Choosing the Right Career Path For You

Written by a Guest Contributor

Today's career world is not the way it was several years back. With countries still recovering from the fairly recent global financial crunch, jobs are by and large, more scarce to come across than decades ago, and also getting a good job for a satisfying career life has never been harder. In the light of this, this post looks at the important topic of choosing the right career for you using Nigeria as an example.

Nigeria has a great deal to offer young people looking to enter into the working world and start their career. This being said, choosing a career is no easy feat meaning that self-reflection, organisation and hard work are all necessary in order to set yourselves on the path towards a well-paid and fulfilling profession.

Searching for a Job

A lot has been said and written about finding various available good positions if you are looking for a job. Obviously you would have to check out every possibility not only in the national dailies, specialized magazines and the Internet for recruitment agencies' but also on free classified websites offering jobs. But what do you do if you don't actually know which one could be the right career for you. This quick guide is here to help you.

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Importance of self-reflection

Before making an informed career choice you will need to carefully reflect on your personality, interests and skills. Unsurprisingly, you will quickly discover that there are numerous professions suited to your individual person, but in equal measure, there are also those unsuitable to your personality and skillset.

You should also think about your interpersonal skills as some people are naturally more suited to certain professions that involve helping others and communicating.

If you need help, ask your family and friends to make a list of your top skills and personality traits. This research should enable you to narrow down a number of fields of interest, thus allowing you to get that little bit closer to choosing the right career for you.

Self-assessment tests may help

Different self-assessment tests have been developed in order to give you the chance to match your personality to your career and they could actually help you to understand your personality and natural skills a little better. You can try some of them right here.

Consider your strengths and weaknesses

It is important that you consider your practical and academic skills in order to establish a suitable career path. Think about your strongest and weakest subjects at school as well as those that you enjoyed and those that you found particularly tedious or stressful.

Many successful Nigerian business men and women emphasise the importance of finding something that you love doing and not giving up should you encounter difficulties and challenges along the way. Subsequently, finding that one thing that you are truly passionate about is a great starting point when it comes to choosing a career.

Seek all available information about professions

When deciding upon your future career path it is always a good idea to carry out some extensive internet research on the professions that interest you and attend career days and events, where possible, in order to be inspired by those who have already been successful in their chosen field.

Thinking about the future

When making this important decision you should consider your future goals and any additional education or training that you will require in order to enter into a new profession, remembering that the most successful people are not always the richest and most intelligent, but the most determined and fulfilled.

Of course you should consider the financial aspects of your given career choice before taking the plunge, but you should not let this cloud your judgement as money does not buy happiness.

By taking this advice into consideration you will be well on the way to making an informed decision regarding your future profession in Nigeria. Always remember to strive for the very best and never give up once you have pinpointed the right career choice for you!

Author Bio
Stephanie Adeyemi, a graduate of Communication and Media Studies of the University of Abuja in Nigeria, is a freelance writer collaborating with national and international sites.

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