What did you want to be when you were a kid?
At the risk of sounding old, I’m going to start by saying… “When I was your age”. I really used to hate when people said that because times change, what would they know about how it is to be young these days.
Anyway, when I was about to graduate primary school, we were asked to put down our dream jobs on a piece of paper and it would be published in our graduation book. Boy, it really made me worried. Why? Well… it was because everyone else seemed like they knew what they wanted to do with their life. Some people had so much certainty! Some had aspirations to be professionals- doctors, lawyers, dentists, accountants, firemen, others wants to own their own business. Me? I really didn’t know. In retrospect, I’m not surprised, my brain hasn’t finished growing yet, my personality hasn’t even come out, I don’t ever know what I’m good at let alone what I would enjoy doing. So, with much hesitation, my teacher published what I wrote down- “I wanted to be busy and walk around with a suitcase”. I eventually did do just that. I remember working in America and walking around with my laptop in my suitcase, but primary school me would have never believed me if I told them a computer could fit in a suitcase anyway.
What advice do you have for kids in high school about their careers?
Given that I see many people graduate from high school, what advice do I have for them in determining their careers? It’s ok not to completely know what the next 10 years of your life will look like. It may take you some time to try things and discover what you like and don’t like.
I remember in high school, I did all the career quizzes, went through the entire list of possible careers that I could be in a job book- they now have this in online form: myfuture.edu.au. It was as thick as an old phone book, but I ruled out things that I knew I didn’t want to do and I narrowed it down to a few I was curious about. I then went to as many university open days and job fairs that I could. I was so shy then, but I would have loved to have talked to people who work in those careers or asked for job shadowing opportunities. Even after all of that, I still really didn’t know what to do.
So I just gave it a go…
I don’t regret having a horrible time working in the accounting world in some of the top firms in Australia or working at the airport in Asia or even that one day I was kind of homeless while working in America. I didn’t fail at those things, I tried them and they weren’t for me. Self-enquiry about those experiences (AND NOT RUMINATION) has taught me to question my reactions to those experiences. What am I feeling? Why do I feel that way? What does this say about my values and goals at this moment in my life?
And while I love my job now, and the work I do, I am also still open to any opportunities that come my way!
What is the take home message?
So be flexible. Continue to do self-enquiry and give things a go!
- Check out ideas to get you started in myfuture.edu.au (includes quizzes, career profiles, courses to study)
- Check out uni and trade open days
- Talk to people about their careers and opportunities for work experience.
Until next time tribe,
Karen out.
Thanks to cottonbro studio for the image of a child at a desk.