“Career planning is important because you don’t want to go with the wind; you want to follow your dreams and ‘now’ is a better time than ‘later’. Twelfth standard is a crucial time of your life as most of the competitive exams are held after the plus two boards.” – Suman Das, B.Com Hons
As new job advertorials are popping up every day, it is quite difficult to choose what you want to do in your career. You could be a puppeteer, a tea -taster, an artist, a pet groomer, a food flavorist or a food chemist and the list goes on!
You might ask how to know what to do after your plus two board exams. This is why you need the help of an expert for career planning. According to Livemint, about 10% of the population opts for jobs in fields which they study; the other 90% go for jobs they don’t even know about or startups.
What is career planning?
To quote the Business dictionary, career planning is defined as the, “Structured exercise was undertaken to identify one’s objectives, marketable skills, strengths, and weaknesses, etc., as a part of one’s career management.”
Career planning is done through career counselling. This helps students after their plus two examinations to decide between the various career opportunities which are now available so that later on they don’t regret or are unhappy with their career decisions.
Why is career planning so important?
Having a career path is like having a professional insurance policy. With a career path you will probably:
- Have a broader skill base: You will have identified and learned the skills necessary to make you more attractive to a wider range of employers.
- Make logical job transitions: You will know what skills and responsibilities to look for in the next job.
- Have increasing responsibility: You will have identified and gained the skills and training you need to take on more responsibility.
- Have a broader prospective: You will be able to understand where a specific job or responsibility fits into your overall career path plans.
- Make decisions easier: You can look at a situation within a larger context and better evaluate your options.
- Earn more: You are less likely to be underpaid since your career research will tell you what you should be earning.
- Be more satisfied: You will be moving in a career direction that is designed to meet your lifestyle, interest and financial goals.
How important are marks when it comes to career?
This is quite a controversial topic. Some say that marks are quite important in a student’s life as they determine their studying capability or are a measuring rod for intellect in a student. Then, there are some who say that marks cannot define the student’s intellect. I would like to discuss the ways which states that marks don’t really matter in an individual’s life.
Here are 2 reasons which states that the marks don’t matter in an individual’s life:
1. Marks are not a high score table
Marks measure a number of things, but primarily they (should) measure whether you can demonstrate that you have learned key principles covered in the course.
2. Effort does not equal success
You can spend twice as much time as somebody else on a project, and still get lower marks. Some people are naturally good at things, and for others it takes a long time.
Read Also: How important is one’s class 12th result?
Career Planning Stages:
Your career path needs to reflect your goals and needs. As your life unfolds, you will probably find that you need to rethink your career path and make whatever changes are necessary and arrange them accordingly
- Ages 16 to 21: During this time, your career choices are usually influenced by your parents, teachers or close friends. You may decide on a career that does not require a degree. If you seek higher education, your choices of interest at technical schools and colleges are also influenced by a group of people. You usually have minimal contact with people who can give you input on the full array of career opportunities available and show you the ground reality of the situation.
- Ages 22 to 34: These are the beginning years in the career that you chose in your late teens or while you were in technical school or college. You start to get exposed to the challenges, skills and realities of the career. This is also the point that your life may intersect with a person who will become your life partner. His or her opinion of your chosen career path may come into play. If you are a woman, you may make the choice to become a stay at home mom and continue some aspect of your career from home. All of this input may be the catalyst for you to reinforce, or rethink your chosen career path.
Read Also: Importance of Planning Your Career Path
Growth of off-beat jobs and entrepreneurship in India
An entrepreneur is a person who develops a new idea and takes the risk of setting up an enterprise to produce a product or service which satisfies customer needs. All entrepreneurs are business persons, but not all business persons are entrepreneurs.
Rapid economic has resulted since the removal of the license raj. For instance, the Indian economy has sustained an average growth rate of over 6% annually, with the gross domestic product or GDP being around 9.2 % between 2006 and 2007. In the past decade, India’s GDP has also arisen from 21 % to 33 %, and India’s foreign exchange reserves have reached over $200 billion. Domestic markets have also grown substantially to support innovation. Worldwide, India’s vast economic success is recognized by many national and international corporations who have not only taken advantage of its pool of high-quality scientific talent but have also established many research and development facilities (R&D) cited.
“Like when you have all the skills but do not know which way to go, career planning is needed. Suppose you know how to play football but do not know whether you are a good forward player or a good defense player, the coach directs you in the way you are best at playing. Like that career planning helps you channelize your talents and skills into one proper direction.” – Mani Mohan Chandra, advocate and parent.
It is that time of the year when you are torn between choices and you have to decide your career and goals for future. So don’t be hesitant, be fearless and be there on the 30th of April at iLead Kolkata to witness an attractive session by one of the best counselors in the town Pervin Malhotra.
Written By Sampurna Chandra and Progya Baul
Edited and Compiled by Saimantick Bhadra and Subhadrika Sen
Graphics provided by ILEAD Kolkata.