The right career choice

'Yehi hai right choice baby!'

Easy to say so in a Cola commercial, but not so easy when you have to select a profession. Work forms one third of our life. An average human being works for 6 to 8 hours a day whereas most work more than that.

When Robert Frost said in his poem: ‘Two Roads diverged into the deep woods and sad I could not take both’ he was expressing the difficulty one has in making choices and staying focused...

One choice out of two is so difficult; imagine when you have a sea of choices to select from? It becomes impossible to know what will be right choice for you to make at that important crossroad in your life.

Is this what I want?

It seems like the simplest question doesn’t it? If you want it, go ahead and do it. But it’s not as easy as it seems. We keep wishing for a magic lamp in life all the time, but imagine if you found a lamp and you were granted 3 wishes you would be so confused and would take so long to ask for something because you DO NOT KNOW most of the time what you want! Take time out and think about all the things in life you have always dreamt of. Think about how much you enjoy when you do certain kinds of activities or tasks. Today there are opportunities ranging from being a world class chess player to fashion model to DJ to a cardiac surgeon. Close your eyes and think: Do you see yourself doing this everyday for the rest of your life? Does it bring excitement and a smile on your face? Do you think you have something new to offer to the world with your ideas and expertise? Most answers come when you ask yourself the question rightly. Learn to ask and then learn to answer. You are the ONLY one answerable to yourself; no one else.

Know the difference

Skills are something you innately have within yourself. Ability is your capacity to do use that skill well; whereas aptitude is the knack to acquire a new proficiency and use it o your advantage. These must not be conflated. You may me a beautiful classical dancer but it may not be something you may be happy doing for a living. Likewise with chess or cricket or cooking or singing. You must have a passion for what you do but you must also learn to differentiate hobby from your profession. That is when things will seem less hazy and you will find focus.

Know Yourself

A major downside today is your alienation to yourself. You seem to get lost amidst what your friends think or your teachers feel or your relatives say or what your parents want. You forget completely what you are good at! You have your own camera in your hand; unless you rotate the lens nothing will ever seem clear. Don’t become a stranger to yourself. As was well put in the movie ‘3 idiots’ if Lata Mangeshkar’s mother had asked her to be a fast bowler or Sachin Tendulkar was asked by his mother to be a singer, they would have lost their focus and their careers may have not been as exceptional as they are today!

No Confusion!

If ever there is a conflict of interest, it becomes essential to have someone tell you about your own self. Today there are career guidance test batteries that assess multiple dimensions of your abilities and your hidden desires. Not just aptitude, but also your personality style, conflict handling style, social quotient, emotionality, core abilities, intellectual capacity, perfectionism style, assertiveness index and many more; help you to choose accomplishable and SMART goals. This comprehensive study of your persona makes it easy for you to decide what your abilities are and where you will most likely excel. And remember, all these test responses are self reported by you. You are the lone person who knows yourself. So come out with that self awareness. Ignorance may be bliss but it doesn’t take you towards success. Knowledge is an eye opener. Know yourself and take the right steps towards your success. After all it is YOUR success isn’t it?

SMART GOALS

SPECIFIC: These are pinpointed goals that are clear in vision

MEASURABLE: There is a way to monitor the degree of achievement

ATTAINABLE: They are not magical or mystical demands

REALISTIC:  They stem from a combination of desires and abilities

TIME BOUND: You have to set time limits, you don’t have forever!