Career Decision Making

Career decision making is a dynamic and ongoing process where your knowledge of self, your values, interests, temperament, financial needs, physical work requirements or limitations, etc., the effects of past experiences, new information, and changes in your life situation and environment all intertwine.

It requires constant review of decisions already made and consideration of decisions yet to be made.

Good career decision making requires you to engage in a process that requires you to:

1. examine and recognize personal values
2. identify, gather, and use relevant information.
3. understand and use an effective strategy for converting information into action.

Each career decision is limited by what you are capable of now or in the future, by your ability to identify alternatives, and by what you are willing to do.
Skillful career decision making requires you to be focused, flexible and open to new learning.

The following guidelines and questions to keep in mind to help you with decision making.

1. Define the problem. State the real problem, not the surface problem. State the problem in specific terms, as a question.
2. State the goal clearly. What outcome do you want from this decision?
3. List the initial alternative solutions. Which are the safe ones? Which require risk? What are the outcomes of each solution?
4. Collect information and expand the list of alternatives. What kind of information do need? Where can you obtain it? Is it relevant to the problem? list additional solutions or options.
5. Compare several alternatives with what you know about yourself, your values, your commitments to others, your resources, and your constraints.
6. Take action on your choice. How can you implement your choice? What action can you take now? What action can you take later?
7. Review your choice periodically.
8. Take a new decision based on new situations.

Credit: http://www.careernet.state.md.us