What career is right for you?
This issue focuses on ways to
help you determine the best path.
It's about self-discovery -- learning
about yourself and applying that knowledge
to career decisions.
KEEP THOSE PROFILES COMING...
We've had some great responses
to our request for readers to profile ...
now we want to hear from YOU!
We plan to launch a new feature to
coincide with the first anniversary
of QuintZine in March. "Quintessential
Career Profiles" will feature readers
of QuintZine who have interesting
career stories to tell. Did you obtain
a job in an unusual way? Has your career
path been out of the ordinary? Have you held
one or more unusual jobs? Has your job search been
especially troublesome, inspirational, or
remarkable? We want to hear from you! Tell
us a little about your career story, and
we may contact you for a full profile.
Not a Magic Bullet, But a Helpful Piece of
the Self-Discovery Puzzle
One of the questions we hear most often from
readers of QuintZine and visitors to Quintessential
Careers is: "How can I figure out what I really want
to do with my career?" It's certainly true that you
can't make much headway in finding a job if you haven't
yet determined what you want to be when you grow up.
Variations on this dilemma include the older, more
established jobseeker who has decided his or her
career isn't a good fit but isn't sure what career
would be more satisfying.
Wouldn't it be wonderful if you could
take a
simple, interactive test on the Internet at
no cost that would give you the answers you
need about what career best suits you?
Some experts - primarily Webmasters of free
online assessment sites - say you can do just
that. Others - primarily career counselors -
assert that it's not that simple.
Our feature article, by
QuintZine editor Katharine Hansen,
discusses the pros and
cons of free online career assessments
and evaluates their usefulness for self-discovery.
Marc A. Verhoeve, a career pathing consultant,
offers a unique insider's perspective on
the world of online assessments. As a participant
in the development of the Jackson Vocational
Interest Survey (JVIS), he elaborates on some of the
differences between quick, free online assessments
and assessments like Web-based version of the JVIS,
which, he says, transcends the shortcomings of
online assessments that provide "no proof of their
accuracy, validity, norming, or reliability."
Special Article: Five Laws of a Successful Career Search
Certified Professional Career Consultant Paul Hastings
outlines five steps to career success, from self-discovery,
to developing a career plan, to putting the plan into action.
Gale Montgomery is author and publisher of "Spiritual
Affirmations for Career Development: Career Guidance
and Job Development from a Christian Perspective,"
and a college career development coordinator for a
Christian liberal arts college in Northern California.
"I find the biggest clues to self-discovery come
from re-visiting childhood interests," Montgomery says in
our Q&A. "Children are typically free from limitations
and go about their daily business in an enviable
uninhibited way. Observe a group of children, and
you will
inevitably begin to identify character traits and activities that give clues as to how
they are gifted. Occupations involving those gifts
typically are the ones in which the most passion and
joy are found. For example, Oprah Winfrey said that
as a child, she loved to talk -- notes from her
teacher would say, 'good student...talks too much.'
The Ansir system is one of our favorite
online assessments, both for the detail of
the results it offers and its accuracy
compared to our own self-perception.
According to the Ansir Web site, "the 3 Sides of You
Test and Analysis is an experiential profiling system
that identifies dominant personality Styles in three realms,
Thinking /Working and /Emoting. The analysis is based on
three years of empirical research. It is the only
self-perception work to present the 3-sided complexity
of individuals and to recognize intuitive and spiritual
personality Styles. Unlike personality assessment instruments,
which quantify personalities into 14-16 overall
groupings, 3 Sides of You recognizes 2,744 personality
style combinations. The test is founded on the ancient
premise that humans are 3-sided beings."
The Ansir Web site offers the opportunity to become
part of the Ansir Community and chat with people
who share aspects of your personality type, a newsletter
to subscribe to, and the ability to go back anytime and
look at your assessment results, search Ansir's Occupations
database, find your most compatible "Other" and discover the
intimacy secrets of each style.
HSpeople.com
-- specializing in the human services industry, helping job-seekers looking for social work jobs, non-profit jobs, and mental health jobs.
Job-seekers can search for jobs, build an online resume, and use their "smart match" technology to
find the right job. Free to job-seekers.
k-12jobs.com
-- where k-12 educators can post your resume as well as search for job openings at public, private, and
vocational schools and institutions. The site specializes in job opportunities available at kindergarten,
elementary, junior high, and high schools, as well as vocational schools. Includes other resources, including a
calendar of job fairs for educators. Free to job-seekers.
knowyourtype.com
-- the only assessment site that offers the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Instrument online. Take the 93-question
assessment online and get the results (a seven-page report) emailed back to you. Includes lifetime access
to client support area. Fee-based.
OnlineCollegeFair.com
-- brings the college search experience to a new level, providing a forum where you and your family visit one
college after another in a virtual exhibit hall, allowing you to chat live with college
and university representatives, view campuses online, and learn about each school's offerings through a
virtual Q&A session. From the National Association for College Admission Counseling. Free.
Find even more additions to Quintessential Careers by visiting our
Latest
Additions section.
Nicole writes: I'm 19 years old. How do I go about
finding what's right for me? I have tried several
things, and they are not what I want. What should I do?"
Jessica is a 16-year-old high-school sophomore whose
mind is set on working with computers and who is thinking
about computer science or computer engineering. But she fears
she won't succeed. She has good grades, but worries that
they're not good enough.
JMLOOMIS, a college graduate with almost five years of
professional experience,
describes himself as "intelligent, bright,
and quickly
bored." He's had three jobs in five years and
has been actively looking for a job for more than four months.
He gives a litany of his efforts, but says they've resulted in
only four interviews. At his wit's end, he's asking the Career Doc
for help.
IWabuchi wants to know why employers require probationary periods
after one gets hired. He wonders if it's legal for an employer
to terminate someone during this time without explanation. The
big question is how to avoid being let go before the
probationary period is up.
Q TIPS: Quick and Quintessential Career & Job Tips
Three days after this QuintZine's issue
date is not only Ground Hog's Day, but Groundhog
Job Shadow Day. Feb. 2 is the kickoff to a 2001
year-long national effort geared toward providing
students with an up-close look at how skills learned
in school are put into action in the workplace.
Last year on Groundhog Job Shadow Day more
than a million of America's youth set off to
explore more than 75,000 workplaces nationwide.
Job shadowing is a fantastic way for young people
to explore careers and try them on for size --
but you don't have to be a kid to learn about
careers by job-shadowing. Anyone can do it.
Find out more at the Groundhog Job Shadow Day site,
where you can also learn about Virtual Jobshadowing,
sponsored by Monster.com, an initiative
that will allow students to shadow working
professionals online. Students will be
able to see what takes place in the typical
day of up to 50 professionals.
Here's more insight
on choosing a major and a career
from the "Ask Michelle" column in the
Orange County Register, with
contributions by QuintZine's editor,
Katharine Hansen.
To prepare for job interviews, ask a friend to conduct
a "mock interview," advises Diana LeGere, of Executive Final
Copy. "Many career consultants offer this service for a fee,"
LeGere says."They are skilled at asking standard interview questions.
Once you know what the interviewer is looking for, it will
be easier to answer his questions. Many can even tape
the meeting to help you learn to incorporate the appropriate
body language as well."
This Q Tip courtesy of Diana C. LeGere,
president of Executive
Final Copy and the employment coordinator for
Greenbacks Bringing Hope Foundation in Salt Lake City, UT.
Win Fame, Recognition, and a Teeny-Tiny Prize!
We are beta testing an exciting new Job Interview
Response Composition Exercise. Test it out by responding to as many job-interview questions as you wish.
The author of each BEST response will be permanently
credited in a "Best Response" e-mail reply
that will guide jobseekers in composing optimal
responses to interview questions. Each Best Response
author will also receive a small, token
Quintessential Careers gift.
Career counselors, try your hand at responding
to these questions, and encourage your students to try!
QuintZine: Topics in Upcoming Issues
WATCH FOR feature articles on these topics in upcoming
issues of QuintZine:
* Case-based and behavior-based interviews
* Headhunters, Recruiters, and Executive-Search Firms
* Phone etiquette in the job hunt
* Guide to the company visit
* Letters of recommendation and references
* How to handle a request for a salary history
* Completing a job application
* How to land an internship
* How to get a promotion
* Should you go to grad school/get an MBA?
* 10 easy ways to improve your resume
* Temping
* Quintessential Career Profiles of YOU, our readers
* Q&As with well-known career experts
. . . and much, much more!
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RESUMES * JOB SEARCH CORRESPONDENCE FROM TRUSTED EXPERTS * COVER LETTERS
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We create resumes,
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follow-up letters, and list-formatted documents,
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Check out Quintessential Resumes
and Cover Letters!
QuintZine
A publication of
Quintessential Careers
Publisher: Dr. Randall S. Hansen
Editor: Katharine Hansen
ISSN: 1528-9443
