Awareness and independence in career choice

Choosing a career consciously means comparing, before deciding, your own abilities, the needs of society and the country and the demands of the occupation. For this three things must be considered: the region’s and country’s need for workers, how well the occupation’s demands fit your interest, inclination, abilities and health, and the working conditions (workplace, schedule, noise, dust, loads and so on). Independence means making the decision yourself instead of someone else; but it is not stubbornness. An independent person listens to experienced people — a parent, a teacher, a class head, a specialist of a career guidance centre — accepts useful ideas and does not rush to conclusions. Self-assessment is hard: people often rate themselves either too low or too high. A low rating throws away opportunities, while a high one leads to disagreement in a team. So it helps to test yourself in real work, to keep a diary of thoughts and to hear others’ objective views. Technology is renewed quickly, so in any occupation one must keep studying and updating knowledge throughout life.