A lot can and has been written about career decisionmaking. In the UK, one of the most helpful resources is the Windmills Careers Coach. Now part of a bigger lifestyle coaching facility, it takes you through a labyrinth of interactive material to help you focus in detail on your key career decisionmaking issues.
And yet the basic structure of the career decisionmaking process is actually quite simple. The process itself can be complex but the structure is easy. In careers jargon, it all relates to your 'career focus'. In layman's terms, it means there are just three key career decisionmaking situations that you can face:
1) I haven't got a clue what I want to do
In careers speak you are 'unfocussed' or have 'no focus'. In many ways this is a very good place to be, since a lot of people grasp hurriedly at a supposed career choice only to repent at leisure and return to the square one of complete indecision, often at considerable financial and emotional cost.
Unfocussed people either admit straight out that they have no idea what they want to do, or can only make vague statements about kinds of jobs they might or might not like. They may mention a job title but with no substantial knowledge of what is entailed.
They need to start finding out more about themselves, in particular their interests, values and motivation so they can start to match their preferences to opportunities. We call this 'self knowledge'. Career interest guides, of which there are several available free, are likely to help you realise their preferences and will list some possible job titles to look into.
2) I am trying to decide between a range of different careers
In the jargon, you have 'moderate focus'. People with 'moderate focus' can name a number of different jobs that might fit their interest profile and have some knowledge of what they are about, but they need to decide what to concentrate on before they move on to actually applying.
They need to look more closely into their possible job choices by finding out as much information as possible about them. They need to use the readily available sources of careers information, and talk to people who are in the know about the careers that attract them. It may help to construct a list of 'pros' and 'cons' for each job, or a grid showing how far each job might match up to your hitlist of requirements. Or it may just be that the information gives you a better intuitive grasp for the right decision.
3) I have a clear idea of what I want to do
Then you have what we call 'precise focus' and can move on to concentrate on searching for jobs and applying for them. This isn't the end of the story as methods of finding and applying for jobs vary considerably. You often need to research them as carefully as you do information about careers, if not more so. Finding and applying for teaching posts will be different from becoming a goldsmith.
Incidentally, applying for just one particular career isn't necessarily ideal. A shortlist of three or so careers incorporating a fallback or two, or possibly even a 'longshot' you don't really expect to get (but why not try your luck?) will give you a bigger but still manageable target to aim at.
Shouldn't I apply for 'any job'?
This is a common reaction amongst many applicants who fear that they do not have the skills to compete successfully when there is a shortage of jobs. On discussion, most will admit that there are jobs they would rather not do.
The trouble is that trying for 'any job' tends to decrease your chances of success because you don't get the inside knowledge about particular jobs that will help you succeed. You can't for example answer questions like "Why do you want this job?". You'll also end up mainly applying for advertised jobs (i.e. the minority) because you haven't learned the hidden tricks of getting into any particular job.
Career decisionmaking is not an exact science but success is more likely if you treat it like one. There will always be surprises and contradictions. Career plans are not for life and can change - but stick to the idea of having a plan.
Colin Taylor is a careers adviser and freelance writer who has been publishing careers and employment related material for over five years. Find out more about him at http://www.coltext.com
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