There are a lot of careers that could be a good fit that you haven’t thought of yet. Taking time for some self-assessment and analysis will hopefully help you discover what your real passions are and where your strengths lie, and help you to choose a career that you will truly love!

*This is a collaborative post