SEARCH FOR YOUR DREAM JOB

What, exactly is a dream job? It is one you can get if you work hard at your plan for career development. A good job: pays well for your level of skill and uses many of your best skills. A dream job is one you love. It feels like learning, work and play all rolled in together.

Steps to a Dream Job

Have Informative Interviews: ASK:  What do you do?  What are three to five of the most common tasks or activities you do each day?  Do you mind the repetition?  How long have you been doing this work?  How did you get into this type of work?

ASK:  What skills do you use doing these tasks?  What kind of training or education did you need for this job? How much did it cost?  What do you like about your job?  What don’t you like about your job?

ASK:  What are the main challenges in this industry?  What do you see happening in the next five to ten years?  What is your ultimate career goal?  What is the starting salary in this job or field?  What is the salary range with three to six years’ experience?

ASK:  Do you have any additional comments, suggestions, or advice?  Can you give me the name of two or three other people who do the same work?

2. Cultivate Contacts and Create Networks ASK:  Family – immediate and extended  Friends and parent of friends  Friends on Facebook or similar social media sites  Neighbours  School guidance counsellors or club sponsors  Teachers and professors  Co-workers and bosses (past and present)  People you’ve meet through temporary or volunteer work.

Who could you ask? ASK:  Your pastor or other members of your spiritual community.  Members of community-service organisations e.g. Lions etc.  People you meet in line at the movies, grocery store or on vacation.  Create a list of FIVE contacts to start and then get THREE more names from each of these contacts-this will help inform you.

3. Research Organisations of Interest  Visit company websites and websites for that field or industry.  Look through the archives of newspapers or periodicals and find written information on the organisations.  Talk to: people who work for the organisation, competitors, suppliers, customers of a business or department, business leaders in your community etc.

ASK:  What kind of work do they do?  What kinds of goals are they trying to achieve?  Are they achieving their goals?  What are their needs problems and challenges?  What kind of reputation doe the company have within their industry?  How do they treat their employees?

Identify your skills, interests, hobbies and talents- THINK:  Your interests are often tied closely to your skills  Sometimes your dream job or potential dream job involves identifying your favourite interests to determine the occupational field in which you may fit  The skills you gain from school, part time jobs and hobbies are often transferrable. Sometimes our best skills are ones that come easily and naturally that we think anybody can do them the way we can

I like skateboarding… Consider this:  If you like skateboarding, your transferrable skills may include good hand-eye coordination, balance, agility, persistence (due to falling off and getting back up again). You are also a risk taker and willing to challenge yourself (such as when trying new tricks) and can make split second decisions  You could use apply these skills to your dream job, which could be a professional skateboarder, PE teacher, involving athletics, coaching, designing a skateboard or kinesiology (Human movement)

I like science and helping people.. Consider this  If you enjoy helping people and are interested in science, some of the transferrable skills you might already possess are patience, tolerance, ability to think on the spur of the moment, good communicator, works well in a group  You might consider becoming a nurse, paramedic, old age/disability carer or doctor. There are many fields within an occupation such as in nursing. E.g. paediatric nurse (children), oncology (cancer), emergency, recreation (cruise ship).

Interests Survey  Complete the survey to identify your interests and related skills

4. Begin a research campaign to get the job you want!  From your research in step 3, choose the top five places you want to work.  Narrow it down to research one Dream Job  Refer to the EP Overview