From a very young age, we’re asked what we want to be when we grow up. As kids, it’s a fun question to answer: a firefighter, an astronaut, a teacher, a racecar driver, someone famous!
But as we grow up, that question becomes far more difficult to answer. How do you even begin to decide?
Luckily, there are tools that can help narrow down the world of possibilities in front of you to create a manageable list of options.
Step one: Take a career test or skills assessment. A good place to start is by understanding your talents and interests and trying to find careers that relate. There are different kinds of career tests that can help identify your strengths, interests, aptitudes and talents; some can help point you in the direction of jobs you’d be good for while others can help link together your interests to find jobs you might not have considered previously. A quick search can help you find these tests online, for free or for a small fee, and you can likely take them from the comfort of your own home instead of having to go to a career counselor.
Step two: Think about what you like to do. If you’ve completed a career assessment, you might receive a list of jobs that, on paper, relate to your strengths. Do any of them interest you? You might love reading, but the thought of being a librarian might bore you to tears. You might love cooking, but the idea of being a chef or working in the service industry wouldn’t fit your lifestyle or stress level. Maybe you love kids but the idea of being a teacher is just too much. That’s ok! It’s good to take the list you receive and contemplate each option. Some might surprise you — give those some thought, do a little research and see if that helps direct your search.
Step three: Talk it out. What do your friends do for work? Do they like their jobs? Are you interested in what they do for a living? How about relatives? Do you have a sibling or cousin who cares a lot about their job? Learn more about these occupations, what they do every day, what kind of training or certifications they require, etc. If something really spikes your interest, it might be worth pursuing!
Step four: Try it out. If you’re still not sure what you want to do, consider trying a few different jobs. See if you can get an internship somewhere, or maybe a company has a job shadowing program that would allow you to come in and learn more about their jobs and see what it’s like to work there. Another great option is working with a staffing company to try some temporary jobs in different fields! Hands-on experience and learning skills can go a long way toward determining if you like, and are good at, a certain kind of work, and temporary jobs are a great way to try new things without a long-term commitment. A staffing agency like Davis Staffing can help!
It’s important to think about what you like and what you like to do before going into a career. We spend at least 40 hours each week at work; if you’re unhappy or bored by the job, those will be very long hours indeed.
Davis Staffing would be happy to help you find a new position! Our experts can help with career assessments and can help point out the open positions we’re currently trying to fill. If your interests and skills match up, we can get you started right away! Give Davis Staffing a call today to learn more.
