Who are you and what do you want for your future? The answers to these questions are not always obvious. Many of us have been told by others, (i.e. parents, teachers, friends etc.), what we should be when we grow up. Sometimes their choices for us aren't what we want, but oddly enough, often we aren't sure what we want either. When I was a little girl and people would ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would say, "I want to be a professional." They would go on to ask, "a professional what?" I replied, "I don't know. I just want to be really good at whatever I do; a professional." Many of us feel that we are just on the verge of figuring it all out, a breakthrough is about to happen, it's on the tip of our tongue…"I'm going to be a …….," and then, NOTHING.

Getting to know yourself takes time, patience, determination and focus. It's an absolute MUST in order to take full advantage of who you are. It's a process of discovering what's important to you, i.e. your values, interests, abilities. Before you can explore the world of work or a career, you must first understand yourself. Start by asking yourself questions: "What do I want to do?" " What are my goals, dreams and ambitions?" Self-assessment is looking inside yourself and concentrating and focusing on YOU, YOUR needs, and YOUR future-not mom's, dad's, or your friend's.

Knowing your strengths and weaknesses can make all the difference! Take a look at what you have to offer, your skills, your natural talents and in what situations you perform at your best? Often we overlook the obvious. For example, are you good at selling, talking, drawing or building things? These may seem like small, insignificant abilities, but successful people are those who can take a small idea and build on it to make it a great one. Turn your ability to sell things to people into a career in marketing, retail, or pharmaceutical sales. Talk your way to a career in counseling, teaching, law or public relations. Draw your way to a career in design as an architect, a cartoonist, or fashion illustrator. Build a career in construction or engineering. The point I'm trying to make is that if you look inside yourself, you may find that the answer to who you are and what you want for your future is right under your nose.

Your personality type also plays a large role in the success of your career future. It's important to take into consideration whether the career/job you choose is something that you are going to enjoy doing. Are you an extrovert-outgoing, like to be around lots of people, and prefer the leadership role? Or, are you an introvert-quiet, like being to yourself and working in the background/behind the scenes? Figuring this out will increase your chances of having a more satisfying career. If you are outgoing, an extrovert, then consider careers that give you a chance to be in the spotlight such as management, politics or teaching. If you are reserved, quiet, an introvert, then you may want to seek out careers such as computer programming, research or accounting. Take the time to search yourself. It makes sense that if you enjoy what you are doing and feel comfortable in the environment you work in, you will tend to be more committed to it, better at it, and you'll work harder to do it well.

One way to get started figuring out who you are, and what you want in life, is to take a look at where you've been. Begin by evaluating your academic exposure. Look at the classes you've taken: both the ones you enjoyed as well as those you would like to forget. Of the classes you enjoyed, what did you like most about the subject? What made you dislike some of the other classes? Did the class you enjoyed provide you with something that you can develop into a career?

Next, consider what's really important to you-things you value, interests you may have, skills and abilities you possess. Take some time and think about what you might need in order to be happy and ultimately successful in your job/career. Take a look at everything from salary, geographic location, job autonomy, work hours, to professional growth opportunities. Which ones of these and/or others are things that would make an obvious difference in whether you would enjoy your job/career? If you don't take the time to consider who you are and what you want, you won't know what you are looking for. You need to be aware that no job/career is going to be perfect and meet all of your expectations, but if you at least think about which things are more vital to your happiness and aim for those, you can come pretty close to what you want. Think about the skills and abilities you may have that you would like to utilize in your career, (i.e. leadership, helping others, mathematical ability, creativity, communication etc.) Which career fields give you more of an opportunity to take full advantage of who you are and what you want? Don't make the mistake of assuming that for the right amount of money, you'll be just as happy with any career. In the beginning, the money may seem like enough to sustain your job satisfaction and happiness, but soon everyone realizes that money alone is only a temporary fix. If you don't really like what you are doing, or like where you work, you won't be happy and the money won't ever be enough.

Another way to assess your interests might be to consider careers that you may have already been exposed to through part-time and summer jobs, and even volunteer opportunities. Talk to anyone you can find who may be doing something that you think you want to do or have thought about doing. Ask them questions such as why they chose that profession, what do they like or dislike about their job, and what's a typical day like on the job for them? This is called informational interviewing. Examine your own past work exposure to get a better idea about the kind of work environment you would do well in. What kind of supervisor would you prefer-one who gives you a lot of autonomy or one that is more likely to coach you into the job at first? Do you prefer flexible or set work hours? Do you like traveling, working alone or in large groups, etc.? The best way to answer some of these questions is through an internship or co-op. If you have not considered an internship or co-op before, please do. Cooperative education and internships add meaning to the academic experience. Both offer the student the opportunity to gain practical experience. Students can identify career interests and goals and relate them to academic endeavors. Most people believe that you don't need to be concerned about figuring out who you are and what you want to do until you're just about ready to graduate. Yes, this is one way to do it, but why wait until the last minute. You may realize that what you thought you wanted to do really doesn't appeal to you at all.

The sooner you start to think about your future, the better prepared you'll be for it. Self-assessment should be done early and often-as early as your junior year in high school, and at least once a year thereafter. If you didn't go this route, it's still not too late to catch up. Find a career counselor on your campus and get started.

Many students have trouble making career decisions, primarily because they've never had to make them before. Their parents or someone else has always performed this role and now it's their turn. Students are generally all over the map when it comes to decision-making. Some want to do everything, while others don't seem to have a particular interest in anything, and another group is just afraid they may choose the wrong thing. They are literally paralyzed by the thought of deciding.

The more time you spend exploring what you enjoy, what things come easily or naturally to you, what gives you motivation, what piques your interests, the clearer your career future will become. Bit by bit, you will see a pattern developing. Next, realize that you can do just about anything you want, and you can do more than one thing; but you just can't do it all at once. If you like lots of things and can't seem to eliminate any of them, then your task is to select which thing you would like to do first and move on to the next at a later time until you have accomplished all that you want. The most important thing to remember is that nothing is 100 percent guaranteed. Life is about change, and career planning and self-exploration are lifelong processes. You don't just make a decision today and expect that you'll be completely satisfied with that choice for the rest of your life. As you grow and experience things and meet different people, as society grows and technology develops, so will your interests change, grow and re-develop. However, this doesn't mean that the choices you make today are worthless. They too will play an important role in your future. You will be able to draw on these experiences to help you assess yourself later when you want to consider new options, goals and dreams.

When all else seems fruitless and overwhelming, there is help! You may need to seek the assistance of more experienced resources. Three sources I recommend are your career counselor, your academic advisor and the Internet. Your career counselor is the most experienced of the three sources. A career counselor will be able to offer you not only his or her expertise through one-on-one counseling and advising, but also many more tools to help you uncover a multitude of options. Career counselors can provide career specific library resources such as books and videos about certain college majors, careers within those majors, and companies that seek to hire graduates of those majors. In addition, career counselors provide career interest testing such as the Strong Interest Inventory, the Campbell Interest and Skills Survey, the Myers Briggs Type Indicator, the Self-Directed Search, the Kuder Occupational Orientation as well as computerized career guidance programs such as SIGIPLUS, DISCOVER, FOCUS and Career Key. All of these indicators help gauge your personality and your interests, and compare them with others who are already in the field. A career counselor will then interpret the test results with you. Looking at the similarities of the interest in different fields and types of careers, your career counselor will be able to show you many different possibilities beyond the obvious ones that you may have never considered or even thought existed. Your academic advisor is the next source to tap into about college majors and courses as well as jobs related to the field. An academic advisor can help guide you through your four years of undergraduate study and help you to stay focused on the courses needed to fulfill the requirements of your selected major.

Lastly, another awesome resource is the Internet. The Internet can be a bit overwhelming with the amount of information readily available at your fingertips. You can query an occupation on the Internet and end up with hundreds of pages of information to help you better understand that occupation and many others. You can research job openings, internships, co-ops, and even scholarships, grants and loans for college financial assistance.

Life is about choices! If you don't make a choice, someone else will choose
for you!"…Dr. Robert Anthony, author of Think Again

Here are some helpful tips to remember:

• Begin by taking a good look at you.

• Accept the challenge to understand yourself and to like who you've become or the person you aspire to be.

• Ask yourself questions and take the time to find the real answers.

 Marjorie Ellis is the associate director of the Career Development Center at
Appalachian State University.