Choosing the Right Career If you are currently a student, you have probably spent quite a bit of time thinking about what you

would like to do after you graduate. This makes sense, because the main reason you are going to school

is so you can get a degree that will help you to get a job after you graduate.

Be Realistic There are several things you should know when you

are trying to decide what career you would like to

have after you graduate from college. One of the

main things is that you shouldn’t glamorize any

profession.

For example, lawyers on television are very

different from lawyers in real life. On television,

their lives look very glamorous.

Going from college to law school to the workforce

seems quite easy, and they seem to lead an

attractive life where they make a lot of money.

However, studies show that lawyers who are asked

if they would recommend their job to other people

usually say no.

This is an example of a job that may seem glamorous, but is actually very difficult and grueling. The same

idea applies for professions like detectives and forensic scientists.

On television, these jobs are highly glamorized. Being a detective is exciting and fast-paced, and the

detective team always solves the mystery at the end of the day.

But real life is quite different from a

television show. Many times detectives

do not have exciting jobs at all.

This is why it is important to pick your

career based on facts, not

sensationalized myths. You do not want

to pour your time, energy, and effort into

working towards a career that will not be

a good fit for you because you have

believed the media’s misleading

portrayals of certain professions.

Gauge Your Investment Another great way to think about what you’d like to do in the future is to

think about what you are willing to do to get to where you want to be.

For example, many singers and bands are very famous now, but what did

they do to get there?

They probably had to work very hard to get there, sleeping in their cars,

touring for years, and slowly building up fame. After they had done all of

this, they had paved the road to become a big success.

And still, sometimes singers and bands follow this route and then don’t

make it big in the music industry. This is a sad fact, but it is true.

So basically, there is a lot of gamble involved when deciding to pursue

certain professions. If you are willing

to make that gamble: good for you.

But you have to realize what a gamble pursuing certain professions

will be before you jump into it quickly. You can’t decide to pursue

nursing on a whim; you have to research and learn before you can

safely safe you want to pursue nursing.

And even if you do decide on something and you feel that it’s the

right thing for you, there may still be the possibility that it’s not the

right thing. You have to be willing to bend and cope and move on

should your first choice not be the best fit for you.

Photo Credit: Terry Bain, Lori Greig, CBCD BrickFilms, & Rooners Toy Photography via PhotoPin cc