My heart goes out to Teens these days, because of the greater complexities and challenges modern day life brings. My sympathies also go out to Middle Age Career Changers, because some of them may be as Confused as Teens about which careers to choose next.
This may be because Midlife Career Changers have limited career exposure working at only one career their entire working life. If a teen has had one job or none, in my estimation, there is not much difference between the average teen and someone in his midlife contemplating changing careers - both may be confused when it comes to choosing new job choices.
There are so many more choices, pressures and distractions to contend with, compared to when I was a Teen. The hard question is - If you do not know what you want as a Teen, how do you sift through all the Confusion and decide which Career, or Teen Jobs to choose?
How do you even decide what Temporary Job you Want?
this is probably the million dollar question. So, what do you do if you are totally confused about who you are, and do not know what you want to do for a living for the next twenty, thirty or forty years?
Number one rule, and advice is - If you are feeling this way, for the time being, do not make any hasty decisions, nor big lengthy commitments with your future - Stand back, let things crystallize a bit, and take another look at your whole Career Enchilada Dilemma. Do not put yourself in a pinch to make any life changing major decisions, when you do not know for sure they are the right choices. Anyway, you have a lot of time on your hands, because you are young - so what is the hurry?
When I was a Teen, there was a Path laid in front of me through DEFAULT. This was the easy way - For me to follow within a Family Tradition. It made me a living, and I have since retired from it. But, There was this HUGE drawback - I never found myself through my Profession.
There are the fortunate others who discover their Passion through their Careers. I always wanted to be among these LUCKY ONES.
I chose to travel the KNOWN path instead of the UNKNOWN UNCHARTED PATH, because it was time proven and safe. I chose the conservative choice. If I would have Loved what I was doing, my choice would have been the right one. But, I did not - The Job was just there for me to take. I chose the short term easy way out solution. Unfortunately, The Profession brought forth neither joy, nor passion. All it did was make me a consistent living.
Yes, I survived physically, paid my bills, bought what I wanted and all that, but psychically and spiritually I paid a hefty price in the long run quality of living my life.
This is the PART of life I do not want you to miss out on. It is the Career Part, where you match your natural born talents to the Career that Matches who you are.
I do not want you to miss doing for a Living what you are PASSIONATE about doing.
Of course, to learn what you want, it is important to learn what you do not want. This may take a little trial and error on your behalf - and a little discomfort. Being that you are young, and relatively new at the career game, you may have to test the waters a bit. This means that there may be a series of jobs you will have to try out, so that you learn what job conditions and duties you must have in your ideal career choice.
You need to know what YOUR own Career Requirements are...Ask yourself, What do I want in a Career?
If you do the career you love, the quality of your life will immediately skyrocket. And where there is job happiness, your personal life will profit greatly from it.
The Passion for your Job will spill over and Flood your personal life.
To be honest, finding your True Passion as it relates to a Career is not necessarily the easiest way to go in the short run.
I am living proof, because it was so easy to choose the Wrong Career, rather than get to know myself well and search for a Career that Matched who I was.
The Path to where you find your Ultimate Dream Job may be a path whereby you walk alone. On this Career Search Path, it is very narrow, and there is room only for ONE - ONLY ROOM ENOUGH FOR YOU. Often, the only way you can get to know your inner core personality is through being alone. Do not worry, Life will test what you are made of and force your Personal Growth upon you.
It is Only you that can know what Career is a best fit for your personality, interests and values.
In other words, No one can decide this for you - Not family, friends, Career Counselors. Not even Career Tests can.
Pursuit of that illusive quality called CAREER PASSION and what it really is can only be defined by what it means for you.
Furthermore, What you define your passion to be now, may change tomorrow, or in Middle Age.
People Normally change careers a few times or more during their working lives. This is a common phenomenon.
Changing your mind is probably inevitable when it comes to choosing Careers, or even being within one. But, this is OK. Life is full of change, and Teens seem to weather change better than older people do. Usually, the younger one is, the easier change becomes, and the more welcome it is.
I know that I can never reclaim my Youth again. But, I know that I can start from where I am at any given moment, utilize what personal tools I have at my disposal at the time, and direct my Career in any direction I want.
This is true no matter how old, or how young you are.
Remember that you can take a break, look around, and re-evaluate your life, and judge if you are living it the way you want.
Call This taking a self inventory and general appraisal of self, and asking relevant questions about whether you are happy with your life and career direction.
It is the way to evaluate whether what you value and are interested in is still valid, or if you need to modify something about you, your wants, needs, or your life direction.
I know that As a Teen, there will be Questions without Answers within your life, such as...
* Why am I here, how did I get here, and what is my purpose?
* Where is my life heading? What am I going to do with the rest of my life?
* You are young and may not know what you want to do as a Career. But, this is OK, you have a lot of time to research and decide later.
* You may simply lack enough experience in life in general to know yourself well, what you want, and your Ideal Career Choice.
* But, You learn something NEW about you every day.
* And, You may not even have had your first Job yet.
* So, If your first job is, or was flipping Burgers, it may not tell you what your Dream Career is, but it may tell you the type of Job Duties you do not want to do in your next job.
* Furthermore, even if you do not know what you want to do, because you have not done much yet, you can know what things you do not want to do, because you may have done at least some of them already. Therefore, next time you will Avoid those Jobs with Duties you do not like to do.
* You may have this feeling inside at a gut level that you belong somewhere, but can not figure out where it is you belong.
* Believe in this feeling in your gut, and allow it to guide you, but temper it with reason, logic and common sense along the way.
* You can take a Career Aptitude Test to find out what you have the career aptitude for doing.
* You can also take a Personality Test to see which career clusters blend in with your personality.
* If you weigh what you Subjectively believe about yourself and your abilities against what those Validated, Researched Career and Personality Tests suggest to you for Career Choices, this combination approach can make some Career Choices start Ringing True for you.
* What you keep hearing inside and outside yourself, can be a sounding board for verifying the validity of those things you KNOW to be true about YOU.
* Until you find your True Calling in Life, there will be a restfulness inside you that will not go away until you finally connect to a Career that evokes your Passion for it.
* A good paying job may be a short run solution for the pocket book, but it could turn out to be a SOUL DESTROYING job in the long run.
Oftentimes, one finds his way through life through a series of steps he makes - One foot after another with no planned direction. In other words, experience usually becomes your Ultimate Teacher and Master, but not necessarily your Best Friend.
Taking the plunge and trying out a job part time, because you think you might like it, could be the KEY that will lead you closer to knowing what your Dream Career choice is.
One step at a time, one job at a time, and even one FAILURE at a time, will lead you closer to that Occupation which you will have the Aptitude and Passion for doing Successfully.
You will discover what things you like and do not like in a job through the light of experience. Hopefully, and most important, you will Discover those duties you love to perform daily over and above all others.
Once you know more about what kind of Career Personality you actually have through knowing yourself better, then the various Career Tests or Teen Quizzes may become more helpful to you. You will learn to RECOGNIZE which career suggestions (That They recommend to you) are the ones you should research, and possibly consider choosing.
Finally, To Discover ones Dream Job, One has to Know Himself well.
Family, friends, Career Guidance Counselors, taking Career Tests and the experience of Life Lessons through the passage of time, can offer useful, but essential insights about YOU.
These INSIGHTS serve as REFLECTIONS of what you already know about YOU.
Steve Humphreys
http://www.career-test-for-teens.com
Key to ideal career discovery is self-knowledge. Find, develop, and plan your career choice with our self-help resources. Teens, career changers, or job searchers will find helpful advice and articles about career tests, resumes, interviews, and more. Let us help you find your dream career on your journey.
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