The advancement in technology and the rapidly changing economy has given rise to the development of new careers and courses. Due to these changes students are expected to make career decisions from a wide range of options available while they are young and ill-equipped.
Most students today are preoccupied with distractions like television, internet and gadgets. As students their focus shifts towards being accepted in school by their peers. Apart from this they are over burdened with school work, tuition and examinations to excel in studies so that they can have a proper education. This in turn avails oneself of better job prospects. These aspects are given preference over exploring oneself and developing individual abilities. This restricts them from getting to know who they are as individuals.
When choosing a career it is very important for one to realize what they are passionate about, if they wish to be successful in their fields and derive meaning from their work. In order to achieve this it becomes necessary for individuals to know themselves first.
The most effective way to attain this is by involving oneself in activities that give one an opportunity to get to know who they are while they are still studying. Another effective way to find out more about oneself is by doing a SWOT Analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats).
A SWOT analysis, as the name suggests helps an individual to identify what their strengths and weaknesses are and most often the person has some control over it. It also helps them to find out what opportunities might come their way and if their weaknesses may pose a threat to their success and generally the individual doesn’t have any control over these factors. Based on the SWOT Analysis the student realizes how to overcome their short comings, resulting in the student being prepared in advance for what lies ahead.
If one is clear about what they are passionate about and aware of what their strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats are, it prepares them for what is to come. It also enables an individual to realize what their improvement areas are which is bound to interfere with their success. And can also provide them insights about themselves and ways to overcome their weaknesses.
By focusing on these important aspects one is bound to have a clear idea about what they wish to accomplish in life thus they are able to narrow down on fields that are of interest to them, making career decisions simpler.