Selecting Careers :

Have fun working!

Aditha Dissanayake

“Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” - Confucius

Deciding what to study and where is a tough decision for most of us, and never more so than now. The increase in tuition fees, the cost of following a course in a private institute, the long years spent in a government university to get your first degree, make this choice tougher than ever before.

So, what kind of career decision should you make that would lead you to finding the ideal job - the one that makes you impatient to jump out of bed every weekday morning, the kind of work that would sparkle excitement and sheer joy? Prof. Ediriweera Sarachchandra knew how to do it. So did Dr. Ray Wijewardena. They knew how to live. They believed in what they were doing with all their hearts. They knew which path their lives should take.

Choosing your career

Not so, the rest of us. If you lack clear direction and focus when it comes to choosing your career, welcome to the human race. Most of us are not born with clarity about what to do with our lives. Surely, figuring this out is what makes life exciting and fun.

But, before you go out there to test-drive careers that you might be considering, it is wise to find a compass that will direct you toward careers that fit you like a well-cut shoe. What career paths are you cut out for?

No one knows you as well as you know yourself. So taking the time to actively reflect on your interests, values, abilities and personality is very important before you decide what career path you will make you happy. What do you consider important in life? What do you enjoy doing? What are your hobbies? What are you good at? It is also important to think about your likes and dislikes in your future job. By identifying what you do not want out of a career, you will in turn get more clarity about what you really do want. This can be very helpful in narrowing your search for that elusive career path.

Seeking advice

So how do you discover what you like and don’t like? What you are good at and not-so-good at? Where your personality and values fit? These are tough questions to find answers to, specially in a country like Sri Lanka when there is almost no one you could turn to, for help.

As Prof. Hiran Amarasekera, of the University of Sri Jayawardenapura says, when it comes to seeking advice on career guidance there are no experts here in Sri Lanka who could help. The only kind of career advice given comes from those who offer private degrees.

Prof. Amarasekera who has a blog-site for students giving independent and unbiased information that would help them to select courses and degrees at http://www.studentlanka.com/ says students do not always make rational decisions about what and where they will study and that their decisions are often influenced by the opinions of their friends and family.

“The lack of independent career advice and guidance makes it more difficult for young people - particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds - to make decisions about their future” observes Prof. Amarasekera. “In Sri Lanka many Educational Institutes do not provide the Key Information Set (Information such as student satisfaction, graduate destinations, and accommodation and other costs) to students to help them make a decision and even students or parents do not bother to consider them. In Sri Lanka some parents think that if you spend more on education, this will secure their children better employment.” he adds.

In the end, however, what everything boils down to is that it is your life that is on the line. So, any decisions about it should ultimately be yours. Here are some tips to help make that decision.

When exploring your career options, consider how they

Match your:

Interests: Things you enjoy doing and are passionate about can provide important clues about work or career interests.

Values: The motivation or personal incentives needed for job satisfaction are unique to each person. By examining your work values, you can then determine what is important to you and prioritize what role work will play in your life.

Abilities: Talents and natural abilities often indicate potential in a particular area. People often take for granted the skills that come easily to them, yet those are precisely the areas that you should explore. With training, natural aptitudes can turn into career options.

Personality: Your unique combination of emotional and behavioural characteristics constitutes your personality. Different careers align with different personality types. Knowing your personality can enable you to enhance your career choices and ultimately your career success.

One last bit of advice. I think enjoyment is the best place to begin, since clarity here will help you with all the other parts. Ask yourself what do you enjoy doing for free? Ask yourself the question Steve Jobs wanted you to ask, “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?”. If it is yes, you have made the right choice. If it is no, time to start making some changes.

Sure it takes a bit of work to turn a hobby into a career, but if you are doing it for free anyway, why not find a way to share your skill with others, provide a useful service, and get paid for it?

Think about it. Again, as Steve Jobs said, “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you have not found it yet, keep looking. Do not settle. As with all matters of the heart, you will know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on.”

It is true. Trust me, I know.

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