Determining Your Next Career

(3-Step Process | Resources) By Michele Newhouse (revised 2015.09.24) What are you able to do? What interests you? What do employers need?

Obviously, your ideal career would be one that fits oh-so-nicely in the middle, where those three areas

intersect. To start identifying job titles that align with all three, try this 3-step process.

1. List your abilities

Not sure what they are? Ask former co-workers, bosses, vendors, friends and family members,

“What do you feel are my strengths?” Pull words describing skills from your last job description.

Think about when others told you, “You’re a natural at that!” Google “resume skill list” and jot

down applicable skills from lists you find online.

2. Circle the abilities that interest you

Circle anything you enjoy doing on your list of abilities. (And, if it makes you feel better, cross

off things you don’t like to do!)

3. Find job descriptions that align with your circled abilities

Compare your circled skills (the abilities that interest you) with the skills needed by employers

by reviewing job postings that have snagged your attention. If you are having trouble finding

job postings that align with your circled abilities, use this exercise.

a) Visit a job board aggregator like www.Indeed.com or www.SimplyHired.com.

b) Search for jobs by using your list of circled abilities (skills that you want to use in the future)

Employer needs

Your interests

Your abilities

as key words, while leaving the location field blank.

c) Explore job postings shown in the results for possible career options.

Still struggling to figure out what you want to do for a living?

Check out www.MyNextMove.org, an interactive tool for job seekers and students to learn more about

career options. The site provides tasks, skills, salary information, and more for over 900 different

careers. Users can find careers through keyword search or by browsing industries that employ different

types of workers. From the home page, you’ll also find a tool that will suggest career options based on

how you answer a series of questions about your interests and work experience!

Need additional assistance in determining your career direction? Reach out to Michele Newhouse at

www.covenantpro.com for assistance.