When Do you Need Career Counseling?

When do you need Career Counseling?

‘Others think I am successful since I am well paid and well settled.

But I feel dissatisfied with what I do.’

‘My parents want me to be an engineer, but I don’t think I want to pursue engineering.

In fact I am clueless as what to pursue next.’

When these questions are putting your mind at conflict. And you end up being unable to find the right resource to resolve it.

One of the best things you can do is to approach a career counselor.

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Career counseling is a process in which people recognize and utilize their resources to make career related decisions and manage career related issues.

The career counselor provides time, support, attention and structure, which enable clients to become more aware of their own resources in order to lead a more satisfying life.

Career Counseling- How it Works?

There are a number of factors, which come into play while you are making a career related decision.

Your interests, abilities, personalities, values and background are some among them.

Career counselor provides you with time and resources for finding out who you are and what you actually need out of your work and education.

They help you to organize your thoughts and feelings regarding your life goal and to draw the best conclusions out of these factors.

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To find out more on your interest and abilities, self-assessment questionnaires, psychometric tests etc. are used.

These tools are of great help to determine your capacities and limitations and those aspects of your personality, which you are less aware of.

As a next step, client and counselor make discussions on the factors which block client’s endeavor to achieve his/her fullest potential and find out best ways to challenge those blocks.

Then, the client and counselor jointly assume responsibility for finding out information on best-suited work roles and changes for the client.

However, when it comes to deciding which direction the client should move on.

It is an individual responsibility and the client is the expert here.

A counseling session becomes merely an advice session if the counselor makes the decision for the client.

Outcomes of an Effective Career Counseling:

When your session with career counselor goes well and fine, you reap the following benefits:

• Find out your life passion and goal and develop a plan to live it.
• Identify your interests, abilities and aptitude and also the part of you where you need improvement.
• Understand how to apply your skills and knowledge to take you towards your goal.
• A plan to acquire more resources for gathering information and improving your skills leading to a successful career.
• Achieve work life balance and effective dealing with potential stressors at your work.
• Remove ambiguities surrounding your life purpose and be in charge of your life.
• Be an effective decision maker when it comes to switching your job roles and direction.
• Acquire career maturity, adaptability and resiliency by enhancing your psychological resources.

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The objective of the career counseling is to improve one’s self efficacy with respect to career related decision making.

Thereby achieve his/ her life goal.

The result of a career counseling may be direct and immediate, for example, by taking up a particular course or job as found out during the session.

On the other hand, it may be delayed and indirect, for example, when the client later on determines to have a career shift based on the career maturity he has acquired during the counseling.