Thinking About Jobs and Careers
Do you ever fantasize about what you’ll be doing to support yourself when you’re older? Or does it just give you a headache to think that far ahead? Are you worried that your next decision has to be the “right one” for the rest of your life? What makes you tick? What do you really like to do? Here are some ideas to take the mystery out of thinking about your future!
Choosing a Career:
Questions You May Have
Do you know now what career you want? If your answer is, “No,” you’re not alone. At your age, you’re the “norm,” not the exception. In fact, most adults haven’t ended up in careers they planned on, or even knew about, when they were 17. So take some time to think about what might be next. You don’t need to feel pressured just because you don’t have a plan. The times in our lives when we don’t know what’s next can be important times—times to explore, to daydream, to try out different roles, and to find out our values, interests, and goals. Not knowing what’s next, however, can make us—and the adults around us—anxious. Chill. It’s okay to feel a little anxious. Usually our biggest mistakes come when we decide too fast or decide under pressure. You’ve probably heard a lot of myths about choosing a career. Luckily, many resources can be found to help make an informed decision. Here are a few questions you may have about choosing a career and, hopefully, some direction guide your thinking:
Some people make choosing a career look easy. Is it?
Actually, choosing a career is a process that usually evolves over time and is complicated. So you should give it the time it deserves. Take the time to learn about yourself and the occupations you’re considering. You may go through many steps, many jobs, and many times without the “exact right” job before you feel you’ve “found” a career you want to stick with.
But shouldn’t I know by now?
No, not necessarily. Sometimes the kids who feel they know now where they’re going find out in the next few years that they want to do something very different. A new term is “quarter-century crisis.” It refers to the crisis many young adults in their mid-twenties find themselves in when they didn’t take the time to explore or really think about what they wanted to do but leapt into a career too soon. The important thing now is to keep open to new ideas, search out new information, and keep “trying on” different ideas or jobs to see what brings out the best in you and what fits best with your deeper values.
Isn’t it true that if I choose a career, I’ll probably be stuck in it?
Not true at all. You can always change jobs. Most people change careers several times over during the course of their lives. Just make sure that what you do will give you some skills that you can use later on. You will be surprised at how many skills are transferable and, in many cases, will augment what is needed in your new job.
But won’t my skills go to waste if I change careers?
Your skills are yours to keep. Older workers are often amazed at how their experience in the seemingly unrelated jobs they had when they were young comes in handy in their current work. You get valuable life experience in any work. Skills like learning to work or get along with others on the job are useful in any job.
Why waste time going to school to learn more? Is there much I can learn about an occupation without actually working in it?
It’s true that on-the-job training is invaluable; but there are many ways to learn about whether an occupation may be right for you, and sometimes that means taking some courses to see if anything about it appeals to you. You never know what you’ll pick up that you didn’t expect! Of course, you can also read about the occupation, on-line or at the library, or talk to people about what they like and don’t like about their jobs.
If my best friend is happy in a particular type of job, won’t I be happy in that kind of job, too?
What works for someone else won’t necessarily work for you, even if it’s someone with whom you have a lot in common. If someone you know has a career that interests you, look into it, talk with him or her about it, and talk to other people in this career, also. But if it doesn’t feel right, even if it’s a good fit for your best friend, it may not be right for you.
Why don’t I just ask a career counselor to tell me what occupation to pick?
A career counselor can definitely provide you with guidance and resources and even suggest direction during your career search, but no one can tell you what career is best for you. Counselors can help direct you to some assessment tools, however, that may help you identify your own strengths, interests, and skills, so you can evaluate better what might work for you.
Should I try to choose a career from a “Best Careers” list?
Every few years, articles and books list what “the experts” predict will be “hot jobs.” Take a look at those lists to see if any of the careers appeal to you, but don’t let the list rule your choice. Sometimes the “hot jobs” don’t pan out—things change. What’s hot this year may not be hot a few years from now. Remember, the most important part of choosing a career is your own interests, values, goals, and
skills.
I have some really cool interests and hobbies, but I know I can’t make a living from them. Or can I?
If you’ve got a hobby, chances are you know a lot about it, and you’ve gained some skill with it. It also means you like to do it. That means you’d be a great person to hire in a field related to that hobby. You might also benefit from some entrepreneur classes on how to start your own business in this field. If you have the motivation to have a hobby and be an “expert,” you may have the motivation and energy to start your own business and actually make a living at it!
It seems to me that if I make a lot of money in whatever I choose, I’ll be happy?
Having money doesn’t hurt, but while salary is important, it isn’t the only factor you should look at when choosing a career. Many studies have shown that job satisfaction is not always related to the amount of money you make. For many people, enjoying what they do at work is much more important.
Taking the Mystery Out of What’s Next Ideas for Finding a Job Or Planning a Career
“What’s Next?” seems like a simple enough question, but answering it can be a complex process. After you think about your interests, your skills, your education and training options, and your resources, you need to match those with job options and training opportunities.
The perfect job for you may be one you haven’t yet heard of; the career path you think is too hard or costly may actually be within reach; the job you thought you wanted may not be a good fit at all. Exploring options is an important first step down any path. If you need help, you’ll find many resources for learning about jobs and careers.
In-Person Help
It’s best to talk with people who are “in the know” – school counselors, people at job fairs, ministers, parents, or friends of parents. You can go on-line, as well, to career websites, but there’s no substitute for talking with professional job counselors.
- The Durham Center for Employment Training is a nonprofit organization that trains people for jobs in the community. It is located at the Golden Belt Center, 807 E. Main Street, Bldg 4, Durham (Phone: 919-686-4050).
- If you just don’t know what to do, need help finishing school, and need some basic skills, contact Youth Employed and Succeeding (YES) (Phone: 919-402-9400, ext. 420). If you’re between 14 and 21, are in a “low income” category, need help because you’re pregnant or are currently parenting, or if you’re homeless, are a foster child, or an offender, they’re happy to help you.
- Staff at your local JobLink Career Centers can assist you with your job search. A list of the locations of JobLink career centers is on the web at www.ncjoblink.com.
- If you need computer training but don’t have the cash to take a course, try the GCF Global Learning Center on 321 W. Hargett Street in Raleigh. Classes are taught in both English and Spanish. Call 919-828-7490 or visit www.gcflearnfree.org.
- The National Student Partnership office in Durham, 331 West Main Street, Durham (Phone: 919-956-2824) has an AmeriCorps volunteer who can talk to you about where to get career counseling and vocational assessments, take job search workshops, and get help on writing your resumé and preparing for an interview. While you’re there, ask about AmeriCorps.
On-Line Help
Many websites have information useful for exploring job opportunities and training programs. Some provide general information and guidance; others list specific job openings. Browse!
- Employment Securities Commission: www.ncesc.com
- Career and Tech School Finder: www.khake.com.
- NC Careers: The www.nccareers.org website is a good place to start.
- North Carolina State Occupational Information Coordinating Committee: www.soicc.state.nc.us/soicc/
- America’s Career InfoNet: To find out about wages and employment trends, occupational requirements, state-by-state labor market conditions, employer contacts nationwide, financial aid information, and the most extensive career resource library online, visit America’s Career InfoNet website: www.acinet.org/acinet
Websites with Local Job Openings
Library Help
Look at Careers After High School: 251 Jobs for High School Graduates, by Tim Haight. New York, Collier Books [1970] or check this website: www.worldcatlibraries.org
Think About It . . .
Once You Have the Skills Where Will You Use Them?
Having or getting skills isn’t the end of your search. Where will you use them? To what end? For example, computer skills are helpful in many jobs and necessary in some. But if you’re skilled with computers, don’t grab just any computer job.
The content of the work should fit with your values and goals as well. That’s work satisfaction: contributing to something you believe is worthwhile. Computer work for a firm that is doing work you don’t approve of—like causing pollution or cheating helpless people—would leave you dissatisfied, however skillfully you performed the job.
The Economy: What Does It Have to Do With You?
North Carolina used to be an agricultural and manufacturing state: tobacco, textiles and apparel, and furniture manufacturing. But in the past 15 years, 85 percent of the jobs in these areas have been lost. Most of the new Tarheel jobs are in service industries—businesses that don’t manufacture items, but sell them, such as businesses that develop new medicines or vaccines (biotechnology companies) or move people (tourism) or money (banking) around. Some of the new service jobs pay as well or better than the old manufacturing jobs, but others do not.
Understanding the new “global economy” can explain where the jobs have gone and what kind of jobs you’re likely to find. Most of the new jobs are being created outside of the U.S. due to trade agreements like NAFTA and cheaper labor abroad.
Because cheap labor is producing so many goods in China and across Asia, and our country is bringing in more of these goods than it’s producing and selling overseas, many jobs are at Wal-Mart and at the other “big box” stores that sell the imported goods.
Note: Many Service Jobs Can Mean a Financial “Dead-End”
In her book, Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America, Barbara Ehrenreich described how she worked at Wal-Mart and in other low-paying jobs. After paying for transportation and rent, Ehrenreich's income barely covered her expenses if she worked seven days a week at two jobs (one of which included free meals).
What’s left for many Americans are jobs in “service,” which usually does not mean “service to country,” but instead means retail jobs. That’s why it’s not hard to find lowpaying retail jobs, especially in North Carolina. But careers in retail can be a dead end, depending on what other training you get and whether you will be able to rise in the ranks quickly enough to offset the initial low wages.
To land a different type of “new North Carolina job” that pays on the higher end usually means getting specialized training and skills. So pay attention to your career path early on so you will be able to land jobs that can support you and your family. A good idea, in this economic climate, is to “job shadow” (go with an adult friend to his or her job, ask questions, watch what that person does, or look for an internship or apprentice opportunity). Start to learn what people do in different jobs.
Once you see actual possibilities, you’ll have a better idea of what you’ll want to do. There are choices; you’ll have to look around to see them!
A Career in Alternative Fuels?
Concerned About Global Warming? Gas Prices?
Be Part of an Alternative Fuels Program in North Carolina
Did you know that 199 million cars burn 4,000 gallons of gasoline every second in the U.S.? If you love cars and want to contribute to the environment and our economy in a big way, think about taking part in an alternative fuels curriculum. Wake Technical Community College Automotive Systems Technology program is one of 23 National Alternative Fuel Training Consortium (NAFTC) training centers in the U.S. (See NAFTC at: http://www.naftc.wvu.edu)
The goal of NAFTC is to establish a national pool of trained automotive technicians skilled in the operation, maintenance, and safety of Alternative Fuels Vehicles. Over 5,500 technicians have been trained in hundreds of organizations, including the U.S. Postal Service, the U.S. Air Force, Clean Cities Programs, and commercial fleets.
Course instructor Rich Cregar of West Virginia University, the headquarters for NAFTC, says the new national curriculum is unique. Classes teach about alternative fuel vehicles, system integration and service of natural gas vehicles, and CNG cylinder inspection and certification of natural gas vehicles. Training is given on propane vehicles as well as transient emissions. The course on alternative fuels is the first class NAFTC designed that is intended for anyone interested in alternative fuels and all of
the issues—energy independence, ecology, global warming.
Wake Tech a Leader in Alternative Fuels Training
As a member of the National Alternative Fuels Training Consortium, Wake Tech has played an active role in initiatives that promote alternative fuel vehicle training and advance the public’s understanding of issues and research in this field since 2001. For more information, contact www.waketech.edu or:
Sammie Thornton, Dean
Vocational Technology
9101 Fayetteville Road
Raleigh, NC 27603-5696
Tel: (919) 662-3380
Fax: (919) 779-3360
Email: scthornton@waketech.edu |
Kenneth Betancourt
Department Head/Instructor
Automotive Systems Technology
9101 Fayetteville Road
Raleigh, NC 27603
Tel: (919) 662-3516
Fax: (919) 779-3360
Email: kmbetac@waketech.edu |
Make Your Love Of Sports a Career: Become an Athletic Trainer (see www.nataboc.org)
To succeed, athletes need to be in top physical condition, and nearly all professional athletes work with top-notch coaches and athletic trainers. Sometimes the trainers themselves become famous for helping an athlete transform from pretty good to the best!In fact, you can go on-line and read the notes and training schedule of Lance Armstrong, written by his personal coach, Chris Carmichael.
Athletic trainers make sure that athletes are in good shape and ready to play. Many of their tasks involve preventing injuries. They show athletes how to exercise correctly and lead the team through stretching exercises prior to each game and practice. Athletic trainers check the condition of the playing field, suggest diets and exercises to improve athletes’ strength, organize physical exams, help coaches choose equipment that prevents injuries, and advise athletes on the proper use of safety equipment.
Generally, people in this line of work need to communicate; reason and solve problems; manage themselves as well as other people, time, and equipment; and work well with other people.
When an athlete gets hurt, trainers help determine the seriousness of the injury. They provide emergency first aid and may go with the athlete to the hospital. Athletic trainers confer with doctors and physical therapists to set up a therapy routine; they also work with the athlete, coach, and family to decide when the player can safely return to play.
Athletic trainers monitor small injuries that may impact the performance or health of an athlete. For protection, they tape, wrap, or brace ankles, fingers, or other parts of the body before games and practices. After workouts, athletic trainers massage athletes’ limbs to relieve soreness and strains.
Some trainers work with athletes on high school and college sport teams; a few work for professional teams or individual professional athletes; others work in health clubs. Many high school athletic trainers also are certified to teach other subjects.
What You Need to Be an Athletic Trainer:
Knowledge
- Biology: Knowledge of plants, animals, and living organisms and how they function.
- Therapy and Counseling: An understanding of the effect of diseases and injuries and about how to give advice on social or personal problems.
- Medicine and Dentistry: A knowledge of injuries, illnesses, and defects and how to set up a treatment plan.
- Customer and Personal Service: An understanding how to provide special services to customers based on their needs.
Attitudes and Values
- Value achievement: Athletic trainers like to see the results of their work and to use their strongest abilities; they enjoy getting a feeling of accomplishment from their work.
- Value relationships: Typically, trainers like to work in a friendly, noncompetitive environment and enjoy doing things for other people. They prefer jobs where they are not pressured to do things that conflict with their sense of right and wrong.
- Value independence: Trainers like to make decisions and try out ideas on their own, and they prefer jobs where they can manage with little supervision.
- Value recognition: Athletic trainers like jobs that offer opportunities for advancement, where they can be recognized for their work. They usually prefer jobs in which they are looked up to by others.
- Have social interests: Trainers are social people—they like to help others learn and grow. They enjoy communicating with others, teaching, and advising.
- Have realistic interests: Trainers are practical people, too—they like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions, and they enjoy working with plants, animals, and physical materials such as wood, tools, and machinery. They often prefer to work outside.
Education, Training, Skills
- Certification: You must pass exams to become certified.
- Strong Interpersonal Skills.
- Formal Education: Most athletic trainers have a bachelor's degree in athletic training. These degree programs teach how to identify, evaluate, and treat sports injuries, as well as anatomy, physiology, and first aid. Some athletic trainers have a degree in a related health field. They usually must complete a longer internship.
Compensation and Opportunities for Athletic Trainers
Nationally, the median wage for athletic trainers is $33,820 per year. Wages vary with the education and experience of the athletic trainer and with the employer. Athletic trainers who work for universities or professional sports teams earn the most.
Nationally, the number of jobs for athletic trainers is expected to grow faster than average through the year 2012. Jobs for athletic trainers at hospitals and athletic training facilities are expected to decrease; however, opportunities in gyms, doctors’ offices, and professional sports teams are all expected to increase. Jobs at colleges as well as positions with professional athletes or teams are expected to be hard to find because the pay is good and turnover is slight.
Related Careers
If the profile of an athletic trainer feels good to you, but you’re not sure this is your path, you might want to consider other careers that require similar skills and interests. These include: coaches and sports instructors, licensed practical nurses, nursing assistants, orthotic and prosthetic specialists, physical therapists, physical therapy assistants, recreational therapists, respiratory therapists, and veterinary assistants.
Training for Starting a Small Business of Your Own
You know you have survival skills, but you can’t see yourself starting your own business? Would you like to learn how to turn your resourcefulness into a way to start a business? New approaches to business training are helping folks who usually do not see themselves as business people redefine themselves and use the skills they already have.
Interesting . . . how do I find this kind of training?
Read on for some local and online help.
First, almost every community has an Office of Entrepreneurial Development led by the Small Business Administration. Most are connected with the Community Colleges and provide inexpensive training courses in business topics. Assistance from these centers is available to anyone interested in beginning a small business or improving or expanding an existing one. Check on-line at www.sba.gov/teens. Here are the phone numbers and addresses of the local Triangle Area SBA offices:
Triangle Area SBA Offices
CHAPEL HILL
(Orange and Chatham Counties)
608 Martin Luther King
Boulevard, Suite B
Chapel Hill, NC
27514-5703
919-962-0389 |
DURHAM
(Durham County)
G08 Willis Building
North Carolina Central
University
Durham, NC 27707
919-530-7386 |
RALEIGH
(Wake County)
920 Main Campus Drive
Suite 101
Raleigh, NC 27606
919-424-4450 |
Business Simulation Course
Or, consider taking a free, hands-on, “learning by doing” training course called Making Cents Business Simulation (www.makingcents.com) in Chapel Hill, NC. Making Cents, working with a South African organization, developed this course based on its business experience. Since 1988, this kind of training has helped 60,000 unemployed people to become self-employed. The course will be offered free-of-charge in Chapel Hill, NC, to interested youth. It takes place over a period of four or five weeks, one evening a week.
Making Cents Business Simulation
Here are some of the concepts covered in the course:
- Purchasing
- Costing a product or service
- Selling for profit
- Understanding the market
- Production techniques
- Allocating income and planning
- Adding value
- Selling on credit and managing risk
- Basic record keeping
- Negotiation and selling techniques
In the course, you will deal with real-life problems that come up in starting and managing an imaginary business. For example, you’ll have the experience of tackling questions about supply and demand, negotiating, keeping records, and marketing. Through role-playing and other activities, you’ll become familiar with the kinds of challenges you might meet and how to deal with them effectively.
You’ll experience the ups and downs of life as an entrepreneur by running a venture in the training room. Making Cents Business Simulation demystifies business so you can discover yourself as an entrepreneur!
To learn more about Making Cents, visit their website listed above. To get more details about the next Making Cents Business Simulation course in Chapel Hill, contact Susan Inglis at fromthemtn@aol.com.
Information on the Web
Finally, check out websites with “business start-up kits” that help you think through the steps of starting a business. One that’s especially good is the www.sbaonline.sba.gov/teens/roadmap.html designed for young, first timers. Another is www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/index.html.
25 Fastest-Growing Jobs in North Carolina
| |
Job |
Percentage Increase Expected |
| 1 |
Medical Assistants |
61% |
| 2 |
Dental Hygienists |
54% |
| 3 |
Dental Assistants |
53% |
| 4 |
Fitness Trainers and Aerobic Instructors |
48% |
| 5 |
Medical Records & Health Information Technicians |
48% |
| 6 |
Social & Human Service Assistants |
48% |
| 7 |
Physical Therapist Assistants |
47% |
| 8 |
Physician Assistants |
47% |
| 9 |
Respiratory Therapists |
47% |
| 10 |
Occupational Therapist Assistants |
46% |
| 11 |
Respiratory Therapy Technicians |
46% |
| 12 |
Cardiovascular Technologists & Technicians |
45% |
| 13 |
Home Health Aides |
45% |
| 14 |
Network Systems & Data Communications Analysts |
45% |
| 15 |
Self-enrichment Education Teacher |
45% |
| 16 |
Biomedical Engineers |
44% |
| 17 |
Physical Therapist Aides |
44% |
| 18 |
Occupational Therapist Aides |
43% |
| 19 |
Environmental Engineering Technicians |
42% |
| 20 |
Database Administrators |
40% |
| 21 |
Microbiologists |
40% |
| 22 |
Occupational Therapists |
40% |
| 23 |
Psychiatric Technicians |
40% |
| 24 |
Personal Finance Advisors |
39% |
| 25 |
Physical Therapists |
38% |
SOURCE: Employment Security Commission
The numbers of openings in these jobs are expected to grow the fastest during the next 7-8 years. Remember: “Hot” jobs may or may not be a good choice for you. And today’s “hot” job may not be plentiful four years from now. So learn about yourself first and explore the jobs that fit you
