How uncovering your passion can help you select the right college/career path
By Marcy Morrison, Careers with Wings
and
Liam Dunfey, University Advisors/Admission Specialists
The college application season is here! This can be an exciting
time for many, but for others, this is a time filled with uncertainty
and anxiety. The questions range from how do I chose the right
college to why am I even going to college to I have no idea what I
want to study.
To make this journey less overwhelming, take the time to uncover your
passion and strengths by asking yourself the following questions:
1. What do you love to do?
2. What comes naturally to you?
3. When are you the most happy?
4. Are there any job and volunteering opportunities that you loved or
maybe pieces of them and why?
5. What did you always dream about doing when you were a child?
6. What would you do if you believed that anything is possible?
7. When have you experienced successes and what were the common
factors involved?
By getting clear and focused on your passion and strengths, you become
filled with energy, enthusiasm, and confidence, making you a much more
attractive candidate for the work force and in the college selection
process. As a Career Strategist, Marcy Morrison has experienced this
often when working with students and young professionals who have gone
from having a "deer in the headlights" look to experiencing a shift to
clarity, purpose and direction, which of course makes applying to
college and looking for a job a more enjoyable process.
Once you are clear on why you want to go to college, the next step
involved is considering which college best suits your goals and
personality. When starting out a lot of families are struck by the
complexities of the college admissions process. Many families have
sticker shock mentality with the costs of higher education continuing
to double or triple the rate of inflation! How can you get leverage in
the process? Ask yourself:
1. If you were to go on a college tour, what types of questions should you ask?
2. Do I need high test scores to get into top colleges?
3. What types of support systems do I want while I'm in college? Will
a small, medium, or larger sized institution tailor to my needs?
4. Is getting in is the most important consideration when planning for college?
Liam Dunfey has come across many high school students and families
that equate brand name institutions such as the Ivy League's and UC's
with prestige, status, and guaranteed success after graduation. Liam
is anti-brand. Right fit institutions set students up for happiness
and personal and career growth – this is about selecting the right
college for you. There are several key reasons why a student should
not apply to or enroll at a particular institution: its reputation,
because someone you knew went to/is going to that school, or because
it's close to home. Where you attend college is not the key to
success. What you get from the education is. The best education comes
from the schools that match your educational and social needs. The
notion that the brand-name schools can guarantee high salaries and
satisfying careers for all their graduates is a scam.
From a financial point of view, it's pretty simple. A graduate from a
four-year university can expect to earn almost 75% more over a 40 year
period than a high school graduate earns over the same period. Moving
forward, Marcy and Liam encourage you to look at the college
experience as an investment, not an expense and suggest choosing a
college that best matches your personality, passion, goals and
strengths.
Liam Dunfey has worked for four southern California universities:
University of San Diego, Loyola Marymount University, San Diego State
University, and the University of California, San Diego. Currently, he
works for Drew University (NJ) as its Southern California Admissions
Officer and lives in San Diego. Liam graduated from Elmira College
(NY) and earned a graduate degree from the University of Maryland in
Higher Education Administration. He enjoys working with students of
all ages and their families by offering timely and wise assistance for
each student in the process of considering appropriate colleges to
apply to and attend. He is one of three advisors in University
Advisors/Admission Specialists ( www.AdmissionSpecialists.com).
Marcy Morrison, Careers with Wings (www.careerswithwings.com) is a
Career Strategist that is passionate about helping others uncover
their passion and developing a plan for success. In addition to
working with her clients, Marcy is currently consulting with the
University of California, San Diego (UCSD) Alumni Association to
develop a comprehensive career benefits program. Marcy received her
Master's Degree in International Management/Latin America from the
Graduate School of International Relations/Pacific Studies (IR/PS) at
the UCSD and her Bachelor's Degree in International Affairs/Spanish
from James Madison University in Virginia.
Marcy and Liam do frequent speaking engagements and workshops together
and are passionate about helping others with their career path and
selecting appropriate colleges to apply to and attend. Marcy and
Liam help students find their passion and use their skills and natural
talents in high school, college, and beyond.
Top 5 Tips to Finding Your Dream Job in Your 20s
By Marcy Morrison
Your dream job is out there and waiting but how do you find it? In your 20’s you may be lacking in experience, but take your passion, enthusiasm and energy and make it happen by following these 5 tips.
1. Uncover what you love to do and what are your strengths. You don’t need to wait until your 40s to have a mid-life crisis wishing that you did what you wanted to do when you first started out. Do what you want to do by finding a way to make it happen. This may require making sacrifices, getting additional training, and going the extra mile. The key here is to do what YOU want to do – not what your parents, society, friends and others want you do. Get clear on what you want to accomplish and become the expert on marketing and selling yourself. Remember when you are genuinely passionate about your career path – your energy and enthusiasm will attract the necessary resources and people you need to find your dream job.
For example, Jesse Smith, age 23, is a talented musician and lead singer for The Pheromones (http://pheromonesmusic.com/). Jesse is doing what it takes to make his dream a reality by working in a coffee shop to support himself while he and his band play their gigs and build a following in San Diego. Does that mean sometimes Jesse works around the clock? Yes, but all of the sacrifices and hard work are worth it to Jesse since he already is living his dream and he is confident that his dedication and merit will be rewarded.
Also take into consideration that all of us are naturally talented in certain areas. Take the time to think about what comes naturally to you and where you excel. Leveraging your strengths is the key to overcoming the hurdles of not having that much experience. Once you are clear on your strengths, you will be more confident in marketing and selling yourself.
2. Trust Your Gut/Believe in Yourself. Get clear on what truly makes you feel excited and what kind of work would make you jump out of bed with energy and enthusiasm ready to start your day. Trust what answers come to you and go in that direction. There are many people that will tell you that what you want to do isn’t possible. Learn how to block them out and keep moving towards your dream. After graduation, my dream was to work in Latin America saving the world. I graduated in the middle of a recession, so I constantly heard that not only was I not going to find my dream job, I would be lucky to find any job. I didn’t let that discourage me, I stayed focused on my dream and after pounding pavement for three months, I landed my dream job with the Inter-American Foundation doing grassroots development work in El Salvador.
Are you finding yourself passionate about something other than the subject that you majored in and feeling stressed that you may be
throwing away four years of hard work? Don't fret - it is more important
to follow your passion than force yourself to work into a field that you studied and that maybe you are now less passionate about.
For example, Ruthi Bozman-Moss, age 23, saw several choices in front of her that included career options in the area of her major, which was international studies, or following her other passions in life, which consisted of helping people in the areas of health and wellness. She trusted her gut, which kept directing her towards activities which she previously thought were simply hobbies and personal activities. Now she absolutely loves her job as a Wellness Coach for an alternative health care company. The greatest part is that Ruthi is able to have her cake and eat it too by serving as the President of Young Professionals for International Cooperation (a networking group for young people interested in global affairs and international cooperation) and thus keeps her passion for work in the international field alive.
3. Networking: This is vital to finding your dream job. I can attest to this since all of my jobs have come through networking. A lot of times, attending events can be expensive but a critical way to meet people in your dream field. Contact the event organizer and see if they need volunteers and if so, take advantage of this golden networking opportunity. Another fantastic place to network is via your Alma Mater’s Alumni Network. Contact your school for more information on how to connect with alumni in your dream field.
When networking, make sure you can articulate what you want to do and what you have to offer in a 30 second presentation. People don’t have time to listen to long-winded stories. Plus you never know when this 30 second pitch may be useful. For example, during undergrad, my dream was to work at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York City and I made it a point to let everyone know that with my 30 second pitch (sometimes it helps to have a big mouth) and next thing I knew a professor at my school was friends with the President of the Council of Foreign Relations and wrote a letter on my behalf. It was the key for me landing my dream internship.
Allie Herson, age 21, a recent graduate from the University of California, San Diego is leveraging an important step to getting a dream job, which is finding a key internship. During a session with Allie, we determined that her passion was working in women’s global policy issues and as a result, Allie set out on her quest to find the best way to reach this goal. Currently, Allie is interning with the State Commission on the Status of Women with a lobbyist working on women's issues, which represents an outstanding opportunity for Allie to network and gain valuable information that will lead her to her dream job. Allie is already researching her next step, which is to attend law school so she can represent women who lack the ability to do so.
4. Build a Support Team. Looking for a job can be discouraging at times and for this reason, it is vital that you surround yourself with a support team of positive people that believe in you.
Find a mentor via your networking or seek out someone who is successful in your dream job field. If you are unable to find a mentor, consider hiring a professional coach to help you achieve your dreams. Mentors and coaches are crucial in helping you in many different areas including uncovering areas of weaknesses and providing suggestions on how to overcome them. In addition, seek out inspirational people who have accomplished feats that you thought were impossible. Reading biographies can serve as valuable information and can give you a roadmap of how to achieve your dreams. For example, reading “Leaving Microsoft to Change the World” by John Wood (
http://www.leavingmicrosoftbook.com/) was a huge inspiration for me and proved to me that anything is possible when your heart is in the right place, you follow your gut/dreams, seek out/focus on solutions and dream big. Check in regularly with people that truly believe in you and support you to keep you on track and your confidence up.
5. Set Goals/Get Organized: To ensure success in finding your dream job, you need to stay focused and organized. This is a great area to leverage the support of your mentor or coach who can keep you accountable for the goals that you have set. Create a tracking system with concrete goals including when you need to find your job and determine what steps you are going to take to make that happen.
Now its time to put this plan into action – don’t hesitate, your dream job is waiting. And remember: "Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you'll be a success." -- Albert Schweitzer, humanitarian
Marcy Morrison, Career Strategist, has created a personalized and unique approach to help others find their dream jobs. She can be reached via email marcy@marcymorrison.com or by visiting her website www.marcymorrison.com