How to Make Career Decisions

The best way to make career decisions is to take an action-oriented approach to find out as much as you can about career opportunities of interest and then pledge your resources to achieve the career goals you have set. The more active you are in doing this the better your career decisions will be. Take the steps in this article to help you make the best career decisions possible.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

1. Identify the career decision to be made and desired outcomes that should result. Take an active role in addressing any concerns you have about your career. Career concerns do not simply go away or resolve themselves. You must commit to taking the necessary steps to address career related issues and find ways to overcome roadblocks.

2. Get as much information and facts as possible. Act on your sense of career direction. Allow it to motivate you to explore a variety of career opportunities. Remain flexible and open to the possibility that you will have to make some adjustments in your career plans along the way. The more information, you have, the better you will be able to decide which career opportunity holds the most appeal.

3. Summarize the information in step two and narrow your career opportunities to three or four alternatives. Review past career decisions and assess whether they were good or bad. A good career decision is based on your preferences and available information at the time. A bad decision is just the opposite. It does not reflect your preferences and is the result of insufficient information.

4. Check each alternative for balance. Career balance is different for each person. The most important thing you can do is to find your unique career balance—that equal blend of work with the things in life you find compelling.

5. Evaluate the risks. Consider those career opportunities where there is a reasonable chance of success. Determine how much energy you are willing to expend to succeed. Don’t waste your time on career alternatives that offer very little chance of success.

6. Make the decision. Don’t be afraid to take a chance or step out of your comfort zone. There is always a degree of uncertainty in every decision.

Resources

• How to Develop A Career Roadmap
• How to Use Work Experience to Maximize Career Success
• How to Tell If Your Career Has Stalled
• Christian Career Tools

[Delaplane]

on 1/30/2009 Great guidance, particularly now.

[mil102]

on 10/7/2008 I love this article, having the right mindset to get out of our comfort zone is what hinders us most often. 5 stars
http://www.milsopportunity4successbusinessideas.blogspot.com/

[changeling]

on 10/4/2008 Great step-by-step. This is great for anyone who needs to make this type of decision. This is especially good for new graduates.

[luv2blog]

on 10/3/2008 Wonderful article on making a career decision. Good guidance. Thanks.