“We are each gifted in a unique and important way. It is our privilege and our adventure to discover our own special light.” -- Mary Dunbar
Facilitating a conversation about career paths with a youth can be challenging. Often kids have an extremely
hard time coming up with an answer to the question, “What do you want to do when you grow up?” Some have
known “forever” what they want to be, while others have no idea what possibilities exist for them. Remember
that choosing a career can take a lot of time and exploration, and seldom is an individual’s first choice of
career what they eventually end up doing. Additionally, most people will have 3-5 careers over their
lifetime.
The focus of career planning is not to force one career choice, rather to come up with several options to
explore. As adults, we are full of many “truths” garnered from our life experience. When coaching a youth
through the career planning process, your initial role is to put your personal values and preconceived ideas
on the back burner and LISTEN to what the youth is thinking. Their ideas may come easily, or you may have to
work very hard to draw them out.
We’ve broken down some simple messages about career planning that can get you started on this important
conversation.
Take a moment to read over the document labeled Career Planning
Messages . Try to come up with some stories from your own your experience that make these messages
come to life for the youth.
Have your mentee complete the exercise entitled Envisioning
Your Future . Ask them to imagine what they would like people to say about them later in life. It
might be a fun bonding experience for you to complete this exercise as well, and share your
responses.
The Career Exploration
Tool begins to get more specific about likes and dislikes related to careers. Based on this
exercise, did any new career themes come up? As a mentor, what types of jobs do you think of when you think
of this individual? Add any new ideas to the list of career paths to consider.
In addition to this exercise, you might ask the youth to talk to their trusted friends and allies, to see
what others believe that their talents, strengths, and goals are. Thinking about strengths and talents can
be helpful in narrowing down the best career options.
The website www.cacareerzone.org is a great tool that can assist you with exploring career options. There is another simple assessment tool, labeled “Assess Yourself” that can help get the conversation rolling. Learn about jobs that fit the youth’s interest areas and explore the career ideas that their peers and allies have suggested. This website provides information about salary, educational requirements, occupational outlook, work environment, and skills required for various positions. Many of the jobs listed also have a short video about the specific position.