Career Choice

Overview of Career Choice: Choosing or changing a career can be a stressful event. It may be made more difficult by the tough economic times. A good therapist – particularly one with a specialty in this area – can help make the choices easier.

There are a few questions we can ask ourselves when choosing a career:

• What do I enjoy doing? What kinds of activities are fun and fulfilling for me?

• What am I good at? What is my skill set?

• What qualifications do I have, such as a degree or experience?

• How much money do I think I need to make to feel satisfied?

• What jobs are available in the place(s) I’d like to live? Do I want to travel?

• What are my values? Is it important to me to be of service to others, or am I simply interested in a decent living? Do I desire fame?

• Am I looking for intensely challenging work, or something relatively easy?

• Am I willing to do what others tell me without questioning, or would I rather make most decisions on my own?

• To what degree do I need stability and security?

The Medical Model and Career Choice: There is no DSM diagnosis for this situation, however an adjustment disorder might be diagnosed if the associated emotions are very troublesome and this causes significant challenges in a person’s ability to function.

Case Example of Career Choice:

Mandy, 30, is unhappy in her career but not sure how to make a change. She does not enjoy her job, which she took straight out of college just to pay the bills and in which she now feels stuck. She would like to help people, and to make a little more money. However, most of the jobs she thinks she would like require more education, and she cannot afford to stop working. Working at her job and going to school sounds stressful and frightens her. The therapist helps to normalize her feelings, and then discusses with her her fears about going to school while working full-time. Soon, Mandy becomes quite clear that she cannot stay in her job, and that whatever difficulties she might face, she needs to continue her education and change careers. The therapist helps her identify resources, including financial aid resources as well as stress management skills, so that she can continue to work while completing school at night. She also points out to Mandy her own strengths, which are apparent in the job she is doing, including the ability to multitask, work long hours, and complete difficult tasks on her own. This gives Mandy more hope and confidence that she can finish school and keep her job in the meantime.

Therapy for Career Choice: There is a wide range of Psychotherapy Treatment Models or types of therapy used in the treatment of career choice issues. Most of these approaches fall into three historic camps of psychology: Psychoanalytic / Psychodynamic approaches; Behaviorism and; Humanism. Regardless of the type of therapy, there are some generally agreed upon elements of healthy therapy which are universal to all forms of psychotherapy. Before beginning therapy for career choice or any other issue, it is helpful to familiarize oneself with these elements.

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Career Choice Article Summaries