How To Find Your Dream Career

Before we begin let’s just agree on one thing. There are no quick answers to
how to find your dream career. Finding your dream career is a process. How
lengthy this process is depends on how sincere you are with yourself. It also
depends on how much you are willing to sacrifice in pursuit of your dream
career.

I have spent many hours counseling many career builder newbies on this very
topic. On occasions, with some of my more senior staff also. I have personally
gone through this process and here is my experience I would like to share with
you.

I admit I dislike engaging in this discussion with people who come to me with
this question (who by the way, expect an easy answer). They expect a “3 Steps
Guide to How To Find Your Dream Career”. Since there are none, at the end of the
discussion, they get disappointed.

1. The Toughest Part – Know What You Want

The toughest part about finding your dream career isn’t about finding the dream
career. It is about finding yourself. Do you know what you want? This is
the first question you need to ask yourself. It is a seemingly easy question
many answer by mentioning what they DON’T WANT instead of what they WANT. But
that is not the answer that will ensure you to find your dream job.

Knowing what you don’t want does not mean you easily arrive at what you
want. Unfortunately, the process of elimination does not work in finding your
dream career. You can go through a thousand “don’t wants” and still not hit it.
How to find your dream career? Start by knowing what you want!

2. Know Your Values

If you feel a little lost with finding what you want, start by knowing your
values. Ask yourself, what do you really value? Time? That’s a common answer I
get and a good one too. We all want more time for ourselves and family. So, if
you value time then you know the dream career you are looking for must offer
more time. Is that all? List a set of values you treasure. Then things will
begin to fall in place. You have defined what it is that will fit in these
criteria.

3. Know How Much You Are Willing To Sacrifice

Do you have the
knowledge and skill set that fit the needs of your dream career? If you do
not, how much are you willing to sacrifice in order to add those skill set in
your repertoire? How to find your dream career is easy. How much you are willing
to sacrifice in order to achieve it is tough to answer.

4. Do It For The Right Reasons

The trigger to how to find your dream career should never be money. It should
not be because you are currently unhappy with your salary and hence you want a
dream career that pays you an enormous amount of money. Money should never be
the
motivation. Make passion a motivation but never money.

From my college days, I have always wanted to be in the advertising industry.
That for me was a dream career. But back in the heydays of the dotcom era I was
headhunted to join a B2B dotcom firm. They were willing to pay me double of what
I was getting (yes, I was unhappy with my salary at that time). So, I took up
the offer immediately. Guess what? I quit in 3 days and due to contractual
obligation I had to serve a full month! That full month was a torture. It wasn’t
what I was looking for at all.

5. The Easiest Part

If you know what you want, what you value and you do it for the right reasons –
then this is the easy part. Here are your “3 Steps Guide to How To Find Your
Dream Career” so to speak.

1. Do Your Research Find out about the industry. Do you have friends in
   the industry? Find out what are the expectations, the knowledge and skills
   needed. The Internet is also the perfect place to start. You can read books
   focused on your dream career or check out sites offering career advice on
   certain industries. For example, the site -
   Job Application and Interview Advice is a compelling site written to help people Snag A
   Job every day. It covers all aspects of how to snag a job including job
   applications forms, resumes, cover letters and interview questions and
   answers.
2. Network With People In The Industry Get to know people in the
   industry so you get a feel of what it is like upfront. This also sets you up
   for potential short-term work when the opportunity arises for some hands on
   experience before you make that leap. I have personally allowed friends based
   on recommendations to visit us after office hours. This allows them to see
   what it is like in our industry and to speak in depth with staff from various
   departments in order to understand our line.
3. Create A Plan To Pursue Your Dream Career Now that you know how to
   find your dream career, create a plan to achieve it. How do you plan to add new skill sets? How do you plan
   to apply for the job? When would be able to get practical training, if that’s
   a requirement? Develop a plan and act upon it!

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Filed under: Career Advice