Career – Find Direction

We help you find the clarity you need to follow your passion and do what you’d rather be doing

There you are in the middle of a rapidly changing economy wondering where your professional aspirations belong – trying to keep up with your peers, impress your parents or make a living that you can be proud of. But, you aren’t sure if you’re headed in the right direction or whether you have any direction at all. You would probably be frustrated by imminent thoughts that force you to face the reality that you can’t seem to find a career path that enthuses you. Or, something meaningful that speaks to your core. Even with obstacles along the way, you would prefer for your career to feel less like the actual obstacle.

“I graduated when I was 21. I’m now 28, and have had six jobs. To date, I’ve found no fulfilment from any of them,” shares Kea Marumo.

“I’m far from stupid. I’ve always been ambitious, wanted to support myself and dreamt of being part of something big. But so far, the companies I’ve worked for have pushed my true potential aside for menial work. Sometimes, they’ve made it seem like the roles they were offering were exciting and my voice would be heard, but it wasn’t. The disappointment has been unbearable, and all these roles are starting to make me look like a serial job-hopper. But, I’ve gained some really good skills along the way. I really want to keep my head up, but I’m struggling to figure out how to get a job that truly resonates with me or whether I should just start a business,” she adds. Marumo is not alone in this. Many people struggle with finding their career path. Undeniably, there are those select few that know what they want to do from the get-go. But, many others have to work at it. So, if you’re frustrated or beating yourself up for such confusion, stop right there. Instead, lean on new directions offered by modern-day options and solutions.

A LACK OF DIRECTION

Let’s start with what career directionless looks like. According to CEO of Hesed Consulting and career

coach Vumile Msweli, being directionless in your career is categorised by lacking a strategy and plan. In this state, your career is happening to you and you’re responding; you’re not strategically mapping it out. During this time, you’re likely to be reacting to opportunities as they arise as opposed to purposefully creating them. For example, you’ll celebrate getting a job, whether you’ll like it or not, instead of being able to reject a job offer because it does not resonate with the strategy and plan you’ve put into place for your career trajectory. JOB-HOPPING

This is still frowned upon, says entrepreneur, speaker and founding director of Luelle Consulting Lushia van Buuren. However, you’re not a tree and times have changed. It’s not easy to settle in the process of searching for your purpose, especially within companies that suppress your other talents by keeping you focused on one role, she says.

People value their time more, and hold organisations accountable to their value propositions and the diversity in the workplace. Over the years, younger people have become more intentional and brave enough to take the leaps needed to pursue all their interests. Although it doesn’t look great on paper, it’s valuable to human lives, Van Buuren says. So, the best way around the stigma of job-hopping is to focus on the skills that you’re learning. Those cannot be taken away from you. VARIOUS DIRECTIONS TO EXPLORE

According to Caroline Castrillon’s article on Forbes.com, What To Do When You Lack Career Direction, careers are no longer linear while moving up the corporate ladder is not the only formula for success. When it comes to career moves, you’ve got options – from lateral to realignment or enrichment.

Castrillon defines them; lateral is when you change your job, but not so much your salary range and the responsibilities. Realignment is forfeiting the high salary, status and current responsibilities to take on something that will be more rewarding in the long term. Enrichment involves growing the career you already have. Van Buuren adds that many people often neglect using the opportunity to learn what new roles they can explore in their current workplaces.

It’s best to start where you are, through exploring the various departments your company has to offer, she advises. Look at the office as a learning space rather than merely a place for work. This way, you can dabble in a few of the roles or shadow the people in them to see if you enjoy them. It’s much easier than trying to pivot with no experience. More excitingly, it creates the potential for you to merge your already existing role with what you learn, and aids you with being more innovative or creating a new role altogether.

LET YOUR SKILLS DO THE TALKING

It’s very common to gauge your career according to how loyal you’ve been to a company, the amount of money you make, the awards you win, your promotions and salary or title.

However, the groundwork to all of that are the skills you use to achieve these ideals. Stay cognisant that your career is, in fact, defined by the skills you have and how you use them. If you focus on using and improving your skills to start a business, impact your organisation, and the world if you may, the accolades become a by-product.

TRAPPED BY QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPECTATIONS

Keeping in mind that you are far more skilled than you assume is really important. When you’re feeling doubtful or anxious, acknowledge the skills that have gotten you this far. Remember that the technical skills that qualifications give you are the ability to problem-solve from a particular school of thought, Msweli says.

For example, studying accounting with the belief that you’re going to become a Chartered Accountant is no longer pertinent. Corporates are now looking for people with the rich ability to solve a problem through the diversity in their school of thought. This enables you to solve modern-day problems more innovatively. Organisations or the success of your own projects will rely heavily on what value you bring from the problem-solving skills you’re equipped with from your chosen school of thought, skills and experiences more than the study itself.