Building the Ideal Career

Building the ideal career begins with you identifying what it is you really want to do with your life in the long term. No matter what you want to do, there are steps you need to put in place first, to help you get to where you want to be.

To build the ideal career, you need to have a plan in place, and it is also important to really think about other aspects of your career choice, such as the following:

1. Your personal values

It is important when deciding on the ideal career for yourself, that you identify your personal values. The reason for this is because your personal values play an important part in your entire life, and if you were to decide on a career that is a direct contradiction to your personal values, then it is highly likely you would not see the results you are hoping for.

For example, if spending a lot time with your family is high on your list of personal values, then choosing a career that would take you away from your family for long periods of time would be in direct contradiction with those values. In fact, you would very quickly realize that having a career such as the one you have chosen, is probably not the right one for you.

So in other words, your career must fit in with your personal values and allow you to balance your work and family life based on these values.

2. Your current skills

Next, you may want to look at your current skills. Do you currently have the required skills for your chosen career? If not, are you prepared to get out there and learn these skills?
How much time will it take you to learn these skills, and are you prepared to put in this amount of time?

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3. Your personality

Some personalities suit certain careers better than others. For example, if you are thinking about going into sales, then the ideal personality type would be one of an extrovert as opposed to an introvert who is not comfortable getting out there and selling.

4. Your interests

Obviously, if you pick a career that is in line with your interests, then it is likely you are going to enjoy doing what you do. For example, a person who loves animals may benefit from a career working with animals. On the other hand, you might be interested in working on projects, so would benefit by working as a project manager or business analyst or similar.

Regardless of what you do, especially if you require some additional training to get started, when building the ideal career you need to consider that you will be doing this for a very long time to come, so it is important you pick one that you truly believe you will enjoy.

Once you have decided on an ideal career, it is now time to plan how you are going to get there.

The following steps to building the ideal career will get you started:

1. Write down what it is you want to do (what is your career choice?)
2. Establish where you are now – write down your current skills, knowledge and other attributes that will contribute to your chosen career. Also write down the skills, knowledge and other attributes you require in order to excel in your career.
3. Decide on how you are going to get your skills and knowledge up to the level you require in order to excel in your chosen career.
4. Get out there and do it!

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Building the ideal career starts with the decision about what you want to do. Most importantly however, is the action you take once you have made this decision. Before long, you will be well on your way to achieving your career goals.