So, you’ve made a career decision. Yay! A career decision could be about many things:
- Deciding what course to enrol in
- Whether to join the state sports team
- Applying for the school leadership role
- Taking up a volunteering opportunity
- What occupation you want to pursue
Whatever the decision is, let’s call it Plan A for now because we know things can change. It’s always good to have a Plan B too, just in case Plan A might not work out. And that’s ok if things don’t work out, because life is full of change and we need to be prepared for that.
So now you need to put a plan into place. To bring Plan A to life you need to set goals and figure out what steps to take to reach those goals. Try this activity to help:
Define your career goal
Define what your career goal is, for example:
- To gain a Sport and Recreation Traineeship
- To volunteer at a charity shop
- To become a Glazier
- To join the school leadership team
Your career goal is likely to have a number of objectives (sub-goals). Let’s use the becoming a Glazier goal as an example. The objectives might be:
- Objective 1: Do Certificates I and II in Construction at College
- Objective 2: Prepare a résumé tailored to a Glazing apprenticeship
- Objective 3: Get a work experience placement in Glazing
- Objective 4: Visit companies that can help me get a Glazing apprenticeship
Write action steps
For each objective write down what actions you need to take. Set a target date for each step sticking with the above Glazing example:
Goal: To become a Glazier
Objective 3: Get work experience in Glazing
- Action Step – Talk to my school careers advisor to see about getting work experience. Complete by – 16th June
- Action Step – Contact Glazing companies to find a work experience placement. Complete by – 23rd June
- Action Step – Participate in work experience. Complete by – 24th June
- Action Step – Write a report reflecting my work experience. Send to the employer with a thank you letter and request a recommendation. Complete by – 26th June
Key takeaway
Each action step you complete helps to achieve the objective. Each objective you achieve, helps to achieve your overall goal. And when you achieve your goals, you have actioned your career decision!