Your Career Path, Part II: Go for the Goal - Focus

Career World, Jan, 2002 by Janice Arenofsky

In Part I of this two-part series, you explored your interests and values to discover the career path that was right for you. In Part II, you will use what you learned about yourself to set a series of goals and create an action plan that will Lead to a satisfying career.

Last year Neil Edelson, a high school senior, took an important step toward reaching his career goals. The Michigan teen participated in a school internship program that helped him discover if he would really enjoy the field of marketing and public relations.

"I now know that I have found my passion, and all I need is a formal education to back it," says Edelson, who interned in the public relations department of Ford Motor Company.

Taking Stock

Assessing your interests, values, and skills and determining a general career path for yourself are the first steps. Then you're ready to make decisions about general subject fields that might correlate with your interests, talents, and strengths. Roll up your sleeves and research these general subject areas. Learn what careers fall under these categories. Use library resources and the Internet and talk to people such as employers, the business community, and friends. Take advantage of career days, job shadowing, and informational interviews to keep adding to your information base.

Most important, keep an open mind, and be willing to revisit your plan as needed. "At each step in the decision-making process," says Michelle L. Casto, author of Get Smart! About Modern Career Development, "revisit the previous steps to ensure that you are following your inner guidance."

Take Valerie Safstrom, for example. After assessing her interests, aptitudes, and personality, the Indiana teen decided that a career as a veterinarian sounded like a perfect match. So she took advanced biology, anatomy, and chemistry in high school in preparation. But after working in the surgical unit of an animal hospital during a 90-hour internship, Safstrom knew she would have to revise her career path. "I saved a lot of wasted time and money in college studying to be a vet," says Safstrom. Instead of healing animals, she now intends to use her strengths and interest in biology and science to obtain a science teaching degree.

Career planning is an ongoing process that allows you many opportunities to change your plans based on new information you gather. Working in a tentative career choice--even for a short time--can be the best litmus test for making that final commitment. For example, Caludia Mendizabal, a teen from Massachusetts, worked in a law firm during her high school summers. "I think it's interesting," she says,, "but I see how hard it is." Instead of preparing for a law career, she plans to pursue her love of travel. She will wok in the airline industry after college.

Mary Flaherty, who is also from Massachusetts, revised her career plans after an education internship. "I realized I would be more comfortable teaching younger kids," says Flaherty.

On the other hand, the information Nick Philp gained while getting hands-on experience in the kitchen of a large hotel helped to bolster his career decision. In high school the Indiana teen took classes in marketing and hospitality along with English, math, and science. In college he will take essential culinary business and hotel management courses so he can pursue his goal of becoming an executive chef.

Goal Mine

Once teens commit to a specific career choice, their decision-making work has just begun. They also need to design an action plan that asks and answers the question. How do you get from Point A (knowing what you want to do) to Point B (getting the ideal job)?

"You must be able to translate your wish into specific attainable career goals and develop a realistic plan for implementing them," says career expert Eugene Raudsepp. Action plans allow you to take control of that process. By breaking things down into small steps, you feel less stressed and are able to accomplish more.

Take Richard Schoenfeld, for example. When the Georgia teen was in high school, his soccer coach introduced him to Egyptian archaelogy. Something clicked in the teen, and he started reading everything on the subject. By the time Schoenfeld was a senior, he had his career path mapped out. He would start at a local college, then transfer to Brown University, which offers one of the best programs in Egyptology. Schoenfeld's long-term goal? Become an archaeologist. Meanwhile, the teen set lots of short-term goals. He wanted to raise his GPA, learn to cope better with a learning disability, and plan a trip to the Middle East. Last year, using money he had originally saved to buy a car, Schoenfeld visited Egypt and explored its pyramids and other historic sites. He met an Egyptian teen and they continue the relationship over the Internet.

LaTresha Campbell, a Texas high school senior, decided to aim for a business career. So she developed an action plan that included several goals: applying to colleges; getting some related work experience at her school's credit union; and choosing to move to' College Station, Texas, and attend Texas A&M University.