Step 1: Assess Skill
The place you must begin is knowing who you are. You must first know yourself and where you would like to go before you can look for a path to take you there. You should begin by looking at the following things:
Interests: What types of things do you LIKE to do? Do you like to work with "things" or with "people"? Do you like to analyze things and figure out how they work, or would you rather figure out what makes people tick and then influence them? Are you creative and like to find ways to express yourself, or are you comfortable doing things the way they have always been done and following through with set procedures?
Competencies: What are you good at? What are your skills and what do you do competently? What sorts of tasks come naturally to you without a lot of extra effort?
Values: These are what are most important to us and make each one us a unique individual. In examining your values, you must be able to ask questions about what type of work environment you would like to work in, what types of colleagues you would like to work with and what is important to you concerning family, friends and your work location. In short, what are your underlying reasons for wanting to enter a particular career, and what needs to be present for you to stay in that career?
Experiences: You need to look to your past to see what things you have enjoyed or not enjoyed. Don't discount your past experiences. They could lead you down a career path you were not necessarily expecting!
Goals: What do you want to do with your life? Several years down the road, what would you like to have accomplished in your life and in your career?
Resources:
Focus II
