Whats in Your Future?

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Whats in Your Future?

What Will I Learn?

In this lesson, you will learn how to: Identify personal goals List different kinds of occupations and industries in which you are interested Create a roadmap to a career that you may want to pursue

Copyright 2010, Oracle. All rights reserved.

Whats in Your Future?

Why Learn It?

Why is it important to set goals? By setting goals, you create a plan for your future. Goals allow you to move from here to somewhere else. When planning for your future, it is important to know what types of jobs and industries you like. Perhaps your family is in the mining business, so you are very familiar with it. Or maybe you are an avid mobile phone user, and you know everything there is to know about mobile devices. Knowing the types of jobs and industries that interest you is important because your ideal career is likely to be found in some combination of these jobs and industries.
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Whats in Your Future?

Why Learn It?

After you have identified your ideal job, the next step is to map out the path to landing this job. Can you obtain this job based on previous experience and hope that potential employers recognize your abilities? Or does the job require a formal education? These are all things to think about when planning for your future.

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Whats in Your Future?

Tell Me/Show Me
Goal Planning When setting career goals, use the S.M.A.R.T. framework: Specific what you want to achieve must be clear, focused and easily understood. Measurable the achievement of the goal must be able to be measured. Attainable reaching the goal must be a realistic expectation. Relevant The goal must be relevant to your future objectives. Time-Sensitive your goal must have start and end dates and you must be able to measure progress.

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Whats in Your Future?

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Goal Planning Which of the following goals fall within the S.M.A.R.T. framework? I want to be an Oracle Certified Database Administrator. I want a good education. I want a good job. I want to be a medical doctor. I want to be a world champion cyclist. I want success.

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Whats in Your Future?

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Goal Planning The following goals are very specific and involve attaining a specific credential (a certificate, graduate degree or title). These goals can be accomplished within a set time period. I want to be an Oracle Certified Database Administrator. I want to be a medical doctor. I want to be a world champion cyclist.

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Whats in Your Future?

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Aims Versus Goals The following items are aims rather than goals. They are generalized statements that cant really be measured. I want a good education. I want a good job. I want success. Aims are not as useful as goals in helping you plan for your future.

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Whats in Your Future?

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What Are Your Goals? Think about your own goals. Can you identify three personal goals that fall within the S.M.A.R.T. framework.

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Whats in Your Future?

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Goal Planning Time Frames Goals can be categorized based on the time frame in which you expect to complete them. Long-range goals those goals concerned with the type of job and lifestyle that you want. Medium-range goals those goals covering the next five years or so; they cover the kind of education you are seeking. Short-range goals goals covering the period from one month to one year from now.

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Whats in Your Future?

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What Are Your Goals? Think about your goals for the short, medium and long term. What are your goals Within one month? Within three months? Within one year? Within five years? For the longer term?

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Whats in Your Future?

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Occupations Occupation is another word for job. In the U.S., the most often used source of information on occupations is a book titled the Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH), published by the US Department of Labor. You can read OOH job descriptions on the Internet at www.bls.gov/oco/home.htm. Countries outside of the U.S. may have a similar handbook. Below is a list of Information Technology (IT) related jobs: Computer and Information Systems managers Computer Programmers Computer Software Engineers Computer Support Specialists and Systems Administrators Computer Systems Analysts and Database Administrators Data Entry and Information Processing workers Computer and Office machine repairers
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Whats in Your Future?

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Examining Occupations By examining an occupation such as Database Administrators in the U.S. Department of Labors Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH) in closer detail, you can learn: The training and education needed for the job Earnings Expected job prospects What workers do on the job Working conditions

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Whats in Your Future?

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What Occupations Interest You? Do some job titles appeal to you more than others? When searching for a job, these are the jobs you should research most carefully.

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Whats in Your Future?

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Industries An industry is a basic category of business activity. For example, agriculture, apparel manufacturing, banking, and health services are industries. You can find reviews for industries on the U.S. Department of Labors Career Guide to Industries at http://www.bls.gov/oco/cg. Industries may vary in different countries.

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Whats in Your Future?

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Industries Below is a partial list of industries. For a complete list of industries in your country, refer to your governments Labor and Statistics department. For more information about U.S. industries, please see the U.S. Department of Labors Career Guide to Industries at http://www.bls.gov/oco/cg.
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing Construction Mining Oil and gas extraction Manufacturing Aerospace product and parts manufacturing Apparel manufacturing Chemical manufacturing
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Computer and electronic product manufacturing Food manufacturing Motor vehicle and parts manufacturing Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing Printing Steel manufacturing Textile mills and products

Whats in Your Future?

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Industries (continued)
Automobile dealers Clothing, accessory, and general merchandise stores Grocery stores Wholesale trade Air transportation Truck transportation and warehousing Utilities Information Broadcasting Motion picture and video industries Publishing Software publishers Telecommunications Banking Insurance Securities, commodities, and investments Advertising and public relations services Computer systems design services Employment services Management, scientific, and technical consulting services Child daycare services Educational services Health services Social assistance Federal government State and local government
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Whats in Your Future?

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Examining Industries By examining an industry in more detail, you can learn: Significant points about the industry such as employment projections Nature of the industry (including what kind of goods they offer, if any), organization, recent developments and working conditions Work environment details Percent distribution of employees by age group Occupations in the industry Opportunities for training and advancement Outlook for the future Hourly salaries for occupations in the industry
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Whats in Your Future?

Tell Me/Show Me
What Industries Interest You? What industries interest you most?

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Whats in Your Future?

Tell Me/Show Me
Roadmap to Your Ideal Career Your career is the progression of your working life. Research the combination of jobs and industries that interest you most.

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Whats in Your Future?

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Roadmap to Your Ideal Career (continued) After you have identified your ideal career, next examine the background and skills that successful candidates in the field possess. You can find this information from the OOH or by reading a job description.
Position: Graphic Designer Responsibilities: Create elegant and compelling graphic design for marketing collateral, sales pitches, mock-ups, etc. Collaborate with Marketing Managers to develop messaging and positioning for marketing campaigns and collateral pieces. Work with teammates to grow the team, learn from each other, and continually improve team processes. Needed Qualifications: Proficient using Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, Acrobat, & InDesign. Strong work ethic and ability to work in a team environment. Strong creative conceptual skills as well as a basic technical background. 2+ Years working experience desired. Bonus Qualifications: Reading and/or Writing Chinese; Advertising Agency experience Understanding of web based software (Dreamweaver & Flash) as well as HTML.

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Whats in Your Future?

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Roadmap to Your Ideal Career (continued) The next step is to outline the requirements for the career you have in mind. Identify the background, skills and education that successful candidates in the field possess.

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Whats in Your Future?

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Additional Resources Many of the ideas and activities in this lesson were derived from and inspired by different books and websites about searching for jobs and planning for your future. These resources include: Campbell, David P. If You Dont Know Where Youre Going, Youll Probably End Up Somewhere Else : Finding a Career and Getting a Life. Notre Dame, Indiana: Sorin Books, 2007. Farr, Michael. Seven-Step Job Search. Indianapolis, Indiana: Jist Publishing, 2007. Wellenstein, Carl J. 12 Steps to a New Career. Franklin Lakes, New Jersey: Career Press, 2009.

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Whats in Your Future?

Summary
In this lesson, you have learned how to: Identify personal goals List different kinds of occupations and industries in which you are interested Create a roadmap to a career that you may want to pursue

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Whats in Your Future?

Try It/Solve It
This practice covers the following topics: Identifying personal goals Listing different kinds of occupations and industries in which you are interested Creating a roadmap to a career that you may want to pursue

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