Choosing a career is incredibly important for your future. It’ll affect your lifestyle, income, and overall happiness. That’s why it is crucial to ask yourself the right questions before deciding your future career path.
This guide is here to help you in your introspective journey. We’ll show you some of the key factors you should consider when choosing a career.
Your Personality
Your personality is as important as your motivations when deciding your future. In the end, you will feel happier doing something you love and are good at. Some personality traits include interpersonal skills, artistic or analytical traits, and interests.
Some people prefer structures and routines, while others feel more comfortable on the artistic side, and some are more talkative than others. Some people enjoy the outdoors while others prefer an office environment. These are some aspects of your personality that you should consider when selecting a career path.
Salary Expectation
Salary expectation is another highly relevant factor to consider when choosing a career. Your income will affect almost every aspect of your life, so you shouldn’t take it for granted. While it’s true that you can make money out of any career if you’re passionate and find innovative ways to do it, it’s better to do some research before making any decisions.
Your Skills
Every human in this world is good at at least one thing, and you could be a lucky multifunctional person. Think about your soft skills: analytical thinking, team management, resilience. You could also have good hard skills such as coding or social media management. If you’re skilled at anything and truly enjoy it, you can choose a related career path.
What Do You Need for Training?
Job training will be different depending on the career you choose. You could get a bachelor’s degree, join an online coding Bootcamp, or a trade school. Each career path has different requirements you should explore, such as the tuition cost, previous experience in a particular field, or having a specific education level.
Before diving into any career, consider how much money and effort it will take to follow the career you want. Let’s take a medical career, for example.
According to the American University of the Caribbean Medical School, it takes four years for an undergraduate degree, four years in medical school, and three years or more in residency.
The average cost of a four-year college degree is $28,775, according to the National Center of Education Statistics. Not everybody can afford this. However, most schools offer different financing options such as scholarships, loans, and installments.
What Is the Job Outlook for Your Career?
The job outlook is another decisive factor to consider when selecting a career. The demand for a given career reflects the number of job opportunities you can have in a particular role. Some careers have a high demand because there is a low supply of those professionals or because it is a growing industry.
To do your research, you can start by checking the job outlooks in the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This way, you’ll get an idea of how in-demand that particular career is. It is not always the case, but sometimes salaries are influenced by the job outlook. In some cases, you can expect a higher salary because there is more demand in that field.
Your Lifestyle and Values
The next step would be to evaluate whether that particular career aligns with your lifestyle. For example, if you’re a family person who enjoys being close to home, a career as a pilot might not be the best choice. They spend months away from home and are always traveling. On the other hand, this might be the dream job for a free-spirited person, but again, it all depends on your values and lifestyle.
Conclusion
Choosing your career is usually challenging, but at the same time, exciting. Therefore, you should take this as a time for introspection and research. Make your decisions with much consideration and patience as this is such an important decision. Keep in mind that you should consider your personality, skills, values, and salary expectation when doing this research.
