Career Development Caitlin Faas Career Development Caitlin Faas

How to Find Out All the Details About That Potential Career

Did you know there is a free website where you can explore all the details about occupations?

Do you ever find yourself wondering about the salary of a career you're considering? Or what a person actually does, day to day in that career? There are lots of questions you might have about that career title.

The U.S. Department of Labor collects all of this data and shares it for free on an easy to use website:

http://www.onetonline.org/

The O*Net Online website is what I consider an under utilized treasure trove. Most young adults I work with have never heard of it before. But it contains all of these wonderful details!

Here's one of my favorite examples - genetic counselors. Did you know this is currently a career with a "bright outlook" (careers that have openings, room for growth, etc)? 

Apparently all genetic counselors have their master's degree and their median wage in 2015 was $72,090. I can even click "local salary info" to learn more about salaries broken down by region and state. Their work values include "relationships" and "achievement." They use both email and face-to-face discussions every day. Genetic counselors are good at reading comprehension and critical thinking.

That whole paragraph was just from a quick scan of the O*Net website. 

I don't even know any genetic counselors personally, but reading the details on O*Net gives me a clearer picture of that occupation.

If you don't have a particular occupation title in mind, you can search by categories. There are thousands of occupation titles I didn't even know existed! I bet you could find the same thing to be true if you explored the website yourself. Or if you're in a current occupation, read the details about that position to make comparisons across the United States. There are many ways to use the O*Net Online website. I'm just on a mission to share it with all young adults!

So tell us in the comments - what's something new you learned from the O*NET Website?

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Purpose, Career Development Caitlin Faas Purpose, Career Development Caitlin Faas

Why It's Difficult to be Around People who are on a Clear Path

Do you have people in your life who seem to know exactly what they are doing, why, and how to make it happen? But you don't? You're not alone. Check out this post.

why-i-dont-know-what-i-want-to-do-with-my-life.jpg

It can be really difficult to be around people who know exactly what they are doing with their lives.

When you ask for advice or talk about your own path, they make a lot of vague statements:

"You just have to find your passion!"

"You'll figure it out in time."

"Everything happens for a reason."

"Just believe in yourself."

Ever heard those cliches before?  They are everywhere. And the people that say them intend all the best.

But when you're struggling to find your path, hearing cliches is difficult.

Instead, I like to delve into learning more about other people and their stories. I'd rather hear the details of your story than ask for direct advice. Especially because most people don't know how to give direct advice - they give cliches instead. But they do know how to tell their own story. And we can learn from it.

Think about someone famous that you admire.

Where did they start? Did they always have success? What was their journey? For example, one of my favorite 'famous' people is Gretchen Rubin. She is well known now for her books and podcast about happiness, but before that - she was a lawyer. And she was someone who I started following right after she wrote her first book about happiness. Before she was a household name and inspiring millions. I have watched her journey and can admire her passion and focus. Because she shares so many personal stories in her writing, I feel like I know she hasn't always had a 'clear path' and linear focus. But it's only through reading her material that I've learned this about her.

We don't always have the chance to really learn more about 'famous people.'

So let's think about the unsung heroes in our every day lives that are on a clear path with passion and focus.  Maybe it is a friend, a coworker, or a relative.

This week, try asking the people in your life some specific questions about their journey and see where the conversation takes you:

  1. Tell me about a time you struggled at work.

  2. What would you say are your top three priorities in life?

  3. What's the best thing that has happened to you in the past year?

  4. What's the worst thing that has happened to you in the past year?

  5. Where do you want to be in five years (or ten years, etc) from now?

Through these conversations, it just might be easier to relate and learn something from their path that can help your own.

Asking deeper questions just might help prevent you from hearing a standard cliche.

Want to take the next step toward achieving your personal and professional goals? Check out the top five books I recommend to level up your life! Just leave your details below.

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