Meredith ShearsCareers consultant

RCH Forum

A Career is all the paid and unpaid roles you do throughout your life: life roles, leisure, learning, & work

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What is a Career?

Your Future: How many of you…

… knew at 16 years of age what you wanted to pursue?

… are doing now what you thought you wanted to do when you were 16?

… made important career decisions based on researching and reading labour market information?

… are where you are now, at least in part, because of a chance encounter or unplanned event?

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Source: “Lasting Gifts”Canadian Career Development Foundation

High 5 Career Development Messages

1. Change is Constant

2. Learning is Ongoing

3. Focus on the Journey

4. Follow your Heart

5. Access your Allies

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNHcXl4IbZQ&lr=1

Source: Career Industry Council of Australia

* Developed in 1995 by Canadian career development leaders

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The Changing World-of-Work

What will work be like for young people in Australia today?

Minimum of 7 careers in a lifetime

Follow your heart

Focus on the journey

Use your networks

Lifelong learning

What was work like for you growing up?

• Could you expect to stay in the one job?

• Were you able to choose the job you did?

• Were you able to change jobs easily?

• Were you able to ask for help and advice?

• Did you have to study, and keep learning?

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Change is Constant

Did You Know…?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PcZg51Il9no

Source: Karl Fisch

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Learning is Ongoing

Source: VCAA

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Senior Secondary School Pathways:

Focus on the Journey

• Don’t focus on one destination only

• Know what you want, but don’t be too sure

• Be open to changing your mind

• Recognise that your career journey will be throughout your lifetime

• Appreciate and value each experience along the way

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dupKoaFgqGY&lr=1

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Access your Allies

Source: Bezanson & Hopkins

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GeFQjVP-Vxc&lr=1

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Follow your heartImportant attributes for young people

• Persistence• Resilience

I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed. - Michael Jordan

The best way to predict the future is to create it. - Abraham Lincoln

Desire! That’s the one secret of every man’s career. Not education. Not being born with hidden talents. Desire. - Bobby Unser

• Enterprise

• Drive

For parents - broaden ideas for work and career paths

Encourage:• open-mindedness• and discuss their passions and where

they could lead• learning, we are always learning in many

different ways• the possibilities and be positive• flexibility• exploring (research information)• www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9KawhtfORI

Source: “School A to Z”NSW GovernmentEducation & Communities11

Be a Good Listener

• Give your full attention– Stop what you are doing

• Don’t interrupt– Let your teenager speak

• Stay as calm as you can– If you’re caught off-guard by what they

are saying, breath deeply• Listen for emotions

– Hear what they are saying beneath the words

• Give it time– Don’t rush in with your response

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Next Steps for parents

Network• Use your networks to give your child opportunities

to experience and explore different things.

Use labour market information• Be aware of the shifting labour market and be

predictive about what that may mean for future opportunities.

Be an ally• Support your teenager on their journey and

remind them, and yourself, that is it okay to be uncertain.

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What is myfuture?

Australia’s national online career information and exploration service

It includes: • career-related information and resources• resources for personal career exploration• resources for parents and the career

development community

• Is a personalised career exploration service

• Suggested occupations, exploration activities, goal-setting tools

• Guest users/account registration • Over 1 million registered users• System saves data even for accounts

that are inactive for long periods of time

My career profile

• Information about jobs and their education and training pathways in Australia

• Online and updated annually• information about how to work out what

occupations suit you best, based on your interests and abilities.

• You can search through 1500 occupations, specialisations and alternative job names

• Has useful contact addresses under each entry so that you can find out more detailed information about the occupation.

The Job Guide

Helping to Set Goals and Plans

School careers advisers can help students develop:

Career Action Plans:• use the three stages of career

development:– self-development;– career exploration; and– career management.

• help young people to:– set their goals;– clarify the actions needed to

achieve these goals; and– commit to participating in the

planned activities.

SAMPLE

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More Assistance

• Visit the DET webpage on Career Conversations

• Career Conversations is an online resource to assist you to talk to your child about what sort of career they’d like in the future. Talking to your child about their own interests and abilities can help them to realise their potential.

• www.education.vic.gov.au/careerconversations

• Talk with your careers adviser or other teachers and well being staff