What's Your Personality Type?
Do you know what your personality type is? Do you even care to find out? There's a good reason you should. Research has shown that certain occupations are more appropriate for particular personality types than others are. By knowing what your personality type is and by choosing your career based on this information, in addition to your values and interests, you are more likely to end up doing work you find satisfying.
A career counselor or other career development professional can administer a personality instrument to help you learn what your type is. For example you can find out if you're an ISTJ, ESTP, ENTJ or ESPN? Wait! That last one's a sports broadcasting company. The first three are just a few of 16 personality types that were described by psychiatrist Carl Jung many years ago. The Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), a commonly used personality instrument, is based on Jung's theory and reports one's personality type.
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Thinking About a Career in Video Games?
I was part of the first generation of home video game owners. I was in middle school when my parents bought me a small home system on which I could play an electronic tennis game that involved hitting a white ball back and forth with two white lines. Fun times! I can actually remember when video games didn't exist, but I would bet that no 20 or 30-something can.
The generation that grew up playing video games is now making them. What video game enthusiast hasn't dreamed of one day designing games himself or herself? While there aren't many entry-level video game design jobs, there are other jobs available for people just starting out in this field. The video game industry is booming. Those who are interested in working in the video game industry can consider careers in programming, audio engineering and animation. There are also business-oriented jobs, for those who want to work on that end of things.
Read: Video Game Careers
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Weekly Career Profile: Wedding Planner
Is there a better time to write about becoming a wedding planner than the week before Valentine's Day, the single most romantic day of the year? It seems a lot of people want to be wedding planners, if the number of questions I get about this career is any indication. I can understand why. It seems like a glamorous and fun job. The key word there is "seems." Anyone who has ever planned a wedding can tell you how hard it is to get everything right. You want the perfect location and the best caterer you can afford. There are invitations to design and order (not to mention address). There is a band or DJ to hire, as well as a photographer. Planning your own wedding is one thing, but imagine planning weddings for other people. If you can imagine that, maybe a career as a wedding planner is for you.
To be a wedding planner you should enjoy planning big parties and be good at negotiating and networking. You must also be a problem solver who responds calmly to stressful situations. Want to know more about a career as a wedding planner? Read Here Comes the ... Wedding Planner and take the quiz, Should You Be a Wedding Planner?. Then take a look at Becoming a Wedding Planner
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Reasons to Avoid an Office Romance
"Breaking up is hard to do," or so sang Neil Sedaka in a song he made popular back in the 1970s. If you've ever been through a romantic breakup, you know those words are true. It's hard enough to go through the end of a relationship, but imagine having to see your lost love as you pass by his/her desk everyday. Then imagine how you'll feel when you overhear phone calls between him/her and someone new, or worse what if that someone new is another co-worker? Yikes! There are so many reasons to avoid an office romance, but this seems like one of the most painful. Office romances, even successful ones, can have a negative effect on co-workers, supervisors and the employer itself. Careers can be damaged, sometimes irreparably. Before you get taken in by the idea that sharing a workplace with your partner could be fun, think about the possible ramifications. Read Five Reasons to Avoid an Office Romance.
Of course when it comes to love (or lust), people aren't always influenced by logic. If we were, more people would avoid being in toxic relationships, don't you think? Unfortunately knowing that an office romance can be career-altering may not be enough to stop you from becoming involved, or should I say embroiled, in one. But, there is a chance you, and your career, can come out of it unscathed ... as long as you follow these Rules for Office Romances.
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Setting and Achieving Goals
"A dream is just a dream. A goal is a dream with a plan and a deadline." Wise words ... and to think they came out of a fortune cookie! It's nice to have dreams, but it's much more practical to have goals. We can, and probably should, have goals for most areas of our lives, but it is most important for career planning. This is an area that affects all others. Just think about it. Your choice of career, and your success in it, affects your emotional well being. If you aren't happy with your job, your days will be pretty bleak. After all, look at the number of hours you work everyday. Your career choice also affects how you live your life, from the type of home you live in to the kinds of vacations you can take. So, it's clearly worth spending time setting some goals.
A goal begins life as a dream. For example, you may dream of being a doctor, owning your own business or winning a Grammy. Unless these dreams meet certain criteria, they will remain dreams and you may achieve them, but your chances aren't good. However, if you convert your dreams into goals, you will increase the probability of them becoming a reality. How do you turn your dreams into goals? Is it as simple as the fortune suggested — just give them a plan and a deadline? That's just part of how to make sure you are able to meet your goals. Want to know more? Read Goal Setting and the Career Planning Process.
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Weekly Career Profile: Registered Nurse
When I was about four years old I wanted to be a nurse. My grandmother made me a white uniform that I would wear while examining my dolls with a little toy stethoscope. I quickly changed my mind when I realized that nurses had to give shots ... to children ... children like me. I couldn't imagine doing that! Nope, not the career for squeamish me. Even as an adult, it's not a career I can see myself in. Thank goodness there are people for whom this is a good career choice,
Registered nurses (RNs) administer immunizations, medications and first aid to patients. They take and make note of vital signs and record other medical information. RNs also advise and give emotional support to patients and their families. To become a registered nurse, you must graduate from an approved nursing program and pass a licensing exam. Those who enter this field should have a promising future. Nurses will experience faster than average job growth through 2018.
Are you considering becoming a registered nurse? Learn more about this occupation by reading Registered Nurse: Career Information. Get some basic details, including more information about educational requirements. You will also find out about earnings and advancement opportunities. The best way to learn about any career is to talk to someone who currently works in it. Try to arrange an interview with a registered nurse. If you don't know one, perhaps someone in your network does.
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Consider Your Values When Choosing a Career
Do you think earning a high salary would make you love your job? You may be thinking, "well, it wouldn't hurt." Making a lot of money may make an unsatisfying job a bit more palatable, but it won't make as big a difference as you think. If you don't like your job, it doesn't matter much how much you get paid.
While money doesn't lead to job satisfaction, other factors do, for example, how closely a job matches your values. Values are beliefs and ideas that are important to you. Let's say that among your work values—those beliefs and ideas that are related to your career— helping others, leisure (time away from work) and autonomy (working on your own) are the most important. If your job involved selling widgets under close supervision of your manager, six days a week, 12 hours a day, would you be satisfied with it? Would it matter how much money you were making if you weren't helping people, having an adequate amount of time off from work and the ability to work on your own? Sure, maybe you can handle a job that didn't match your values for a short time, but could you do it for several years?
Image Copyright Yuri Arcurs / 123RFCould You Work for a Liar?
You apply for a job knowing the advertised salary range is somewhat below what you previously earned. The market is very different now, so even though you are well-qualified for this job, you aren't opposed to taking a pay cut. Then you get a job offer and aren't you surprised to find out that the employer is offering a salary below what was advertised? This is what happened to one of our readers.
When he emailed me to ask what to do about this sticky situation, this is what I replied:
Something you might want to ask yourself is this: are you going to find it difficult to work for this employer even if you can negotiate a higher salary? For me, that would be a problem because I would feel that the employer's tactics were deceptive. It's one thing to take a pay cut—you aren't alone in having to do that as you know—but it's another to find out the salary is lower than what was advertised.
Had he not pulled what I consider to be a bait and switch, I would tell you to be flexible. As I advise in one of my articles on salary negotiation: 'When going through a salary negotiation you aren't likely to get the exact amount of money you want. You will probably have to compromise. The trick is to figure out how much you are willing to compromise and what you will do if your boss doesn't offer you a salary you find acceptable.'
What would you do in this situation? Could you work for someone who blatantly lied? It could be about anything and not just salary. I guess your answer would depend on what your needs were at the time. If you were in the middle of a long job search, you might be more inclined to ignore the dishonesty. Unfortunately, I think there are some employers who are ready to take advantage of that situation. Keep in mind, though, if you do accept an offer in spite of your misgivings, you may find yourself looking for work again before too long. After all, how long could you work for someone you didn't trust?
Weekly Career Profile: Social Worker
Social workers help people deal with barriers—physical or mental illness, poverty, and drug and alcohol addiction to name just a few—that are preventing them from functioning well in their environments. They work in hospitals, schools, colleges, community agencies, nursing homes and prisons.
Social workers must be compassionate and sensitive to the needs of others. They must be able to explain themselves well verbally and be able to follow directions and understand written language. To become a social worker, you must earn at least a bachelor's degree, but a master's degree is required for many jobs and is a must for those who want to provide mental health counseling (Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition).
As with any career, you should explore this one thoroughly before you commit your time and money to preparing for it. First read Social Worker: Career Information to get some basic details about this occupation, including earnings, job outlook and advancement opportunities. Then read How to Become a Social Worker to find out what you need to do to prepare to enter this field. It is also a good idea to interview a social worker. He or she will be able to tell you what it's really like. For help deciding whether this career is a good fit for you, take the Should You Become a Social Worker? quiz.
More: Mental Health Careers
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Career Planning Jargon: An Explanation
Every trade and profession has a vocabulary that is specific to it. This is known as jargon. People who aren't in that field might have difficulty understanding some of the language. When I was very little, my mom stopped taking me to the pediatrician we had been seeing because she couldn't understand the "medicalese" he used. After all, she wasn't a doctor or nurse.
When you are immersed in a field for a long time, the vocabulary comes so naturally to you that you don't realize that isn't the case for everyone. Recently I was looking through some of my notes from a course I took when I was relatively new to this field. What I discovered were pages filled with definitions of many of the terms I regularly use here. I realized that once upon a time this career-related language was new to me too. I decided to start explaining many of the words and concepts you come across on this site and might not understand. Some of these terms may be familiar to you since they are commonly used in everyday life, the word "career" for example, but I will explain them in the context in which we discuss them here.
I will be building this list, so if there are career-related terms you would like to know more about, please let me know what they are. Don't assume everyone else knows what they mean, because there's a good chance you aren't alone. Here are explanations of three of those terms: