Are you happy in your career? Choosing a career is one of the most important decisions a person will ever make. While in the past most people’s career prospects were limited by economic or social factors, today one can pick almost any career path.

It is easy to become overwhelmed by the large number of career choices available and the amount of data about those careers. Your careful research and introspection will be worth a lifetime of career satisfaction.

It must be clarified that choosing a career is a very different thing from choosing a job or choosing which company to work for. While a job, in essence, is a way to trade time for money, and a company is the place where you do it, a career is a much bigger and more important concept. Your career is what you hope to be doing throughout your working life. Unfortunately, many people make career choices without much career guidance. The majority of young people leave school with only a vague knowledge of employment opportunities and with little insight as to the most appropriate career direction for their abilities, interests and personality.

Today high schoolers will choose sciences or arts in Advanced level because their parents want them to or because others are doing it or just that it is easier but not for the actual reason they should. However, as they get to the candidate class, they drop and add different subjects when it is too late! I once asked my senior 4 literature class why they had signed up for it and most of them said it would help them in their career. I must confess that I was over the moon with their response but my delight was shortly turned into a rude shock when I asked each of them to reveal their careers- neurosurgeon, pilot, and you can go on. Don’t get me wrong, literature is for all but that they thought it was an essential prerequisite is beyond naïve.

Let’s face it, most employees feel "stuck” in their careers. This leads to low morale, disinterest and de-motivation, translating into poor performance and bad service levels. Consequently, unhappy employees either leave at their own wish or need to be dismissed. In either case, the cost to the business is substantial – recruitment costs, training costs, hidden costs resulting from the poor performance, and the lack of continuity within the business. In the case of dismissal, there could well be added costs arising from our very stringent labour laws. The psychological cost to the employee and his family in either case can also be considerable.

How to choose a career path

While looking at job growth and salary data is important, superficial factors such as prestige and income do not provide for career satisfaction in the long-term.  The most important factors in choosing a career have to do with who you are as an individual.Your goal should be to find a career in an area that you love that also puts your skills to good use. For example, if you enjoy looking at buildings and are good at mathematics, your dream career could be in structural engineering.

Once you have determined your dream career, do some research. Doing research about your dream provides a sense of what degrees, certifications or experience you need to enter a particular industry. It also should help you begin to map out your career path, according to the various options and specialties within a field.

Similarly, goals and rewards should be considered. What do you value in a career? Some people desire to help others directly, while others seek independence and autonomy. Everyone derives fulfilment in a different way.  Paying too much attention to society’s values instead of one’s own can lead to the wrong career choice.

Whether many people realize it or not, how they feel about work can have an effect on the types of careers that they eventually find themselves in. Having a positive attitude about working can result in being able to manage high levels of stress and responsibility in addition to being self-motivated. In addition, attitudes can contribute to the factors that drive people to work in certain careers; such as those attracted to high earnings, wanting to work with specific groups of people or needing independence.

That aside, everyone has unique talents that can be used in a career of some type. For many, these talents have been present since childhood; for others they are learned over time. Skills can be broken down by types and matched up with specific career paths. In order to determine what career you should choose, begin by looking at career paths that compliment your current skills and talents.

A career day in a classroom is as simple as inviting a few professionals in to talk about their careers but an activity that would greatly inspire young people. It doesn’t have to take place only in a classroom; it can also be a good activity for youth groups, clubs and community centres.

Our education system should prepare the learners at least from primary onwards when it comes to choosing career paths. Exposing kids and teens to careers help them understand where their education is leading. That said, schools should dedicate the beginning of every year to career guidance or include it in the curriculum. This will allow learners to select subjects that are in line with their future interests when they get to a higher level. Moreover, career guidance could go a long way in giving the learners the confidence to decide where they want to be in future.

The best part about choosing a career is that you can do pretty much anything you set your mind on. As long as you have the dedication, you can do it, so set some time aside to think about what you’re passionate about and then research your options. You can even study part time and earn a degree, making it easier than ever to reach for the stars while holding onto the security of your day job- as long as it makes you happy.