In the interest of addressing issues concerning teens and career direction, it is important to put this into the context of Career ADD.
It is no surprise more teens, college age and young adults are suffering from the impact of ADD/ADHD in all areas of life.
With the pressures of high school and preparing for college, teens who are naturally distracted have an even greater challenge when it comes to making one of life’s most important decisions.
Yet, with even a little structured guidance, teens with Career ADD have a much greater chance of getting on the right track from the beginning. Without this guidance, they can drift into college and life switching majors, job hopping, getting fired and risk losing self-confidence if they lack interest.
For those of you with teens with ADD/ADHD you are likely well aware that your child will do very well at anything they truly enjoys.
On the other hand, they may “forget” to do assignments, lose papers or worse, fail in a subject they don’t like.
I have experienced this, and was fortunate that my son knew his career direction in high school. There were and are still challenges knowing that the ADD is a factor and could potentially keep him from passing classes he does not enjoy.
1. Find a professional to help your child determine a career direction as soon as possible.
The vast majority of students, with or without ADD/ADHD do not know what direction to take. Yet they enter college with the idea that they will figure it all out as a freshman or sophomore.
The truth is they are so caught up just trying to keep up with classes and complete “core” courses, they don’t have time to do the crucial exploration necessary (extremely necessary) to making a decision that could lead them toward career happiness, the first job, and less debt than they would have switching college majors over and over. Add to that ADD/ADHD.
Making a small investment could save thousands and future tears.
The colleges, in general, do not prepare students today to make that critical decision. Career Centers are not equipped to provide the guidance needed to explore who they are as individuals and what makes their hearts sing, and ultimately want to focus on a direction in their junior and senior years of high school or college.
2. Your child must love the direction they choose - monitor their enthusiasm.
So what is the solution? As I have written in several previous articles, it is absolutely critical that those of us with ADD/ADHD do work that is enjoyable and even fun. This, of course, is just as true for us as it is for our kids. Watch how your child responds to their new direction – are they beginning to make connections, do more research and, most importantly, are they getting excited?
When my son purchased a Stephen Hawking’s book on his own, with his own money, I knew we were on to something.
3. No professional? Start with a workbook and take it in spurts by encouraging your child to look within. This will also inspire personal growth.
In my work, I use the What Color is Your Parachute Handbook (2010 Edition) with each and every one of my clients, no matter what age. I have found this tool provides “creative structure” for those of us with Career ADD. There is also a “Parachute” style book for teens that is acceptable too.
However, I have found the combination of the original workbook and personal guidance provides teens with structure and support to make a career decision with confidence. As with adults, teens need to do the inner work and be supported in exploring all possibilities, and to get in touch with what they value and what gives them energy, breeds enthusiasm, which, in turn, provides focus.
This may not sit well with you as parents, particularly if you are set on your child going to college, but not all kids are “wired” to go to college.
Some may lean more toward a career that does not require a degree. Some teens may find that their true nature will lead them toward hands-on careers such as mechanics or electronics, fashion design, art or other areas that can be taught through classes, certifications, workshops, internships or a combination.
No matter, by using the handbook as a tool, you can help them get the conversation started. Ultimately, we want our children to accept responsibility for themselves and love what they do in life.
Doing the inner work associated with developing a positive career direction is a great first step.
Teen career ADD image from Shutterstock
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Is your job search turning into a grind with no end in sight? It may be time to take a step back and reevaluate your entire approach.
In cold weather climates, the beginning of spring is a time to clean the house and get organized—a practice known as spring cleaning. Through the years, spring cleaning has taken on a larger meaning with people using the time to organize and declutter things in their lives.
For professionals on the job hunt, a little spring cleaning (metaphorically speaking) could be a great way to reinvigorate your job search. Here are a few strategies your job search spring cleaning should include.
Reevaluate Your Job Search Approach
BigstockMake a list of the last handful of jobs you applied for and see if you can identify any positive or negative trends. Consider things like:
- How did I learn about this job?
- How did I apply for the job?
- Did I earn an interview?
- What was the ultimate result?
A lot can be learned about your job search approach just by answering these questions and identifying patterns. For example:
Negative Trends
You discovered five jobs through job boards, applied to all of them via the job boards, and never heard back from any of them.
The common pattern here is applying through job boards. This isn't to say that job boards don't serve a purpose in the job search process, but they have their limitations, and you can't run your job search entirely off of them. When you apply through a job board, there's a good chance that your materials will never get past the applicant tracking system (ATS) and never be seen by an actual person.
One simple fix is to research who the hiring manager or recruiter is that posted the position and email your materials to them directly.
The more efficient fix would be to take a proactive approach by putting together a bucket list of companies that you want to work for and start making connections on LinkedIn with people who work at those companies. You may already know some people who work there or have connections that can refer you to some individuals.
This is a great way to network your way onto a company's radar.
Positive Trends
You applied to three jobs via referral, were invited to two job interviews, and made it through multiple rounds of interviews for one of the jobs before being passed over for someone with a little more experience.
The pattern here is that getting referred to a job by a professional acquaintance is a great way to land a job interview. This indicates that you're leveraging your network well and you should continue to focus on your networking efforts.
The next step is to review the interview process and determine what went well and what needs to be improved. Sometimes the interviewer will provide feedback, and that feedback can be valuable. However, not everyone is comfortable with giving feedback.
Chances are you probably have a good idea about areas of improvement and the skills you need to gain. Put together a plan for addressing those shortfalls.
The good news in making it deep into any interview process is that it indicates that the company likes you as a potential employee (even if the timing just wasn't right) and the experience could be a roadmap to a job with that company at a later date, or another similar opportunity elsewhere.
Give Your Resume & Cover Letter Some Much-Needed Attention
BigstockAre you continuously sending similar resumes and cover letters to each job opening with only minor adjustments? If so, your strategy needs some serious spring cleaning.
Let's start with resumes!
Every resume should be tailored to the position in order for it to stand out to recruiters and hiring managers. It may seem like a lot of work, but it's actually less work than submitting the same resume over and over again and never hearing back.
The reason why it's so important to tailor your resume is that throughout your career, you acquire numerous skills, but the job you're applying for may only be focusing on 6-8 of those skills. In that case, those skills must rise to the top of the resume with quantifiable examples of how you successfully used those skills at previous jobs.
Remember, recruiters go through hundreds of resumes. They need to be able to tell from a quick glance whether or not you're a potential candidate for the position.
While updating your resume, you could also spruce up your LinkedIn profile by highlighting the skill sets that you want to be noticed for by recruiters.
As for writing a good cover letter, the key to success is writing a disruptive cover letter. When you write a disruptive cover letter, you're basically telling a story. The story should focus on how you connect with the particular company and job position. The story could also focus on your personal journey, and how you got to where you currently are in your career.
If your resumes and cover letters aren't unique, now is the time to clean things up and get on track.
Build Your Personal Brand
Just because you're looking for work doesn't mean that you don't have anything to offer. Use previous career experiences and passions to build your personal brand.
Ask yourself, "How do I want other professionals to view me?"
Pick an area of expertise and start sharing your knowledge and experience with your professional network by pushing out content on your LinkedIn and social media accounts. Good content can include blogs, social media posts, and videos.
By sharing content about your experiences and passions, you slowly build your personal brand, and others will start to notice. The content could lead to good discussions with others in your network. It could also lead to reconnecting with connections that you haven't spoken to in years, or making new connections.
You never know when one of these connections could turn into a job lead or referral. The trick is to get on people's radars. So, when you're cleaning up your job search, be sure to build a plan for personal branding.
Maintain Healthy Habits During Your Job Search
BigstockYour job search is important, but it's even more important to know when to pull back and focus on personal health and spending time with family and friends.
There are actually things that you can do for your own enjoyment that could help your job search in the long run, such as:
- Grab coffee with a friend - It's good to engage in light conversation with friends during challenging times. And if your job search does come up, remember that most people have been through it themselves and you never know when a friend may provide you with a good idea or lead on a job.
- Volunteer - Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the community and help others. In addition, if you develop a little bit of a career gap while looking for a job, you can always talk about how you filled that time volunteering, if you're asked about it during a job interview.
- Continue to focus on other passions - Are you a fitness nut? Blogger? Crafter? Continue to do the things that bring you happiness. And if you're in a position to profit from your passion through a freelance job or side hustle, even better!
Spring is the perfect time to clean up and improve your job search so you can land the job you want. If you're struggling to find a job, follow the tips above to reinvigorate your job search—and watch your career blossom!
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This article was originally published at an earlier date.
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