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Self-Assessment
Personality & attitudes
Skills & achievements
Knowledge & learning style
Learning style
Personal values
Career interests
Entrepreneurism
Self-Assessment
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Making the right plans for your future during these changing times can
be difficult. Starting with a self assessment can give you more choices
and broaden your options .
A
personal inventory can reveal your abilities, interests and attitudes.
It will define your strengths and your weaknesses. Looking for a match
between your strengths and the work you are considering is the most
important step before you write a resume or search for a job. In fact,
when the time comes to write your resume and prepare for a job interview,
you will find the task much easier the more you know about yourself.
What
if you are not sure what kind of job or career you want? "You"
are the place to start. What do you do well and enjoy doing? Answers
will help you identify your strengths and help you to decide on what
contributions you can make in the marketplace.
Many
people try to fit into jobs advertised in newspapers or other sources.
The employer today has many qualified candidates from which to choose.
You will be seriously considered for a position only by showing the
employer that you know who you are, what you can offer and where you
are going.
Personality
and Attitudes
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Two of the most important factors to determine your happiness and success
in a job are your personality and attitudes. Assess your feelings and
actions in different situations as they may be different, e.g., in a
large group vs. one-on-one, in a fast paced vs slow-paced environment.
You are unique, having different tolerance levels than others for chaos,
detail, and risk-taking.
Skills
and Achievements
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Skill is defined as the ability to do something well, especially as
a result of experience.
Most
skills are transferable to other work settings and can be grouped in
many ways.
One
way is to show functional skills of working with people, data or information,
and things or objects. Another way is to look at intellectual, aptitudinal,
creative, leadership and problem-solving skills.
Employers
are interested in knowing which skills you can bring to their organization.
Examine
your jobs, both paid and unpaid, as well as your academic, occupational,
and personal activities to determine your skills. Do not underestimate
the skills obtained in a "technical" education. Examples: oral/written
communication through technical writing, presentations, and seminars;
organization of time by having to meet deadlines and of ideas in order
to present material logically; research by searching and locating information;
problem-solving by analyzing and finding alternate solutions to a problem;
and various performance with job related tasks.
Knowledge
and Learning Style
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In addition to finding out who you are (personality/attitudes) and what
you can do (skills), you need to know what you know. You have learned
information by attending classes, working on projects, independent reading,
traveling and cooperative education to name just a few methods.
Learning
Style
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Learning style refers to characteristic ways of processing information,
and performing in learning or working situations. Awareness of your
personal style will help you identify your strengths and weaknesses.
Enhancing your thinking and problem-solving skills is a requisite in
today's information age.
Personal
Values
Identifying your personal values is an important part of a successful
career plan. In this context, the word "value" refers to how you feel
about the work itself and the contribution it makes to society. Most
people who pursue work that is congruent with their values feel satisfied
and successful in their careers.
Work
values can be divided into two functional categories. Intrinsic
values are those that relate to a specific interest in the activities
of the work itself or to the benefits that the work contributes to society.
Extrinsic values relate to the favorable conditions that accompany
an occupational choice, such as physical setting, earning potential,
and other external features. Most people, in order to feel truly satisfied
with their work, must find some personal intrinsic value in it.
Career
Interests
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Each person has developed personal preferences for certain types of
activities and environments. Most people who enjoy their work have some
intrinsic interest in the activities with which they are connected.
The
six general areas of vocational interest developed by psychologist John
Holland are described below. Think about your past experiences and your
current activities.
- Realistic.
For people who like activities that are practical and concrete. They
like to work outdoors and to work with tools and machines using their
physical skills. They often seek work relating to nature and the outdoors,
mechanics, construction or military service.
- Investigative.
For people who enjoy scientific and intellectual pursuits. They enjoy
gathering information, uncovering new facts or theories and analyzing
and interpreting data. They often seek work relating to academic research,
medical facilities, or computer-related industries.
- Artistic.
For people who value aesthetic qualities and like opportunities for
self expression. They prefer unstructured and flexible environments.
They often seek work relating to art, music, drama, writing or in
libraries or museums.
- Social.
For people who enjoy working with people to inform, help, train or
develop them in some way. They enjoy working in groups, sharing responsibilities
and are good communicators. They like to solve problems through discussions
of feelings and interactions with others. They often seek work relating
to teaching, counseling or recreation.
- Enterprising.
For people who enjoy influencing, leading or managing others for organizational
goals or for economic success. They enjoy persuading others to their
viewpoint and prefer social tasks where they can assume leadership.
They often seek work relating to business management, sales or politics.
- Conventional.
For people who enjoy systematic activities requiring attention to
accuracy and detail, often associated with office work. They enjoy
working for large organizations and are comfortable with an established
chain of command. They often seek work relating to financial institutions,
accounting firms, or other large businesses.
Entrepreneurism
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Employers are increasingly looking for people who have the ability and
confidence to work both independently and on a team to excel during
this time of rapid change.
Working
within an organization, entrepreneurs demonstrate leadership, first
of themselves, then situations and others.
Source:
Career Development Manual, University of Waterloo, Canada.; pages 35-40,
47. http://www.adm.uwaterloo,ca/infocecs/CRC/manual/steps.html
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of page)
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