Before embarking on your job search, it's crucial to have a clear understanding of your skills, values, interests, and career goals. This self-awareness will guide your job search strategy and help you target the right opportunities.
• Conducting a skills inventory
• Identifying your core values and how they relate to your career
• Understanding your work style and ideal work environment
• Setting SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) career goals
• Creating a personal career vision statement
1. Conducting a Skills Inventory
a) Types of skills:
• Hard skills (technical, job-specific skills)
• Soft skills (interpersonal, transferable skills)
• Adaptive skills (ability to learn and adapt)
b) Methods for identifying your skills:
• Reflecting on past experiences and achievements
• Reviewing job descriptions in your target field
• Seeking feedback from colleagues, mentors, or supervisors
• Using online skills assessment tools
c) Creating a comprehensive skills list:
• Categorising skills (e.g., technical, communication, leadership)
• Ranking skills based on proficiency level
• Identifying skills gaps for your target role
d) Matching skills to job market demands:
• Researching in-demand skills in your industry
• Identifying transferable skills for career transitions
• Planning for skill development and upskilling
2. Identifying Your Core Values and How They Relate to Your Career
a) Understanding personal values:
• Definition and importance of values in career satisfaction
• Common workplace values (e.g., creativity, stability, autonomy)
• How values influence career choices and job satisfaction
b) Methods for identifying personal values:
• Value assessment exercises
• Reflecting on peak experiences and sources of fulfilment
• Examining sources of frustration or dissatisfaction in past roles
c) Aligning values with career choices:
• Researching company cultures and missions
• Evaluating potential roles against personal values
• Addressing potential conflicts between values and career options
d) Communicating values in job search:
• Incorporating values into your personal brand
• Discussing values in interviews
• Using values to guide decision-making in job offers
3. Understanding Your Work Style and Ideal Work Environment
a) Aspects of work style to consider:
• Preferred level of structure vs. flexibility
• Collaborative vs. independent work preferences
• Comfort with risk and ambiguity
• Pace of work and ability to multitask
b) Elements of work environment:
• Physical space (open plan, private office, remote)
• Organisational culture (formal, casual, innovative)
• Management style (hands-on, autonomous)
• Work schedule and work-life balance expectations
c) Assessing past work experiences:
• Identifying elements that contributed to job satisfaction
• Recognising aspects of work environments that were challenging
• Understanding how work style preferences have evolved over time
d) Matching work style to potential opportunities:
• Researching company cultures and work environments
• Asking relevant questions during interviews
• Considering work style compatibility in job offer evaluations
4. Setting SMART Career Goals
a) Understanding SMART criteria:
• Specific: Clearly defined and unambiguous
• Measurable: Quantifiable or able to demonstrate clear progress
• Achievable: Realistic and attainable given your current situation
• Relevant: Aligned with your overall career aspirations and values
• Time-bound: With a clear deadline or timeframe
b) Types of career goals:
• Short-term goals (3-6 months)
• Medium-term goals (1-2 years)
• Long-term goals (3-5 years and beyond)
c) Developing SMART goals:
• Starting with a broad career aspiration
• Breaking down larger goals into smaller, actionable steps
• Ensuring goals are challenging yet achievable
• Aligning goals with industry trends and opportunities
d) Strategies for achieving goals:
• Creating action plans for each goal
• Identifying potential obstacles and mitigation strategies
• Establishing accountability measures
• Regularly reviewing and adjusting goals as needed
5. Creating a Personal Career Vision Statement
a) Purpose of a career vision statement:
• Providing long-term direction and motivation
• Aligning daily actions with broader career aspirations
• Guiding decision-making in job search and career development
b) Elements of an effective vision statement:
• Future-oriented perspective
• Alignment with personal values and strengths
• Inspirational and motivating language
• Clarity and conciseness
c) Steps to create a career vision statement:
• Reflecting on long-term career aspirations
• Incorporating key elements of ideal role, industry, and impact
• Drafting and refining the statement
• Seeking feedback from mentors or trusted colleagues
d) Using your vision statement:
• As a compass for career decisions
• To guide your personal branding efforts
• In networking and interview discussions
• For regular self-reflection and goal alignment
Complete a comprehensive self-assessment, including a skills inventory, values assessment, and work style questionnaire. Use these insights to create three SMART career goals and a personal career vision statement.
1. Skills Inventory:
◦ Create a comprehensive list of your skills, categorised into hard skills, soft skills, and adaptive skills
◦ Rate your proficiency in each skill on a scale of 1-5
◦ Identify the top 5 skills you believe are most valuable for your target role/industry
2. Values Assessment:
◦ Complete a values assessment exercise (e.g., card sort, online assessment)
◦ List your top 5 work-related values
◦ Write a brief paragraph on how these values have influenced your career choices so far
3. Work Style Reflection:
◦ Describe your ideal work environment in detail, considering aspects like physical space, culture, management style, and schedule
◦ Reflect on a past work experience where you felt most productive and engaged. What elements of that environment contributed to your success?
4. SMART Goal Setting:
◦ Develop three SMART career goals:
▪ One short-term goal (3-6 months)
▪ One medium-term goal (1-2 years)
▪ One long-term goal (3-5 years)
◦ For each goal, outline at least three specific actions you'll take to achieve it
5. Career Vision Statement:
◦ Write a personal career vision statement (100-150 words) that encapsulates your long-term career aspirations, values, and desired impact
6. Synthesis and Reflection:
◦ Write a brief reflection (300-400 words) on how the insights from this self-assessment will inform your job search strategy
◦ Identify any areas where you feel you need further development or clarity
By completing this comprehensive self-assessment, you'll gain valuable insights into your skills, values, work preferences, and career aspirations. This self-awareness will serve as a foundation for your job search strategy, helping you target opportunities that align with your strengths and goals.