Career Flux - Career Planning

Does Your School have a “Pre-Politics” Major?

You probably know politicians rank even lower in the public’s esteem than used-car salesmen. Becoming a politician, you accept the idea that it’s a very nasty job, but somebody must do it.

In the bigger world of politics, you may choose between two professional career paths. If you seek lifelong employment in public service, you will develop command of public policy, public administration, and criminal justice. If, on the other hand, you aspire to a place in the corridors of power, your college and graduate school studies will refine your command of power-dynamics. Either way, you inevitably will become intimate with Thomas Jefferson and Karl Marx, and you will develop power writing and speaking skills. Whether or not they have been attorneys, most elected officials have thorough grounding in the law; most government professionals have exceptional command of business practices.

Match your major to your mission.

Decide according to your interest, talent, and skill. Also decide with healthy respect for the competition, because the majority of high-powered politicians and government officials prove their value by earning extremely high grades at elite universities.

Law: Traditionally, the majority of politicians have come from attorneys’ ranks. Because all their study derives from the Constitution, lawyers learn to love the document, the values it codifies, and the system it safeguards. Most lawyers-turned-politicians have honed their skills as litigators, the legal specialty especially dedicated to applying the law to real people, the everyday practice most devoted to the fine arts of persuasion and advocacy.

Political science “Poli Sci” majors stress their discipline is far more theoretical than practical, and it probably involves as much art as strict science. By no means “beltway bootcamp,” political science involves sustained study of power relationships: how do people get power, and how do they use their power to protect and enhance their positions? How do weaker people and groups appropriate the means to power and work to replace existing power structures? How do economics influence power? To what extent do values and ideals influence voters; choices and politicians’ behavior? Yes, those questions will appear on the mid-term.

Economics Face the obvious facts: Politicians devote the majority of their time and energy to wrangles over money—how the government can get more, waste less, and apportion its revenue equitably. Of course, the study of economics includes careful analysis of government regulation and its impact of Gross Domestic Product; it includes similar study of taxation and GDP. Most importantly, though, economics remains the most mathematical and analytic among the social sciences, so that it develops would-be politicians’ reasoning and forecasting skills. Not surprisingly, many economists have found that the laws of supply and demand apply to voters’ choices as well as their retail purchasing habits; therefore, astute economists make savvy campaigners. Read The Selling of the President, 1968.

History San Diego Congressman Bob Filner earned a doctorate in history and taught at San Diego State University before he ran for office. He says he applies his knowledge of history in every aspect of his legislative work. More importantly, Filner says, systematic study of history taught him how to think critically and analyze precisely, avoiding mistakes of the past and learning how today’s issues link with yesterday’s trends. Naturally, writing a dissertation and facing classrooms filled with hundreds of students made him an exceptionally skilled, persuasive communicator—a politician’s most important attribute.

Public administration Think of the next step in Alex P. Keaton’s famous “How a Bill Becomes a Law”: How does a law become business-as-usual? With a degree in public administration, you regulate application of policies and laws in ordinary people’s lives. Whether you work inside the beltway or way out in the heartland, you will serve in the executive branch of some government, treating the word “executive” very literally, because you become the person who “executes” lawmakers’ will. Looking at the prospects practically, the demand for public administrators will increase in the next decade, because the executive branch has been the fastest-growing government area since George W. Bush’s second term. Executive offices and professional positions have increased 40 percent in the last eight years, and they will continue to grow at that rate as power concentrates in the Presidency.

As you choose a major and a career path in politics, keep in mind you probably will serve “at the pleasure of the people.” In other words, whether or not you run for office, the voters will determine your employment. Therefore, choose with as much respect for what you will do during your time out-of-office as you feel fervor for what you will accomplish while you are in-office. Also keep the radical alternatives in mind. If politics fascinate you, but you do not exactly thrive on posters and buttons, consider a career in journalism, or learn to manage campaigns as a public relations major.

Marilyn Tate is a writer and city worker earning her online masters in public administration.

Filed Under: Career Planning, College Graduates And Interns, Featured, Guest Experts Tagged With: Career Planning, college grads, school

A Career in the Armed Forces – is it for me?

By Stephanie Staszko Leave a Comment

Joining the armed forces can be an incredibly rewarding and exciting career opportunity for those with a passion to serve the country. Joining the army, however, isn’t for everyone but how do you know if it’s for you? If you’ve hit a fork in the road regarding your decision to join the army then here are a few factors to consider before making the crucial decision.

Reasons to Join the Army

There are a lot of incentives in place to make joining the army more attractive to potential new recruits. If you’re looking to study to gain a qualification, you may receive financial bursaries and grants to help you gain your army-related qualification. This can be attractive to many young people with the current university tuition fees being relatively high. Army positions also boast more paid holidays than a typical civilian job, with a minimum of 38 days leave a year.

Many people join the armed forces to feel a sense of self-worth; protecting your country can fill you with pride and can be incredibly rewarding. Helping the most vulnerable people in the world can give you an overwhelming sense of achievement and selflessness.

Skill Requirement

In order to be a member of the armed forces you have to possess a certain skill-set. Army recruiters will look for certain personal qualities, achievements and, in some roles, technical skills.

Physical fitness – although you don’t need to be boasting a pristine physique, you need to be able to run on command and squeeze into awkward positions.

Ability to empathize – as a member of the armed forces you’ll have to work with people from some of the world’s most deprived countries so sensitivity is a necessity. If you’ve worked as a carer before or volunteered for a charity which helps vulnerable people then make sure it’s on your CV.

Be a team player – most jobs ask for this quality but it’s particularly important if you’re looking to start a military career. You have to be able to obey commands and work together with others.

Patriotism – an army recruiter will look for passion for serving the Queen and country in potential soldiers and officers.

A Career in the Armed Forces – is it for me-2

Inspection of Irish Army by Queen - Dublin

Assess Yourself

Although the army can be a fantastic career path it isn’t suitable for everyone. Leaving the army isn’t so easy; military law means your contract is legally binding. Simply going AWOL can land you with a criminal record at the very least so you need to be sure you want to do it before signing up. You can ask military solicitors for help but getting yourself into this situation in the first place isn’t a good idea! You can speak to a career adviser or request an information pack to find out more information and decide whether it’s the right career path for you.

This guest post was written by Stephanie Staszko.

Filed Under: Career Planning, Guest Experts Tagged With: Career, career exploration, Career Planning

Graphic Designer, Illustrator and Fine Artist

By Patricia C 3 Comments

Patricia C works for LatPro.com, DiversityJobs.com and JustJobs.com and is one of their content specialists. She has a degree in International Relations and enjoys learning from other cultures and traveling.

Considered working as a graphic designer, illustrator or fine artist? This interview will take you through the ups and downs you can expect in the position, what it takes to land the job, what you can expect to earn and more. This is a true career story as told to GraphicDesignJobs.org and is one of many interviews with graphic design professionals, which among others include a design and text editor, a freelance artist, and everything in between.

A Start in Pre-Computer Days

My career in Graphic Design has been long and varied, with twists and turns along the way. I am presently a graphic designer/illustrator/fine artist. Creativity, professionalism, and flexibility have been the way I would describe over 40 years in the field, which began before the computer came into everyday use.

I am a white female who began her career in New York City, working in smaller art studios that served large corporate accounts. I have worked in promotion, display, package design and later in publishing. I also worked for a large retail company in their display department, making mock ups of signs and window displays for photography before production. I alternated between working staff by adapting to their design needs, and freelancing anything from packaging to corporate charts. This was before computers were used.

Challenges Galore

Being a woman in a world of men in graphic design in the old days was a challenge. I wore, like many of my day, mini-skirts and constantly worried about bending over the drawing board to do my work when standing. I was surrounded by men, which was fine most of the time.

In the freelance world, I went from feast to famine. In San Francisco, I was able to sign on with a designers’ agency, but when they weren’t calling, I would cold call potential clients by telephone. It was not my favorite thing to do– doing design work was a 9; looking for jobs and calling was a 2. I increased by job skills by doing illustration and learning more about lithography and printing. I went back to school to earn a B.A. in art, as graphic design, along with advertising in the economy, would stumble every few years.

Computer Software Bring In a New Age

There were many times when I really loved graphic design and especially typography. I enjoyed solving advertising and promotional problems for the client with design. When the computer became popular I learned Photoshop, then Illustrator and Quark. After I moved from New York and was helping a friend with her magazine, I learned PageMaker and became a layout artist as well. I think that illustration has taken over some of my love of design and because I do not have to be a saleswoman, I can relax at home in front of the computer /drawing board (yes, I still use paints and pencils!) I write copy as well.

Burning Desire to Be an Art Director

I began my career with a burning desire to be an art director in an advertising agency. Summers, I would go into the city and see if anyone would take me on in their office. Eventually I did begin as an apprentice, after going to art school. However, learning more about production, rather than design, would have helped, as that was the first question I was asked. I had no idea what a “mechanical” or “paste up” was when I left art school, but in those days, that was the way one started. Even with the computer, production is necessary.

Perseverance and Creativity

In the field of graphic design, I learned the hard way that one should not give up. Being laid off from jobs due to the economic climate became a fact of life. A waiting room in the employment agency with wall to wall artists made me want to walk back out of the agency. But I stuck with it, and learned that my skills were adaptable. What mattered was my perseverance and creativity, as well as with each job, my skills and experience.

The working world held challenges, and the client or corporation was always more important that my own ego. In design school, I learned to solve problems, but a client looking over my shoulder added to the chaos of designing.

Stress and Satisfaction

I think one of the strangest things that happened to me in design was while freelancing for a large engineering company doing charts. We worked after hours, and I happened to be looking for supplies and opened a drawer that had nuclear-type blueprints with the words “classified”. I quickly shut the unlocked drawer and kept quiet, but it was quite unnerving, as I was somewhat of a Make-Love-Not-War person.

My career as an illustrator, using graphic design principles gives me satisfaction. I also learned web design using HTML and built my own website over two years using code. Although there are now many easy methods, it was a challenge that gave me satisfaction when completed.

My graphic design career in New York was very stressful, but working from my home computer is not. Because I no longer have deadlines, it is more relaxing. Many of my previous jobs were working under tight deadlines. However, I do miss a steady salary and because of the economy, the demand for illustration is down. I have had to work outside the field to bring in more income. I live in a beautiful place, so do not need to take vacations.

Develop an Eye for Type and Layout

In today’s world, I would suggest that knowing computer programs is only part of being a successful graphic designer. An eye for type and layout is most important, as well as understanding the needs of the client for whom one is designing. I would tell a friend going into the field that one can begin small, with gaining experience and skills – the preliminary step to a great job. Flexibility is a must, as the market is constantly changing and will continue to change.

I would like to continue to paint, write and illustrate, using the skills I have learned as a graphic designer.

Filed Under: Career Planning, Guest Experts, Real Workplace Stories Tagged With: Career, Career Planning, Job, Real Workplace Stories, Skills

Good Career Opportunities Follow Good Career Planning

By Mona Samar Leave a Comment

There is no stretching the truth when saying that good career opportunities follow good career planning. It is not uncommon to be in a situation where you are in the midst of a job search or career change and seemingly going nowhere and you learn about Cousin Stacy landing a plum job with a famous Interior Designer. While you are still digesting the news and decide to call her to congratulate her, along comes your friend Tom beaming with joy. He tells you that finally he has been accepted as the Travel Writer at a magazine he had been trying to join. Someone else might just have been promoted to a higher level while you are still deciding where to apply for a job. At such times, it seems that everyone around you is getting great career opportunities except yourself. Rest assured that this kind of thinking is just a limited vision mind set because of your seemingly uncertain circumstances at that point in time. None of the people that you heard about getting ahead in their careers were served those ‘great’ career opportunities on a platter. If you were able and willing to dig deep into their story, you are bound to discover the careful career planning, hard work and patience put in by them over a period of time.

The lesson learnt here is that as a job seeker you can come upon good career opportunities too – with a well thought out career plan. To make such a plan and execute it, consider the following three actions that form a good career plan in its bare essential form.

1. Identify Yourself

Have you ever identified yourself and found out who is the person that you are? By that it is not meant here that you are a ‘nice, friendly person who wishes everyone well’. In the present context, identifying yourself means recognizing your true job worthiness. This is determined among other factors by:

All or any interests like, for example, reading, traveling, curiosity in science, computing, building boats, fascination with honeybees, environment, dress designing etc and strengths relating to those interests
Your natural and acquired talents like singing or being able to sell anything to anyone
Skills developed by you or gained through experience like organizational skills and communications skills
School/College courses attended if any
Any vocational training undertaken like fork lift driving or first-aid training
Job experience if previously employed
What you really like doing and sometimes get compliments for
Accomplishments that gave you a sense of satisfaction and pride
Your values and principles that you would never like to compromise
Activities that you consider fun and enjoyable ranging from social activities to sports

If you push yourself to answer all the above in an honest way, you would find that a composite picture of who you actually are would emerge in front of you. This perception would instil in you an inner confidence and make you aware of your potential worth as a whole in society. You have to create this ‘10 megapixel picture’ of yourself if you successfully want to move to the next steps and to your ultimate destination, that is, creating great career opportunities for yourself.

2. Decide and Select Target Career

The second step is identifying a job or job field, preferably in a career that you would follow for a long time if not forever. Here again, you have to look inside of yourself and listen to what your gut feeling says about the kind of work you want to perform for a living. Do not be hesitant to consider any option just because you think no one has ever suggested that to you or if your uncle Bob told you not to do that kind of work. It is you who are going to work and you who is going to get paid. Nothing else matters. In order to make this selection, you would need to sort out the jumbled feelings that are inevitable to crop up before you. You can use some or all of the following to reach a decision:

While some people have a strong inner voice telling them what is their calling in life, most of the rest of us have to do some soul searching
If you are just starting out at a young age, consult your career counselor at your educational institution if one is available or a parent
Talking to family and friends at this stage helps, but decide according to your informed understanding instead of someone else dictating you to do something for a career
If you have completed your studies but do not have a clear direction to follow, try volunteering for an organization related to your education
Decide whether you want to go in for fame or fortune, or both, or whether both fame and money would matter only after you first find self fulfillment
Do a thorough research on careers or jobs that you think would take you to cloud nine and find out if it is really so; use online resources and your local library and research about people who already tread that path and see how do they feel now
Self doubt and apprehension are bound to creep in if you are a normal human being but never forget that Abraham Lincoln or Bill Gates did not just jump through a magic door to success (maybe Facebook owner Mark Zuckerberg did, but he is an exceptional one of a handful people out of nearly 7 billion in the world including you and I right now!)
A very healthy resource to use is Occupational Outlook Handbook by Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor; you’ll find in it, among other things, earnings, expected job prospects and working conditions relating to virtually every career available
Finally, make a shortened list of any occupation you want to follow and start conduction informational interviews with people already working in that field
All the above actions, if taken in earnest, would create a clear cut goal/s for you to start aiming at and help create an enthusiasm instead of doubts and uncertainty resulting in meaningful career opportunities for you

3. Design and Execute Action Plan and Take the Plunge

Now that you have a ‘10 megapixel picture’ from step #1 and also a targeted career/job from step #2, its time to design and execute your career action plan. Remember, if your self assessment and clearly identified areas of career interest are well documented and are now on your desk or on a computer file, they are not going to bring career opportunities to your door on their own. It is time to drop any hesitancy and doubts and getting up and taking concrete action. Some of the actions to begin your quest can be:

Based on what you found out about yourself and your desired job, decide if they match or do you have enough education or training for the same
If you need additional training, what should that be, where is it available and when are the earliest starting dates
Join that course or training if it is suitable for you to undertake the above in view of your current financial needs and/or time constraints, like for example, have you already maxed your credit or if you have to take care of an infant, otherwise you might have to do with what you’ve got at present by way of qualifications
If the above are sorted already, it is time to write a strong Resume and Cover Letter that you can either do yourself with inputs and advice from a knowledgeable source like a school career adviser, an elder in the family, a friend with an established career in your chosen field or, if you can afford, a professional resume writer
Now launch your job search in full earnest using every source at your disposal, that include among many others, online job boards, newspaper ads, employment offices, government funded employment centers, recruitment agencies, college employment resources and career/job fairs
For best results to get solid job leads, in addition to the before mentioned and above all of them, is Networking that involves looking for jobs through real people like friends, friends of friends, family, old school mates, past co-workers, social media like LinkedIn and Twitter, setting up appointments for informational interviews, career counselors, approaching employers directly and practically talking to anybody who you socialize with including your hair dresser and grocer
Concurrently with starting your job search, you should start preparing for potential interviews as well in advance by researching possible questions to be asked and preparing your answers
Practice your interview skills regularly in front of a mirror or practice a mock interview session with a friend or family member and you’ll be pleasantly surprised later how much that helped you at the actual interview
Instead of just waiting for responses from employers, as it may take a few weeks to get your job search yielding tangible results, find out opportunities to volunteer in a related field that would get you into a ‘job groove’ and also will be seen positively by all employers
Finally, if your dream job is taking a while to happen, you may opt to take up an available ‘survival job’ if financial constraints are pressing you with the only precaution to be taken being that it doesn’t completely throw you off from your original targets and career goals

All the above steps taken with a burning desire and motivation will definitely take you to your destination. Keep in mind also that no career can be called a ‘perfect’ career universally. Only informed individuals finding success in their chosen field by working hard and persistently can claim self fulfillment through great career opportunities while making their living. Good luck.

Filed Under: Career Planning Tagged With: Career, career exploration, Career Planning, Job Search

The 5-Step Career Planning Starter

By Mona Samar Leave a Comment

Good Career planning follows the same principles as planning for any other important venture in life, like building a house or traveling to another country, with the only difference being that a career planning starter should be given some serious and informed thinking. There might be numerous ways people plan what they decide to do for a living in their lives but time tested universal techniques apply to most of us. Here we examine a career planning starter in five steps:

1. Grab a Pen & Paper:

The first and most important step, often ignored, for those who are starting a career planning or job search is to grab a pen and paper first (or their favorite word processor). That’s a simple step but the easiest first one in the journey that might be enjoyable and fruitful if handled wisely or may present struggles if we waver from the focused path.

I want them to jot down all that they can think of doing for a living – however simple or outlandish. Most people come out with a handful of choices, some of which belong to a closely related field while some are polar opposites. What this exercise does is that it gives a physical shape to their ideas – practical and wishful – and the list now stares back at them.

2. Separate the Wheat from the Chaff:

Next comes some brainstorming about your written goals. You have to patiently go through each and think about why you would want to be one thing better than the other. You are certain to find some of these choices as being more in the comfort zone or because ‘mom always tells me to’ as opposed to others that you have always wanted to be ever since you were a teenager. Either way, your own subconscious mind starts feeding you with ideas about them. Take a hard and long look at the options.

I would be the last person to break somebody’s dream or discourage them from achieving it, so it is up to you to decide whether out of the above list you really want to pursue the dream of becoming a Hollywood producer or if you want to aim for the supervisor position at the local Wal-Mart. The important thing here is separating things that your gut tells you that you can and want to achieve from the ones that you would wryly smile at and say ‘someday I’ll do that too’.

3. Relating Personal Strengths:

The shortened list that you have has to be examined from a new angle now – by associating your actual and perceived strengths with the chosen fields. Each one of us has certain strengths, physical or mental, that qualify us to perform certain actions better than others. Make a list – at least a mental list – of some of the areas you are strong into. There must have been times when family or friends told you what they thought you were really good at from their observation. Add those things to your list.

For example, if you chose health care or nursing, is it in you to face blood and veins or a crisis situation. Or would you place satisfaction over physical stress while putting out fires as a fireman or while working as a construction worker. Would you rather be comfortable in an air conditioned office with nice suits on and clicking away at computers because you don’t mind playing with accounting numbers all day? You’ll start to have a lot of clarity and energy by this time.

4. Time to Meet a Career Counselor or Conduct Self-Assessment

When you have completed this much homework, its time to seek out help from a professional like a career counselor. It depends, however, whether you have access to such services. For example, if you are graduating from an institution, you are likely to get help from that institution’s career counselor. Most North American cities also have non profit organizations funded by State to help the unemployed find work. Check your yellow pages or visit the web for relevant information.

If you decide to go the counselor way and are able to find the services of one, your job or career search will get a definite positive boost with the professional advice you will get. More resources will open to you that you ordinarily won’t realize were there in the first place. The counselor would surely be glad to see that you have already done your homework and are focused by having a researched direction. Even if you are not able to complete the previously mentioned process at home, the counselor would help you start afresh.

For those of you who for some reason are not able to avail these services (time constraints, non availability), a self-assessment is in order. The first steps of self assessment we have already discussed. Further, you can make use of the free self assessment tools available on the internet. You’ll be surprised by the amount of information you get on the web but I suggest you stick with the reputed and time tested ones. The Myers-Briggs personality type test is one such informal personality test. It helps you find out the kind of career your personality is suitable for.

5. Training and Education

From the beginning when you had jotted down all kinds of career, separated the ones you were confident you could and would follow, made sure your personal strengths matched your choices and after taking professional advice or self-assessment, now you are ready to claim your place in the sun. Many of you must have come to this stage after you have already completed a relevant course, diploma or degree or training in sync with your chosen career path. Some others might be in career transition only where their work experience and previous training might be sufficient.

A few, however, might need to add, upgrade or begin a career related education and training. These people will actually be guided by the counselor already about their choices and needs. For some, a full time training to reach their goal is possible and desirable while some others would need to keep the house and hearth going. The latter have to get training in their spare time while holding on to a part time job.

Finally, if all the above steps are followed with a seriousness warranted for career planning, there is no reason to stop you from take your rightful place in the job market. This process, while being called ‘career planning starter’ would actually take you half way across your journey and make you a confident job applicant. Good Luck!!