What you do is your identity. So it always seems like a daunting task to find a dream job or career aligned with your childhood ambitions or dreams. Finding a fulfilling career is not a straight path. You will have to maneuver through different processes to find something you truly feel passionate about.
Unfortunately, you will not get an already-tailored answer to what is the perfect job for you. It is because no one can find that except you. So it is the process of self-discovery and self-realization that will show you the thing you want to do your entire life. Whether business, a 9-5 job, freelancing, or whatever, you have to put in a little more effort to find it.
However, the following are some tips and tricks you can use to identify your strengths and develop your skill set to reach your dream career.
What Job is Right for You? Ways to Identify Your Dream Career
If you are not satisfied with your job or want to change your career direction entirely, you are not alone. According to a report, the median number of years that wage and salary workers had been with their current employer was 4.1 years in January 2020, little changed from 4.2 years in January 2018.
You also need to be prepared to work for it, because chances are no one is going to give you your dream position out of the bat. We all have to start somewhere, and you can start by following these top tips:
1. List Down Your Strengths, Likes, Dislikes, and Others
Remember when you were a kid; you dreamt about working in a food chain, becoming a landlord, starting a business, publishing your books or managing people in a corporate office? Now it is time to revisit those memories and list down your aspirations and what strengths you have that are aligned with that dream.
You can list down the following things to get to know yourself better. It is a sort of self-reflection.
- Times of the day you find yourself most productive?
- What are your hobbies? (Maybe you liked photography, writing, painting, planning picnic parties or debating when you were a school kid)
- What are your dislikes? (Yes! It is necessary to know what things you can’t stand)
- What strengths and weaknesses do you have inherently? What kind of a personality do you are?
- Do you love to work in a team? Or can you work better independently?
- Can you work 9-5? Or are you more inclined to work at your own pace from the comfort of your home or in a serene work environment?
- If you are a fresh graduate, what certifications do you have? Or what coursework you have done in your degree?
- Personalities you find yourself connected to? (They can be from different walks of life, can be living or dead. They will give you insight about yourself.)
- What are your priorities in life? (It can be family, work, career, hobby, side hustle, or friends)
Once you answer these questions, you will get to know more about yourself. And it will enable you to narrow down the dream job opportunities you want to apply to. There are several quizzes available for free as well. Take the most reliable and authoritative one to get help.
On the other hand, career counseling is the best option if you are a young graduate and going to step into the market.
2. Reach Out to Businesses and Companies
There are many ways you can find new careers and jobs online. To start, try visiting social media sites to see what others from your alma mater are doing now. They will have started with the same background as you, after all, so you know that you can get hired in that industry if you really wanted to. This is a great way to become more aware of what is out there and what your options are.
Once you get informed about on-ground knowledge of the industry or business, you can easily approach the professionals or managers of their fields to have a meeting or a little chat, which will help you refine your decisions. You will get an idea about salary, workplace environment and basic duties that you will have to perform once you join them.
3. Get Degrees and Certifications To Become More Qualified
Sometimes, changing careers requires different degrees rather than the ones you already have. One extra qualification can give you an edge over your competition in that case.
Especially if it is a certificate that indicates you know how to use an industry-relevant program, that will be a plus. Fortunately, these extra qualifications will not cost you as much as your college degree. In some cases, the course will be entirely free with the option of paying for a certificate of completion. Make Google and YouTube your best friends when it comes to free knowledge. For instance, if you’re preparing for the SIE exam, you can utilize the SIE study materials and guide provided by Career Employer. It’s a free and reliable resource to support your preparation. But you will have to put in the extra effort anyway to get that knowledge.
Remember that your resume is the first introduction about you, and having training and extra certifications under your name can really make you a worthy candidate, even if you are new to the field. So consider sharpening your resume a bit because it can be the X-factor you might be lacking in getting your dream job.
Final Words
Your dream job might come to you as a complete surprise, and that is okay. So long as you keep striving to do better and to progress your career until you find the sweet spot between doing what you love and working in an environment you love, you cannot go wrong.