Career development is considered a process of job selection, skill improvement, and advancement along a career path. It is a lifelong, continuous process of learning and making decisions that bring you closer to your ideal job, skill set, and lifestyle.
What is Career Development?
Career development is the process of self-awareness, exploration, and decision-making that shapes your career path. Successfully navigating your career choices requires selecting and training for jobs that fit your personality, skills, and interests.
When a person pays significant attention to developing their career, they identify their own strengths and weaknesses and then work hard to improve their skills. It also involves recognizing different roles and industries to find a match for their capabilities, seeking advancement opportunities, and perhaps even changing jobs if they find a more suitable position.
How Does Career Development Work?
Career development can start very early when a person is just learning about different ways to earn a living. It is part of human development, and this work can continue throughout life.
For example, when a child observes that there are people working as doctors, firefighters, or mail carriers, it marks the beginning of this process. This continues during elementary school when they start exploring professions and later in adulthood when they eventually decide what job they want to pursue.
Career development doesn’t end after selecting a job. You then need to obtain the necessary education and training, apply for jobs and find employment, and advance in your career. For most people, it will also involve changing jobs and positions at least once (and perhaps more than that) during their careers. Many people find themselves needing career counseling when they face problems or need to make decisions about their careers – for example, when considering looking for a new job or changing professions.
Note: You may go through this process independently, but almost everyone can benefit from receiving specialized career guidance. Advice from a career counselor or similarly trained specialist, or taking a class in school can help make career development more fulfilling and successful.
Factors Affecting Career Development
A person’s career development can be influenced by multiple factors, some of which may be largely outside their control. These influences should be considered during the career development process.
Personal Traits: Personality types, interests, talents, and work-related values make us who we are. These personal traits play a significant role in career development as they affect the jobs we find satisfying, as well as the types of work environments in which we will succeed. For this reason, when in the job selection process, it is extremely important to conduct a self-assessment that will help you understand yourself.
Financial Resources: Some job options can be expensive. If you choose a job, for example, that requires you to attend college, you may have limitations on your ability to pay for it and need to look for student loans, financial aid, and scholarships. Financial constraints can also hinder your job search. For example, you may have limited funds to buy interview clothes.
Financial Commitments: Financial commitments such as a mortgage, rent, student loans, or even college tuition for your child may hinder you from changing jobs or professions. To address this, you might try to set aside money to use later during a job change, or you can try changing your lifestyle to lighten your financial burden (for example, downsizing your home to have a lower mortgage payment).
Barriers
Physical, mental, and emotional: Some individuals may be better suited for certain jobs than others due to physical or mental abilities or limitations. For example, you may want to become a doctor but lack a strong academic record in the sciences.
Age: Age, or your perception of it, can hinder your career development. You might feel anxious about being too young or too old to pursue a particular path, advance in your career, or make a career change. Instead of focusing on your age, focus on your abilities and how motivated you are.
Family commitments: A person’s career development may cease to a certain extent if they have to take time off work to care for children or the elderly. Finding external help for childcare or eldercare can make it easier to continue working.
Lessons Learned
Career development is a process of exploration and movement that shapes an individual’s professional life path. It involves assessing a person’s skills, abilities, interests, and personality in order to find a suitable job. It is a lifelong process, where career development continues throughout adulthood as individuals evaluate advancement opportunities or even change careers. Numerous factors can affect a person’s career development, including financial issues and family commitments.
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Sources:
Missouri State University. “Career Development Process.” Accessed Aug. 4, 2020.
Source: https://www.thebalancemoney.com/what-is-career-development-525496
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