Preparing Your Career: Some Concluding Thoughts

This post concludes our series on choosing and preparing for the vocational path that will bring you the greatest happiness, satisfaction, and income. Whether you read this blog for yourself, or for a loved one that needed the guidance, I hope you found some good ideas. We explored several concepts that built on one another to lay a solid foundation for an occupational future.

An Illustrative Story

Before we summarize, I would like to share a story that occurred just tonight. I think it illustrates what we discussed.

I received a phone call from a relative. He graduated from college with a teaching degree a decade ago. His first job out of college, with a charter school/private academy soured him on teaching. The politics (he failed the son of one of the board members), trying to teach students who did not share his love of learning, and losing his job helped him realize that teaching did not bring the satisfaction he sought.

Luckily, he found a real niche in the food service industry. Fast food did not raise his passion, but fine dining fed his occupational hunger. His expertise led to the management of fine dining establishments, especially the quirky small places that offered interesting tidbits to adventurous tastes.

Continued management brought him into increasing contact with food sales representatives. He began to realize that he enjoyed opening a new restaurant, establishing its reputation, and selling the brand. On-going management (what I call maintenance) bored him and he soon looked for the next “sell”. He will conclude his decade journey through food later this year.

He will embark on a slight course correction into sales after a thorough exploration and validation.

First, he began his exploration by enhancing the sales portion of his current job. He found the more he sold the better he felt.

Second, he outlined what he wanted in this course correction. He wrote down exactly what he wanted, and did not want in a sales job. He asked several tough questions. Did he want to sell a service or product? Did he want business-to business, business-to-consumer, or other kind of sale? How much travel did he want to do? He also explored all the different kind of sales: medical, food, office furnishings, manufacturing, and more.

Third, he plans to discover more about the sales world by talking to sales representatives from all walks of the fields that interest him. He prepared a list of questions to ask them about their job. He intends to verify that his degree will qualify for the work he wants to do. He will use his network of doctors, grocery stores, family, and others to identify people doing all the kinds of sales he wishes to explore.

Fourth, he will use all of this research to make a final decision. Fortunately, his research also helps him build relationships with the very people who will help him find a job.

Fifth, he plans to persist until he obtains the job that brings challenge, satisfaction and an adequate income.

In Summary

To summarize what we discussed these last few weeks, and what my relative illustrated:

1. Recognize the need for post-high school training or education
2. Choose what you want to do and get the training you will need to do it
3. Recognize that many paths can provide the training you need
4. Add experience to your training
5. Explore other options for using your education and experience

Next week we will begin our series on avoiding lay offs and getting the bigger raises and the better promotions. You will not want to miss it during these difficult economic times.