Source: JobsJournal.com
Importance of Career Planning
Career means profession - that which we want to adopt for earning a livelihood. Planning for a career is one of the most important steps we can take in our lives. It sets a foundation for how you'll spend a great deal of your life. An interesting fact about career planning is that it is not always a short-lived process. In fact, for many, it can last a lifetime which includes re-defining goals, developing interests, and changing careers.
To work in a proper flow, proper pre-planning plays a tremendously important role. Right from education, we need to plan a great deal in order to pursue our dreams of the future. Challenges and competition are the part of today's society, and therefore, career planning is the only task, which can guide us to do what we want to do in our life, rather than just aimlessly changing jobs all the time.
Proper analysis of ourselves becomes a necessity while we plan our careers. We need to look into various aspects such as our negative and positive traits, our interests, our career goals, and so on. Further, you need to have some prospective options for which you'll want to research the industries in which they belong. In doing so, you might find that some of the occupations don't suit you at all; or, alternatively, you might find you're more drawn towards others. It's also a good idea to research the labor market in any given profession, as well as to pay special attention to the types of opportunities available at the time of your search, ranging from full and part-time posts to internships and volunteer opportunities.
Once you identify and evaluate possible options, you're ready to take action. This could mean anything from pursuing additional training and education required for your prospective careers, to developing a job search strategy. Remember that the application process takes a good deal of preparation, including the writing of a cover letter and crafting a resume, searching for right jobs, researching individual companies, and preparing for job interviews. Hence, it's best to pace yourself well to avoid feeling overwhelmed with the entire process.
There are many more important aspects to consider in relation to career planning such as salary and benefits to income protection once you actually secure a job. Although the entire process is tedious, following a few simple career planning guidelines can help make it much easier. Career planning helps us to evaluate our own personality, which in turn helps us to know the kind of job that would best suit us according to our need and capabilities. In short, career planning is like mapping our future.