Unit 2: Career choice
Choosing a career path is one of the most important life decisions that you will make.
Unfortunately, some students entering higher education are inclined not to think about this until it is too late. They may think: “well, I have three years before I have to make a decision, so I’ll start thinking about it nearer to graduation.”.
But it is best to think about future career paths before you apply for higher education, as your choice of course to study can impact on your future career options.
So this unit is focused on three elements in the process of choosing a career:
Your motives – the things you want to gain from work.
Your talents – the abilities you bring to the workplace; and
Your personality – the external images you present to the world.
There are three self-assessment exercises for you to complete; one for each of these elements.
But first, before you move onto these, start by summarising what you know or feel to be true about yourself. Write in the five boxes that follow:
Now complete the next exercise: Career Motives
Career Motives
Career Motives are the things we want to really gain from work. Work is not just about you applying your skills for financial reward, there are other motives for working.
This exercise will help you to focus on your own work motives that will help in the process of career decision making in both the short and longer terms.
Below are listed 36 pairs of reasons often given by people when asked what it is they seek from work.
You have 3 points to award - NO MORE, NO LESS - for each pair of questions.
So you most decide on the distribution of these 3 points between each pair of questions e.g.
A = 3 points B = 0 points
orA = 2 points B = 1 point
orA = 1 point B = 2 points
orA = 0 points B = 3 points
- There are no right or wrong answers - your distribution of the 3 points for each pair depends on your own personal preference, so be honest and objective.
- Work quickly and instinctively through the exercise. It should take you about 10 minutes to complete the questionnaire.
Don’t forget - you can only allocate a totalof3 points for each pair of questions. Write the numbers in the squares next to the questions.
1.a.I will only be satisfied with an unusually high standard of living.
b.I wish to have influence over other people at work.
Reminder: The total for each pair of questions should be no more than 3 points
2.c.I will only feel satisfied if the output from my job has real meaning for me.
d I want to be regarded by others as an expert in the things I do.
3.e.I want to use my creative abilities in my work.
f. It is particularly important to me that I work with people whom I like.
4.g.I would obtain real satisfaction by being able to exert some real personal control over what I do at work.
h.Financial security is the top of my list of motives for working .
5.i.I would enjoy feeling that people look up to me.
a.Frankly, my aspirations are to find work that will make me wealthy.
6.b.I want a significant leadership role at work.
c.I want work which is fulfilling, even though it may not be well-paid compared to other occupations.
7.d.I want to feel that I am recognized by others as a real ‘expert’
in my chosen work.
e.I want to do things at work which people associate with me alone.
8.f.I want to meet others who I could be friends with outside of working hours.
g. I would like to have a real say in how I spent my time at work.
9.a.Acquisition of high-status material possessions, e.g. car,
house, are my main goalsfrom work.
d.I want to demonstrate to others that I can apply a high level skills in a chosen field of work.
10.c. I would like my work to be a key element in gaining a sense of
meaning and purpose in life.
e.I want the things that I produce to bear my name, or to be associated with me.
11.a.To be able to afford the things I want is a key goal from my
chosen work.
h.A job with long-term security really appeals to me.
12.b.I seek a role which gives me influence over the way others
Work.
d.I would enjoy being a specialist in my chosen field.
13.c.It is important to me that my chosen work makes a positive contribution to the wider community.
f.Forming close relationships with other people at work will be
important to me for job satisfaction.
14.e.I want my personal creativity to be really used in any chosen
career.
g.I would prefer to be my own master or mistress at work.
15.f.Working with people that match my personality and values will be a key element in work satisfaction for me.
h.I want to look ahead in my life and feel confident that I will always be secure.
16.a.I want to be able to spend money easily, earned from the well-
paidwork that I do.
e.I want to be genuinely creative and original in my work.
17.b.Frankly, I want to tell other people what to do at work, rather
than take orders from others.
f.For me, being a respected member of a team is a key element in any future work.
18.c.I look upon my career as a significant reason for being alive.
g.I want to take full responsibility for my own decisions.
19.d.I would enjoy a reputation as a real specialist in my chosen
career field.
h.I would only feel content if I was in a secure career.
20.a.I desire all the trappings of wealth – why not?
f.I want to get to know new and interesting people through my
work.
21.b.I would like to play roles at work which give me significant control over how others perform their duties.
g.It is important that I can exercise significant choice over the work tasks that I undertake.
22.c.I would devote myself to work if I believed that my contribution to the organisation or society would be worthwhile in the longer term.
h.Security at work is more important than finding ‘meaning’ from it.
23.f.If I really liked the people I worked with, I would sacrifice promotion to stay with them.
i.Being part of any management team is an important career motive for me.
24.b.I would enjoy being in charge of people and resources.
e.I want to create things that no one else has done before.
25.c.I would choose a work role I believe is important for my personal satisfaction, and not one which simply promotes my career.
i.I would like to gain public recognition from my chosen career.
26.e.I want to do something distinctively different from others in a chosen career.
h.I usually take the safe option in life – and work choices would not be an exception to this rule.
27.b.I would like other people to look to me for leadership.
i.Social status is an important career motivator for me.
28.a.A high standard of living resulting from my work really attracts me.
g.I wish to avoid being tightly controlled at work by a boss.
29.e.I want others to associate my name with a unique work achievement.
i.I am particularly keen to gain high-status work related qualifications.
30.b.I aspire to be the man or woman in charge of a work project.
h.I would want to know there was a reasonable certainty of job security with the chosen employer.
31.d.I would enjoy being a person to whom others turn for advice.
g.I would get particular satisfaction from not having to answer to others at work.
32.g.I would be quite happy in a job working by myself.
i.It would give me particular satisfaction to achieve a high-status job.
33.a.I am prepared to do any job for high material reward.
c.I see work as a primary means of enriching my personal development, e.g. confidence, maturity, intuition etc.
34.i.I want a prestigious position in a work organisation.
h.Given a choice of possible work features in a career, a secure future attracts me the most every time.
35.f.To be regarded by others as a ‘good team player’ is a primary work goal for me.
d.Being able to make an expert contribution to an organisation would give me particular satisfaction.
36.i.I would really enjoy the status symbols which come with senior positions.
d.I really want to achieve a high level of specialist competence in a chosen career.
Please check you have awarded 3 points - NO MORE; NO LESS - to each pair of questions.
Now move on to ‘Scoring the career motives exercise’.
Scoring the Careers Motives exercise
To score the survey, add up all the points that you have given in each of the A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H and I items. Write the totals in the boxes below and check that the grand total is 108.
A B C D E F G H I
++++++++ = 108
Now rank your scores, with the letter with the highest score at the top.
Highest Score =
What the scores mean
ItemMeaning
AMaterial Rewards:
Work motivation: possessions, wealth, and a high standard of living.
BPower/Influence:
Work motivation: control of people and resources.
CSearch for Meaning:
Work motivation: doing things which you feel are valuable for their own sake.
DExpertise:
Work motivation: gaining a high level of accomplishment in a specialised field.
E.Creativity:
Work motivation: original and innovative activity.
F.Affiliation/Social Relationships:
Work motivation: harmonious and rewarding relationships with others at work.
G.Autonomy/Independence:
Work motivation: making independent key work decisions for yourself.
H.Security:
Work motivation: employment in a relatively safe and predictable career.
- Status:
Work motivation: recognition and respect from others through your work; your work brings you status.
More detailed explanation of each score:
A.Material Rewards: seeking possessions, wealth, and a high standard of living.
Material rewards are defined as tangible assets, including money, possessions, quality of housing, and other material possessions.
People with material rewards as a career motive take decisions about future work primarily to improve their material status. They seek work roles which provide a high income, and they take on tasks which may be unfulfilling or uncongenial, but which provides a high material reward.
The key work aspiration and concern for them is wealth.
B.Power/Influence: seeking to be in control of people and resources.
Power/influence is defined as wanting to take the lead and manage others; also connected to this motive is a need to take decisions about organisation policy and how resources are used.
People who have power/influence as a career motive take decisions primarily to increase their management control over people and situations. They attempt to move towards the centre of organisations to gain formal and informal power. They get satisfaction from deciding what should be done and who should do it, and they are often uncomfortable in subordinate roles.
People with power/influence as a key driver gravitate towards managerial or political roles. They are proactive and have high self-confidence and clear ideas about what should be done.
The key concern is control.
C.Search for Meaning: seeking to do things which are believed to be valuable
for their own sake.
Search for meaning is defined as being motivated to do things that contribute to the good of society; satisfying others satisfies them.
People with the search for meaning as a career motive will take decisions which are compatible with their personal beliefs and values. This may take the form of helping others; personal fulfillment is their reward.
The key concern is contribution.
D.Expertise: seeking to gain a high level of accomplishment in a specialised field.
Expertise is defined as the application of specialist knowledge and skills.
People with expertise as a career motive work hard to gain and maintain competence in their chosen fields. They gain a sense of satisfaction from being valued as an expert. The expertise may be craft, intellectual, or scientific related. So both a blacksmith and an accountant could have ‘expertise’ as a career motive. Professional managers can also be included in this category, especially those with formal training in management sciences.
The key concern is mastery.
E.Creativity: seeking to innovate and be identified with original and different output.
Creativity is here defined as devising something new that bears the name of the originator. This may be work in the sciences, arts, literature, research, architecture, entertainment, and can also include entrepreneurial activity.
People driven by creativity gain their rewards from breaking new ground in their chosen field. They will often prefer a solitary or small team environment, to working for a large bureaucratic organisation.
The key concern is originality.
F.Affiliation/Social Relationships: seeking harmonious and rewarding relationships with others at work.
Affiliation is defined as striving to be close to others, enjoying bonds of friendship and being enriched by human relationships.
People who have affiliation as a career motive often take initiatives to develop deep and fulfilling relationships with others. These bonds become extremely important to them. They put their feelings for others above self and may stay in jobs because of the quality of their relationships with others. Their commitment is to other people, not to task, position or organisational goals.
The key concern is friendship.
G.Autonomy/Independence: seeking to be independent and able to make key decisions for yourself.
Autonomy is defined as taking personal responsibility for decisions.
People with autonomy as a career motive strive to increase the amount of control they have over their own working lives. They resist attempts by organisations to pigeon-hole them. They find it difficult to cope with bureaucracy and seek to gain control over their own destinies. They enjoy feeling ‘I did it all’, and they prefer to work alone or with a small team.
Sometimes they can function happily in organisations where they can negotiate a good deal of psychological space for themselves, but are likely to sacrifice promotion opportunities to management positions to stay self-directed. Entrepreneurs are often strong in this driver.
The key concern is choice.
H.Security: wanting a relatively safe and predictable future.
Security is about seeking reassurance about the future from work, which can include the avoidance of unnecessary risks.
People with security as a career motive often take decisions that help them to feel more relaxed about their futures. Their primary career goal is toward work with high predictability and stability, rather than a high income.
They make career choices with the future in mind. If a promotion opportunity substantially increases doubt about the future, they may well reject it.
The key concern is assurance.
I.Status: seeking to be recognised admired and respected by other
through your work.
Status is defined as striving to gain the esteem and high regard of others. People with status as a career motive take whatever action is needed in order to enhance their prestige. This includes networking with influential people, volunteering for responsible work assignments, and self-publicising activity. They may seek positions of power and authority, but their desire is more for the prestige of the position, than the exercise of control over others. For example, they might like the title of manager – without particularly enjoying the responsibility that goes with it
The key concern is position.
The next exercise is about your abilities or talents.
Your Talents
This exercise will help you to clarify your talents, as these have a significant impact on choice of career, and most people try and match their talents with available work in the labour market.
The questionnaire that follows lists 84 activities or questions. You will find that the scores link with a broad range of career ideas.
- Look at each activity/question and give each a score from 1 to 5 according to your personal reaction (1: low or negative response; 5: high.)
- If you are attracted to an activity and feel you have latent talent in the activity concerned, then you should incline toward the higher range of scores (3 - 5).
- Don’t just think about what you know or feel about yourself from previous paid work, as home or leisure activities are equally valid experiences for this exercise.
- Do not compare yourself with others; think about your own talents. Remember - we can’t be good at everything, but equally don’t put yourself down;
- Circle one number (1 - 5) against each of the activities.
Low Medium High
1. Working creatively with colour12345
2. Fairness and firmness in the face12345
of anger/abuse
3. Hand/eye co-ordination using hand tools12345
4. Mathematical challenges12345
5. Organising people12345
6. Instructing others in a physical sport12345
7. Persuading people of new ideas12345
8. Conveying feelings or ideas through12345
drawing/painting
9. Drawing out shy or quiet people12345
10. Practical DIY tasks12345
11. Interest in technically complex problems 12345
12. Time-management12345
13. Physical agility12345
14. Confidence when putting across your12345
views to strangers
15. Creative writing12345
16. Sensitivity to the needs of others12345
17. Finding out how objects work12345
18. Approaching tasks in a disciplined 12345
and methodical way
19. Taking initiatives to assist people to 12345
perform more effectively
20. Competence at sports12345
21. Being assertive in arguments1 2345
22. Fashioning or shaping materials12345
23. Seeing things from another’s viewpoint12345
24. Patience when faced with practical or12345
technical tasks
25. Research and gathering information12345
26. Money management12345
27. Involvement in demanding physical12345
situations (e.g. outdoor activities)
28. Use of humour to make a point12345
29. Playing a musical instrument12345
30. Working in a team with others12345
31. Use of hand tools or equipment12345
32. Questioning conventional answers 12345
to problems
33. Supervising other people12345
34. Adapting to unexpected and arduous12345
physical demands
35. Changing your approach to people12345
according to their character
36. Performance in dance or drama12345
37. Instructing or teaching others formally12345
or informally (e.g. at home)
38. Skilful with your hands, e.g. crafts12345