The backbone to having a successful career is making the right career choice. Often, people confuse a career for a job. So you can have a great job and not have a great career. Funny right? This is why it is important to understand what a career is and why it is important to make the right career choice.
In this context, some mistakes people make in their career choice will be examined but before that, let’s look at what a career is.
Table of Contents
What is a career?
A career can be defined as an occupation practiced for a long period. A career is often fixed in a particular field. For example, for an engineer to have a career, the engineer must have practiced in the field for a long period.
One interesting thing about a career is that it could be anything one finds satisfaction in doing overtime. It is limited to any profession.
8 Mistakes People Make in their Career Choice
Everyone is among the best, identified as a successful person, and featured on Forbes, Vogues, etc. But not everyone has what it takes to attain this feat. When you know the mistakes to avoid in your career choice, making it in that field will be easier than you think. Below are the eight mistakes people make in their career choice;
-
Being Influenced by others.
While growing up, children tend to be influenced by their parents or guardians when making a career choice. Unfortunately, this mistake has led many to follow paths where they had little or no interest.
When making a career choice, it is essential to avoid being influenced by people around you. This does not mean that the people around you won’t give you a positive influence, but it is about you knowing what you want and going for it.
Remember, your career is your journey, and you will experience hurdles in only you will have to find a way out of it. Also, avoid going for a career because your friends are in it; follow what you have an interest in.
-
Not doing enough research in the career field.
In whatever thing you plan to do in life, one of the most important steps is to have enough knowledge about it. This also applies when making a career choice.
The internet has made it easy to have first-hand knowledge from experts in different career fields. You do not have to spend too much money trying to understand how to succeed in your proposed career field. YouTube, TED Talk, LinkedIn, and other Social media channels are available to explore.
-
Going into it for the money
Of course, we strive to be better people at work so we can earn money and be able to meet our daily needs. You also have to consider making money in your career as it is one of the many specs of a successful career man/woman. However, it is wrong for you to use money as the only determining factor of your career choice.
If you can do what is expected of you in any career you choose, money will surely come your way. However, when you focus too much on making money, you’ll eventually be greedy and disappoint the people looking up to you by making wrong choices.
-
Not upgrading their professional experience.
Another mistake people make career-wise is failing to self-develop. Most people do not know in their career choice that they are the greatest determinant of their success. No one will help you develop yourself in your career, and you have to do it all by yourself.
When you have decided about the career, you want to go for, do research, look out for the required professional qualifications, and work towards getting them. Remember the quality of your experience will determine the level of growth you’ll attain in your career.
-
Confusing career and job
A job has a termination or retirement date, and a career is a lifetime thing. Although they are intertwined, a job and a career are two different things. When you plan to have a career, you make it a long-term goal. It is not like a job you can easily retire from
A career takes a lot of years of practice, development, motivation, and support from people who look up to you.
-
Lack of passion
Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Celine Dion, etc., are people we all believe in having made a successful career choice. However, when you look at each of these people, you’ll discover a common thing in their success stories: passion.
Without passion, you’ll get tired and eventually be tempted to give up on your career journey. Don’t just go for a career because you want to succeed in it. Instead, go with the passion for it. Learn to love what you do. Then, when the temptation to give up, you’ll overcome it.
-
Going for Organizations that won’t aid your development
A news reporter that has worked with BBC for over 20 years has the opportunity to have a successful career. This is because the BBC is a media organization that supports the growth of news reporters.
When it comes to your career, your workplace matters a lot. Before signing that employment contract, check to see if there are benefits that would help you grow, benefits that would add value to your CV and portfolio. Do not be in a hurry to get a job; keep your career growth at the back of your mind at all times.
-
Refusing to learn from field experts
With a mentor, it becomes easy to build a better career. The experience, they say, is the best teacher. But, before making that career choice, be sure to learn from one or two experts in your field of choice.
Social media platforms like LinkedIn, GitHub, Slack, Twitter, YouTube, and Quora make it easy to connect with industrial experts. Ensure to reach out to them through these platforms.