Choosing a career path while still at college

If you are unaware of the direction of your career movement, you will never be able to discern your position at any given time. And when your career journey finishes, you will be as lost ever. When you select a career, it implies getting down to know what you are and what is suited for you in the long run. In other words, you play a game where reality is pitched against your penchants. The good part of the game is that you can play it while still at college.

It is necessary that you understand that every career is arched and you happen to be located at the beginning of the curve. There is every possibility that your career path will change not once, but many a times in your career journey. Therefore, selecting one, particularly when you are still at college is a little difficult. But it is not totally beyond you. There are certain deliberations and actions that you must indulge in; they are explicated below:

• Do not succumb to influences out to shatter your dreams. Your dreams may be difficult and therefore, you must have in place a strong support structure for their fructification. It is also necessary to have alternative plans at hand. The aspirations and ambitions that you harbour could well be different from your dream job. It is essential that you understand the professional nuances of your dream job well so that at a later stage, you do not become disenchanted, particularly if you convert any of your hobbies into one. If you have passion for a particular job, by all means go for it. However, you must make certain that your choice should not lay on the line anybody – and that anybody also includes you. 
• You may have taken jobs in your vacations or may still be working part-time. They are all experiences in learning and hence you must ponder over how you can make optimum use of them to make your resume attractive and augment your work skills. Getting to decide on your career path calls for taking time out of your free time and taking up either apprenticeship training or honorary jobs that offer you an insight of a particular profession. It is only practical exposure that will provide you a better comprehension of a job; theoretical knowledge gained through other means, though helpful is not effectual.
• You need to find out if you want to work independently or if you are disposed to work in return for a regular remuneration. This calls for sincere introspection to discern your personality traits as also the pros and cons pertinent to both the possibilities. In particular, you should know the risks involved if you invest money in a venture where you are the whole sole boss or in the eventuality of being removed from a job.
• You simply cannot stay aloof from family influences because your near and dear ones will be concerned about you and will offer advice on how to go about doing things. Rather than talking about career issues perfunctorily with others, you should do so with deliberation and in a formal manner. Time should be allocated for the purpose so that everybody deliberates with due seriousness and offers useful suggestions. In every likelihood, your folks will talk based on individual experiences.
• There is no place for or role of good fortune and providence in any career. Therefore you should not waste time in pondering over such influences because professional success calls for placing yourself on a pedestal to generate your own prospects.  As you advance in your career, you will encounter great opportunities and good prospects. At that stage, you will need people who are trustworthy for their advice and mentorship so that you can act without hesitation and be able to assess the opportunities ahead of you for their true potential. 
• Another important thing is the information about you in public domain. You cannot remain blind to it and this implies sprucing up your listings on the social media. You may not realise it, but it is significant to understand that any bit of information available publicly has the potential of adversely impacting your impending work. 

It is necessary that you do not relegate to a lower position the need to plan well for your future. If you plan and prepare well, your performance will be better. It also needs to be understood that the best of objectives will remain mere imaginative aspirations in the absence of a fervour and passion to accomplish them.