Work is not life but it is definitely a huge part of our life. We spend many hours every week, decade after decade, doing work. Having a career where you look forward to going to work each day makes life fulfilling and enriches us as human beings. Thus as parents, it becomes imperative that, in a similar fashion, we do a good job of guiding and encouraging our children in their quest to find and do work they love. And it’s a daunting task.
In today’s world parents are not only their children’s friends, philosophers and guides apart from being their authority figures and emotional anchors. We know our children well and our role should be to help the children think and ponder about their likes and dislikes, their core strengths and skills and set them off on a path to discover various career options/what they want to do
This is certainly not as easy as it sounds but a few concrete steps may help.
Conducting an aptitude test is one of the first steps we can take. Specially designed aptitude tests can help in arriving at a snapshot of the child’s personality, strengths and weaknesses and hence make the parents and the child understand his or her interests, making choosing a career trajectory easier.
It’s an oft-repeated cliche but it’s true- Every child is unique. Every child has some innate strengths and skills. As they reach middle and high school some preferences start emerging. Some show a flair for languages, others are fascinated by numbers. Added to it are skills and personality traits. Thus a child might possess excellent communication skills, and another may be good at research. Some children thrive as part of large teams others like to work on their own. Some love graphic design while another is immersed in music. These individual personality traits and skills need to be identified to choose a field of work in which the child might enjoy working.
It is not easy to spend your time working in a field in which you aren’t interested. Hence, help your child to match their preferences with possible career paths. The key here is to let the child make his life choices.
Many parents have the tendency to make decisions for their children based on what others are doing. This could sometimes be misleading as all of them do not possess the same skills and personality. Sometimes parents don’t want their children to venture into unknown territory and want to prod them to choose safe options which everyone else is choosing. But this is not the right approach. In a rapidly changing world where work itself is changing, let us not limit our children to the safe zone but make an informed decision by understanding a child’s personality, strengths and skill set.
But at the same time as parents, we also want to future-proof our children. It’s wishful thinking but we can guide our children to have a glimpse of their future career paths by encouraging them to volunteer or intern within the prospective fields they want to venture into. These short forays can give them much-needed exposure to the real world and work life. Sometimes even the task of shadowing a person for the day at their respective job can be an invaluable experience.
Our goal as facilitators should be to help our children to choose a field of study and not a narrow career path. We must always remember that the child is growing and the world around them is also evolving. Nudge them to learn and research the various fields and professions that open up after pursuing a particular course. The larger the scope, the better the chance to find a role that might suit your child’s personality.
We must also push our own boundaries to encourage our children to look beyond traditional careers. Common careers such as teachers, doctors, and lawyers are discussed frequently. Many children will have no interest in these fields and should be exposed to newer or more unique fields. Science and technology are fields that are changing every day. Even within a field of study like Biology or Chemistry, there are several interesting openings. There are also many cutting-edge interdisciplinary subject areas. The liberal arts arena is vast and full of interesting career possibilities.
Thus we must be open to looking at nontraditional careers while of course not discounting the more known career options. For example, the internet has given rise to a huge demand for bloggers and vloggers. These professions did not even exist a few decades ago, but it is now a viable way to make a living. Culinary Science is yet another such example. Times change. Explore career options beyond even what you are familiar with if your child so desires.
But let not this exploration become a battlefield.·It is a decision that your child has to make. You cannot and should not make your child go with your choice of career. Like her or his unique strengths, every child has her or his limitations. Nobody knows your child better than you so be honest and supportive in helping them choose a realistic career path. Growing up years are hard and so do not burden them with undue expectations -yours, of friends, family and everyone around. Remember you are their anchor and safe space. Help them explore and bloom as they take their first steps in the professional world.
-Team Compass
