Choosing Career Opportunigy, Guidline for Christian Youth

CHOOSING CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
GUIDELINES FOR CHRISTIANS YOUTH

BY

Evang. Nkweke, Gift N.
RIVERS STATE UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, PORT HARCOURT, NIGERIA [e-mail] [phone]

Paper presented by the National Youth Servant Leader, The Church of God (Seventh Day) Nigeria, on the occasion of the Ghana Youth Convention holding in the Republic of Ghana on 25th to 29th July, 2012

Protocol

Fellow brethren here in Ghana, Please accept my condolence on behalf of the youth ministry in Nigeria over the death of your President, John Atta Mills.

On behalf the General Overseer of Nigerian Conference, Pastor C. G. Alozie the National Conference Secretary Pastor K.I Isirima, and my resident Pastor, Pastor (Dr.) L. C. Obara, I bring you greeting from Nigeria especially from the Executives of the Youth Ministry in Nigeria where it pleased God that I should serve as a Servant Leader. I thank God for Pastor Crawford my mentor for initiating this opportunity for us to be in Ghana today.

Fellow brethren here in Ghana, Please accept my condolence on behalf of the youth ministry in Nigeria over the death of your President, John Atta Mills.

Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it. Prov. 22v6

Prov 22:1-9

A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold.The rich and poor meet together: the LORD is the maker of them all.A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished.By humility and the fear of the LORD are riches, and honour, and life.Thorns and snares are in the way of the froward: he that doth keep his soul shall be far from them.Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.He that soweth iniquity shall reap vanity: and the rod of his anger shall fail.He that hath a bountiful eye shall be blessed; for he giveth of his bread to the poor.
KJV

“Don’t allow a career to choose you, chose a career”

Introduction

Choosing a career is an involved process that is based on a number of things, including your interests, skills, work-related values, and personality. You might want to meet with a career development professional, i.e. career counselor or career development facilitator. A career development professional will use various tools to help you evaluate your interests, personality, skills, and values. This is called a self assessment. He or she will then show you how all these things combined, play a role in choosing a career.

Most people today took to the street because they were not properly guided in choosing a career, while other have problem with their choice of career because it was chosen out of grid. Why not allow God to directed your path and He will surely bring you to the expected end He promised, It is only when we do it ourselves that we go along doing the wrong thing.
If finances are an issue, don't let that keep you from getting the help you need. Check with your public library since some offer career planning help. Also check with local colleges and universities. Most of them have career development offices which may offer services to members of the community. Programs that train career counselors often have students work with members of the community in order to gain experience.
What you should end up with is a list of suitable careers based on your self assessment. Obviously you can't do everything on your list, nor will you want to. Here's where you need to do some research. You should begin to gather information about these careers which will include a job description, outlook for the field (will you be able to find a job), and required training and education. When you have narrowed down your choices to just a few, then you should investigate even further, perhaps conducting some informational interviews with those working in the field. You can now make an educated decision about what career to pursue.
Career Concepts: According The New International Webster’s Comprehensive Dictionary, A Career is a course of business, activity, or enterprise , especially, a course of professional life or employment.

DISCOVERING YOUR POTENTIALS

The first step in choosing a career is getting to know yourself by assessing your different qualities. What do you enjoy doing during your free time? Maybe you could turn your hobby into your dream career? • What do you feel most passionate about? Which places, activities or people engage your interest totally? • Are you outgoing or do you prefer being on your own? • Do you like change or do you prefer routine? • What activities do you dread doing? • Do you prefer being on the move or rather staying in one place? • Which of the following do you desire: wealth, happiness, power, control? • What are you good at without putting much effort? • Are you the creative type or perhaps the investigative type? • Are you good at organising? • What are your weaknesses? • Have you ever done any voluntary work or helped people in any way? For example helped out in a youth centre, band club etc.
Now, gather your answers and brainstorm different career paths with obvious links to your answers and find out what appeals to you. Do not eliminate any career from your list until you do some research about it. Even if you think you know about an occupation, you would be surprised by what you learn if you dig deeper!

SELF ASSESSMENT
Personal Qualities

Which of the following personal qualities do you possess?
|Active |Adventurous |Ambitious |Artistic |Athletic |Attentive |
|Bright |Calm |Careful |Caring |Confident |Considerate |
|Determined |Disciplined |Eager |Easy going |Efficient |Encouraging |
|Energetic |Fair |Firm |Kind |Lively |Loyal |
|Mature |Motivated |Observant |Organised |Outgoing |Patient |
|Persistent |Pleasant |Polite |Positive |Punctual |Quick learner |
|Realistic |Reliable |Responsible |Respectful |Risk-taker |Self-reliant |
|Sensible |Sincere |Sociable |Strong |Supportive |Tactful |
|Team-player |Tidy |Thorough |Tolerant |Trustworthy |Understanding |

USEFUL SKILLS IN CHOOSING A CAREER

Communication skills: Your ability to use your speaking, listening, reading and writing skills effectively for different tasks. Understanding information and transmitting a correct spoken or written response.

Improving learning and performance: Everybody has a particular learning style and it is important to discover which way you learn to maximise your performance.

Numerical skills: Interpreting information involving numbers, carrying out calculations, presenting and explaining findings.

Team work: Working with others and discussing to achieve common aims is vital to success in any business.

Information Technology: It is inevitable nowadays in the day-to-day running of any business, to source, select, enter, present data and images or write text.

Problem Solving: Identifying problems and proposing different solutions shows initiative and commitment.

Use of interpersonal Skills: Helping and relating to people, developing a good rapport, perceiving feelings and providing support for others all contribute to a harmonious climate at your place of work. These are skills sought after by employers and appreciated by colleagues.

The following day to day skills promote the effective running of any business and are expected of each and every employee:

cooperating, punctuality, managing time, paying attention to detail, meeting goals, accepting responsibility, enlisting help, organising, setting and meeting deadlines.

Evaluate your skills. You need to be able to tell employers what skills you possess. Your skills could come from: • Attending school or training courses. • Any type of job, including voluntary work • Being part of a team: a sports club, a band club, a drama group, a choir etc. • Projects at home or in the community • Running a home or looking after people • Making or fixing things and solving problems.

Here are some more skills which you might possess:

Leadership skills, motivational skills, creative skills, analytical skills, flexibility, act independently, taking initiative, handling feedback, empathizing, networking.

10 THINGS TO CONSIDER IN CHOOSING A CAREER
Your Interest: What topics do you read about in your spare time and what classes do you enjoy in school? Your career doesn’t have to be your passion, but it shouldn’t bore you to tears, either. Is there something that you’ve always wanted to get into, something that resonates within the very fiber of your being? If so, that may be where you’re meant to be.

Your Aptitude: Choosing a college major also entails an assessment of your skills and talents. You may know what you want, but do you know what you’re good at. Interest and aptitude are two different things. Ideally, you should pursue a college course or choose a college major that allows you to explore both. In this less than perfect world, this is usually not possible for some people. In that case, you’d have to weigh your priorities: pick a college major you will be good at or pick a college course that is in line with your interest.
Your Values: Every career comes with non-quantifiable stuff: fulfillment, meaning and purpose, pure altruism, and so on. They help determine what you’d like to get out of a career (and a college major) besides material compensation, also bearing in mind of your doctrinal believe as a Christian.
Moneyetary Matters: Money matters in so many ways than one. Money matters because it will dictate what course you can or cannot afford. Money matters should therefore be part of your plans in choosing a career.
Time and Practical Considerations: You should also be aware of what you’re getting into when choosing a college major. What will your college course require you to do? Are you willing to do it? As a case in point, if you’re squeamish about the sight of blood, why should you decide to go for a Nursing Degree. How much time are you willing to invest in your college course and major? If you want school to be over and done with as soon as possible, then you should probably not choose a college course that won’t be useful without further study.
Your Commitment: Choosing a college course requires you to look inwards and assess your commitment to your chosen path. Assuming that you have the issue of money and other practical considerations settled, do you actually possess the skills and the patience to go the distance? Moreover, do you actually want to do so? There’s also a chance that your parents may be expecting you to tread a certain academic path; will you have the strength and the will to stick it out against all odds?
The Times: Don’t ever forget to consider the times in your decision-making process. There are instances when certain courses may appear to be more profitable or more popular than others due to current circumstances.
Other People’s Feedback: Besides guidance counselors, family and friends, you may also want to ask other people for their opinions regarding the matter. College alumni and alumnae always make for interesting interviews-been there, done that. Professors and classmates will also have a lot of significant input to offer.
Your Choices: Also, do remember that there are some benefits to doing things by the book-or more specifically, the college’s catalogue of courses. Take a peek and note the unit and credit requirements for each course, along with whatever minors and electives you can take as part of the package deal.
Spiritual Considerations: Finally, know this: you’ll most likely change courses-even careers!-as you go along, so don’t be overly fixated on any one course. No one course is the end all and be all. There are numerous examples of people out there who majored in one thing and built a career or three out of another.
As a believer, I strongly recommend that you pray about it ask God what He wants you to take. After all, only He knows what path you will ultimately tread.
Other points to consider
Natural Skills and Abilities: If you struggled through math in school and couldn’t pass no matter how much you studied, you may want to consider a career that doesn’t require a great deal of mathematical ability. However, most degree programs include a variety of classes that may or may not relate to your future occupation. Don’t let this discourage you from pursuing the career you want.
Introversion vs. Extroversion: Introverts require time alone to recharge, while extroverts thrive on social interaction. Most people are close to the middle of the spectrum and will be most happy in a career that balances time alone with social interaction.
Goals and rewards: What do you value in a career? Some people desire to help others directly, while others seek independence and autonomy. Everyone derives fulfillment in a different way. Paying too much attention to society’s values instead of one’s own can lead to the wrong career choice.
RECOMMENDATION AND CONCLUSION

If you cannot read, learn a trade. What is important is if the path you have chosen in pleasant and approved by God, He promise of making a way where there is no way.

Remember, laziness is not part of Christianity. If God was lazy, the works of creation would not have been concluded in just six days. Picking a career is one of the most important decisions you’ll ever make. While in the past most people’s career prospects were limited by economic or social factors, today one can choose almost any career path. It is easy to become overwhelmed by the large number of career choices available and the amount of information about those careers. While looking at job growth and salary data is important, superficial factors such as prestige and income do not provide for career satisfaction in the long-term. The most important factors in choosing a career have to do with who you are as an individual, but I suggest it should be in your youthful age as described in Eccl 12.

Thanks and God Bless