by Liesl Jurock
“Which of these three careers do you think I should I choose after I graduate?” a student asks me as we’re sitting in my office where I work as an advisor.
“That’s not a quick question,” I tell her. “You said you only needed a ten minute appointment!”
She laughs nervously but is still looking at me with the hope I have her answer.
“Look,” I say. “It’s completely normal to feel like you need to have things figured out, but you don’t. In fact, career plans don’t generally work. ”
I hear her sigh of relief.
But I didn’t just say it to make her feel better. The latest research in career development supports this. Chaos Theory likens our career paths to that of weather forecasting – seemingly unpredictable, but with underlying patterns. Our careers are far more complex and subject to chance than previously thought. So, trying to set out a career plan often does not pan out. In fact, in a recent survey of mid-career professionals, only 2% of them said they were doing what they thought they would be doing back when they were 18 years old!
I know this to be true because when I was 18, I started studying communications and had a five-year plan to become a manager after graduating. I thought I would be happy when I achieved that goal, but I didn’t feel fulfilled by it and sought out new opportunities. Since then, I’ve shifted careers two more times! I never could have predicted the careers I would have in student affairs and now in career development, but the common pattern that has always been central within my roles is the same - communicating with people.
So, as I look at the student across my desk, I understand how much pressure she is putting on herself to have it all figured out, but it’s not necessary. Even if she made a career plan, it is unlikely to turn out the way she thought.
So, instead we talked about opportunities. What does she love doing? Where can she do more of it? What is she interested in? How can she meet people who are interested in the same things? Basically, we talked about following her passions, meeting people who might share them, and getting out there and trying things related to what she enjoys doing. That’s when opportunities arise – amidst the chaos of life and among people who are living theirs.
Image courtesy of Microsoft Office.
