Our Careers are probably one of the biggest decisions we will need to make in our lifetime. This year 2020 has been quite a unique and extraordinary one. And for all of us! Students needed to start doing school from home or didn’t have school at all. Parents needed to figure out how to work and have the kids at home. And students’ exams and test times have also been quite of a challenge! As a Tutor, giving extra classes, I barely kept track of all the schedules for schools and class times myself. I can only imagine how challenging it must have been for teachers, parents and other educational practitioners.  

But regardless of all of these challenges, students still need to make choices regarding next year:

• What subjects will they choose?
• Where will they go and study?
• What is the direction of their lives on a long-term basis?

Speaking from the perspective of a Career Coach, there is a lot of tough decisions to be made. While working with students these past few months, it has been obvious there is a lot of confusion. Students find it difficult to make a decision as to what to do with their lives. I’ve been specifically working with a Grade 11 student these last few weeks and just the idea of making a Career decision of what to go and study is enough to make her anxious. One doesn’t realise the weight of the decision that these young people need to make! The scope of Career options is so BIG! And unknown.

For example, what comes to mind when you think about Career opportunities in Management? 
Maybe jot down a few ideas and options you can think of.
Perhaps you have someone within your family that is in Management.
Or maybe a friend or someone you are familiar with.
Or maybe you find yourself within a Management position.
But I can probably bet on it that you haven’t thought of it all. Perhaps your list is longer if you Googled the answer!

So then – is Hospitality management on your list? Manager of a Store? Restaurant? Project Manager? Field Manager?
And the list goes on.

So imagine how this must be for a young adult, not knowing the world of work and now needing to decide what Career pursuits he or she wants to make.
What I am quite serious about when advising my clients as to how to go about to make a decision about their career, I always advise them to do Job Shadowing. Because by being within the work environment gives you the greatest scope as to what to expect from that industry. An alternative, of course, is to start conversations within people in different job setups. Especially in job setups that you are interested in to pursue. The more you speak, the more you’ll learn and the easier it will be to make a decision!

It is not easy but having someone coming alongside you can make it so much better.

Should you need additional advice or coaching in order to make a career decision, feel free to make contact with Mastering It:

Maryke Jooste @ 072 372 4353 / maryke@masteringit.co.za / www.masteringit.co.za
You can also follow us on Social media: Facebook & Instagram.

Also, keep a lookout for our FREE Career coaching sessions happening at Kip McGrath next week! 13 & 15 October. Everyone welcome!

Looking forward to connecting with you!

Be reminded of our previous article in Love George – about Aptitude tests and the benefits of it.