Focus On A Career vs Try A Range?

You just graduated.

You studied hard with long nights and early mornings to get where you are now.

You enjoyed this testing and trying time in your life and grew because of it.

But now you are wondering where to apply your skills, degree, and passion. Well if you are one of these people then don't be worried that you are not locking down on a profession and industry like consulting or business development. Even if your friends are.

This is your path and your adventure. You take your time to find that one thing that brings you a smile every morning and makes you happy to work everyday.

I personally did not have a clue what I wanted to do after university and so had to find one for myself. I started out in advertising which exposed me to a great many roles and industries but now I am in a marketing department of a wealth management firm. Without going through the agencies that I did, I wouldn't have understood why I wanted to join the financial services industry and I would have been less experienced. Here are a couple reasons why taking your time is better for you.

1. Stay Flexible & Open Minded Having preconceptions about a certain career and interning at a particular company is not the same as working there. It just isn't. You are not exposed to the same responsibilities and processes that either a part time or full time staff is.

Although you might a particular career would be cool to be a part of for the rest of your career, it is better to be flexible and proactive to keeping your mind open to other possibilities. Life is not that simple and direct. It goes up, down, left, and right and you need to stay flexible at what you career is.

For example when I joined advertising, I really loved it and saw it as a potential home but then learned more about the business and the unstable nature of it, I wanted to join an industry and a role that had more stability from economic forces.

2. Be Proactive For Opportunities & Learning If you studied to be an accountant or marketing and believe that you tied your flag to the mast for the rest of your life, think again.

With today's world of online education and corporate flexibility, anyone can realistically be anything they want with a little bit of drive and commitment. The resources are there for everyone to use so the hardest thing is to acknowledge that your current path isn't bringing you the satisfaction that you want.

This is your life and nobody can tell you what should give you the satisfaction. I have always thought that I would a back-end job and leave the client-facing stuff to others but I learned through being forced to present and engage clients that I actually really enjoy it.

The morale of this story is you don't know what you like and be open to those moments that make you happy.

3. Have A Challenge Mindset

You can only control those things that are within your control. This might seem a little bit obvious but then you might be worrying and focusing on things that aren't like your boss' actions, the business' plans, and the rain.

What you can control is how you approach these situations which can greatly determine the output of it. Going in with a mindset that sees the positive areas of growth and learning will pay dividends in the long term and not just in your career.