Tips to help you find the career path best suited for you

One of the first questions you may have asked yourself during the end of your high school and at the start of your college life is “Which career will be right for me?”

It is no doubt one of the most important questions of your grownup life, one that will shape what you do in future. Selecting the right career path will bring you job satisfaction as well as happiness and success, and will help you move ahead in the field you are meant to be in.

But how do you know which career you are best suited for? Is it only by the grades you get at school and college, or something that you feel interests you the most, or is it a mix of both – something that you love doing and something for which you already have the skills, or can build your skills?

While there are many people who find their true calling by listening to their hearts, here are a few tips that can help you take a more focused approach to finding what career path will best suit you, and what you are best suited for.

1. Taking a career test online: There are various websites that have online career tests, very similar to online aptitude tests that will give you a fair idea of your interests and the level of skills that you have. While these results may not always be a hundred percent accurate, they will still be very close to what you are meant to do in your career, and give you some perspective on the various fields you can take a look at.

2. Jot down your skill sets: Before you decide what is good for you and what you are good at, sit down and jot down the skills that you have. Not just that, in addition to writing down what you are already good at, jot down what other skills you are interested in and what you feel you can get some training or experience in.

3. Focus on what you want: What do you want to achieve from the work? Do you want to be in a kind of work role that may not pay you that much, but lets you connect more with people on a daily basis and interact with them directly? Would you want to work for an NGO, or work with children or the elderly, even if the pay is not something great? Or do you want a fancy lifestyle with the best of luxuries and amenities, and want a job that can sustain your expensive tastes? Once you figure out what it is that you really want from the job, you will have a better idea of what you are looking for. It will also help you understand your own emotions and thoughts so that you can channelize your energies in the right direction – be it social service or creating your own fortune.

4. Understand your limitations: Just as you have to think about your strengths and positives in order to understand which career you are best suited for, in a similar way, you will also have to give equal importance to your limitations so that you can have a good match and know which career choices you have to opt out of. For instance, you may be in love with the aviation industry, but you do not want to travel, or have some physical issues that you know will not allow you to be on a flight in a professional capacity. This means that you cannot apply for the job of a crew. However, if you are as passionate about the airline industry, you can apply for ground jobs and various roles that will let you be a part of the industry, but also allow you to stay away from the limitations you have.